If you are already certified, and are looking to recertify, please click here.
If you are a district employee and are looking to be a trainer, click here.
If you would like to train for Kagan as an Associate Trainer, click here.
Has your school’s entire faculty been trained in Kagan Cooperative Learning, and are your colleagues implementing Kagan Cooperative Learning with their students? Has your school identified actively engaging all students through Kagan Cooperative Learning as a school-wide initiative to accelerate achievement in your school’s improvement plan? Are you routinely implementing Kagan Cooperative Learning with your students by replacing calling on volunteers to answer your questions with Everyone Answers structures? Do you want to onboard the new hires at your school in Kagan CL to maintain the school-wide implementation of Kagan CL in all classrooms at your school, but struggle to find ways to fund the training of only a few new teachers each year? If your answer to each of these questions is “YES,” then you might consider becoming a certified Kagan School Trainer to support the continued professional development of your colleagues in Kagan Cooperative Learning.
Process
The Kagan School Trainer Certification program is structured to support the elements of effective professional development and school improvement. The real goal of any professional development is to create systemic change that positively impacts student learning over time. It is essential that any innovation be part of a structured school improvement process that includes training, monitoring, support, and resources. The primary focus of the Kagan School Trainer certification program will be to train Kagan School Trainers in institutions where cooperative learning has been chosen as a school-wide initiative with administrator and teacher buy-in.
Careful consideration has been given to the research on professional development. The three-part process identified below has embedded components that enhance transfer from the workshop to implementation in the classroom. This 3-part process must be completed within three years. Although this process is rigorous, the components are essential to successful long-term implementation of Kagan Cooperative Learning.
Kagan School Trainers receive training in leading the essential elements of Kagan Cooperative Learning with the new members of their faculty who have not been trained by a nationally or internationally certified Kagan trainer. Applicants who are selected to become certified as Kagan School Trainers are provided with extensive, detailed outlines to help them develop their training materials, such as slides and anchor charts, but do not have access to pre-made presentation materials. Kagan School Trainers additionally are authorized to purchase the Kagan Cooperative Learning textbooks and workbooks for their colleagues, which are required for each new hire who is trained by the Kagan School Trainer.
Careful consideration has been given to the research on professional development. The three-part process identified below has embedded components that enhance transfer from the workshop to implementation in the classroom. This 3-part process must be completed within three years. Although this process is rigorous, the components are essential to successful long-term implementation of Kagan Cooperative Learning.
Description and Requirements
School Level Training
- Entire staff (at least 90%) completes at least one day of cooperative learning with a Kagan National Trainer. More days are strongly recommended with a national
trainer. See Workshops. Applicant submits documentation of training that includes dates of training, name of Kagan trainer and % of staff in attendance.
Rationale: Staff must be exposed to Kagan Cooperative Learning before they can support the initiative fully. - School principal and other administrators attend training with staff and commit to support and monitor the initiative.
- Applicant submits a letter of support from building administrator. Letter includes but is not limited to
the following:
- How Kagan Cooperative Learning fits into building initiatives.
- How applicant will be utilized to support Kagan Cooperative Learning with new hires (and, potentially, for support of previously-trained colleagues).
- Why applicant was chosen to apply.
- Date of Kagn Cooperative Learning training attended by administrator.
Rationale: No successful implementation can occur and sustain itself without administrative support.
NOTE: The documentation of both staff/administrator training and the letter of support for the applicant from the administrator MUST be submitted in PDF format.
School Improvement
- Kagan Cooperative Learning is identified as a strategy in the building school improvement plan. All staff agree to implement the initiative.
- Applicant submits the page(s) out of the school improvement plan and highlights where Kagan Cooperative Learning is noted as a strategy. Optional: Additional pages regarding support, resources and timelines may also be submitted. Please submit only the applicable pages, not the entire School Improvement document.
Rationale: It is essential to involve staff in collaborative decision making regarding school-wide initiatives.
