Apply Now for the 2017 Rida Institute

People in Education (PIE) is now accepting applications for the Rida Institute, a year-long professional development training with a focus on critical pedagogy.  

We believe that in order to transform our school system, we as educators must begin by transforming our own practices and design our classrooms to nurture the transformative leadership of our students.

The Institute will begin with a three-day curriculum planning retreat taking place August 2-4 in Detroit. The retreat will introduce teachers to the “Rida Framework,” one of People in Education’s planning tools for humanizing schooling. Participants will be trained in PIE’s best practices for curriculum planning and classroom culture-setting. PIE will continue to support participants in the Institute to reflect and course-correct throughout the year.

Apply here for the 2017 Rida Institute. The deadline to apply for the 2017 Rida Institute is July 24th.

Rida Institute Professional Development Training

Participants of the Rida Institute will attend the following training sessions:

Rida Institute Retreat – August 2-4, 2017
This three day retreat will introduce teachers to the Rida Framework, PIE’s planning tool. The tools supports teachers to articulate their purpose as educators within their context of their school, their neighborhood, their city, and the world. From there they will identify the skills and practices they need to cultivate (in themselves and in their classrooms) in order to fulfill that purpose. They will learn best practices for nurturing student agency and leadership. With the support of PIE staff, teachers will create unit plans and self-defined metrics by which they will measure progress towards their stated purpose and goals.

Monthly Meetups
Throughout the year, teachers will have the opportunity to  grow a supportive community of peers with whom they can troubleshoot challenges and share successes.

*New for 2017* Student Interviews
PIE staff will conduct interviews with a small group of the participating teacher’s students to evaluate their perceptions of the classroom and their attitudes towards school overall.

Classroom Documentation & Evaluation
Every classroom will be observed at least once during the year. Teachers will then reflect on these student evaluations during one-on-ones to understand what is working or not working in their classrooms, and adjust their instructional practices accordingly.

The cost for the year long institute for individuals is $300. The cost to participate as a representative of an institution is $500. Meals will be provided throughout the three days of the Rida Institute Retreat and at other events throughout the Institute.

NOTE if you are not based in metro Detroit, please select the non-local option on the application. As a non-local participant you can only participate in the three day Summer retreat in August, for a cost of $150.

Scholarships are available – please indicate your need for a scholarship in the application form.

If you have any questions please email nate@alliedmedia.org

The Rida Framework
The Rida Framework is the primary planning and evaluation tool that PIE uses to humanize schooling, inspired by the educational theories of Paolo Freire, Jeff Duncan-Andrade, and James and Grace Lee Boggs. Freire, a Brazilian educator and theorist, believed that cycles of critical reflection and action were key to any transformative learning process. From this approach, users of the Rida Framework articulate practices (action) that will result in desired/outlined outcomes within their classrooms, which they will document and evaluate via predetermined metrics (reflection).

Learn more about the Rida Framework here.

Read a recap of the 2014 Rida Institute held here.