NOTE: The highlighted pages from the School Improvement Plan MUST be submitted in PDF format.
Trainer Selection/Certification
- Certification applicant must complete a week-long institute by a Kagan National Certified Trainer. While the full Kagan Cooperative Learning training can occur earlier in the process, the applicant must have attended a Kagan workshop within three years of the application. NOTE: The documentation of the applicant’s completion of Kagan Cooperative Learning training MUST be submitted in PDF format.
Rationale: In order to become a trainer, teachers must participate in the actual training they will be conducting at a later date. Additionally, the applicant must demonstrate enthusiasm for implementing Kagan Cooperative Learning. - Certification candidate must use the Kagan Structures and content from the week-long training with students in a classroom for a minimum of one year. Note: If applicant is not a classroom teacher, he/she must borrow a classroom or classrooms to practice with students. This applies to building and/or district administrators and instructional coaches.
Rationale: A trainer must be able to stand in front of a group and speak from experience. Participants often have questions that can only be answered by someone who has used the structures with students. - In addition to the previously described documents, the applicant also must submit the following:
- Written description of how the applicant has replaced Calling on One with either Kagan Cooperative Learning Everyone Answers! Pair Structures and/or Everyone Answers! Team Structures. This description should include an explanation of the process of how the applicant replaced the habit of calling on volunteers with the habit of calling on everyone, including the successes and the challenges the applicant faced, as well as examples of questions/tasks they generally use for the Everyone Answers! structures.
- Written description of five additional Kagan Cooperative Learning Structures that are implemented regularly by the applicant. This description should clearly explain how these five structures are used routinely by the applicant, as well as why each of them is a “top five” Kagan Cooperative Learning Structure for the applicant. Please include content and grade level(s) in which the structures are implemented, as well as student work samples if appropriate.
- One page sample lesson plan reflecting the use of Kagan Cooperative Learning Structures within a lesson. This lesson plan should include the questions the teacher asks students and/or the tasks the teacher assigns students, indicating Everyone Answers! Pair or Team structures, and at least one of the applicant’s “top five structures” explained in the second step above, as well as additional structures that are not included in the “top five” description.
- Links to two video clips of the applicant implementing a Kagan Cooperative Learning Structure with PreK – grade 12 students (10-15 minutes), and the applicant implementing a different Kagan Cooperative Learning Structure with adults (10-15 minutes). The videos MUST be unlisted links from either YouTube or Vimeo. Make sure the videos are set to unlisted, and the links are working on the application files. Do NOT submit the videos themselves; submit only the unlisted links.
Rationale: Kagan must ensure that all School Trainers can work successfully with students as well as adults. See trainer characteristics checklist for more information. - One page video reflection with your permission for Kagan to use your videos for training purposes only. Reflection should include perceptions, insights and ideas for improvement. Reflection should be about both video clips submitted. The video links should be included at the top of this reflection page.
- One page reflection of how the applicant teaches/utilizes the Seven Keys to Kagan Cooperative Learning. The written and video submissions in the previous five steps will document the applicant’s usage of Kagan CL Structures. This reflection should outline the applicant’s usage of the other six keys for success (teams, classbuilding, teambuilding, management, social skills, and PIES).
Please note that the first six requirements MUST be submitted in separate editable Word documents (NOT PDF’s).
- $50 application fee applies and must be submitted with the application packet. Failure to submit all required components of the application process in the correct formats and within the application window, along with the application fee, may result in automatic rejection.
- If accepted, the school trainer applicant must attend school trainer workshop the year in which they are accepted into the Kagan School Trainer program. Training is held once a year. Kagan reserves the right to cancel trainings that do not meet minimum enrollment requirements. The next training will be scheduled for the summer of 2026.
Rationale: Kagan regularly updates the content of workshops. Therefore, it is important that initial training is current to stay abreast of revisions. - School Trainer agrees to abide by guidelines established by Kagan which includes trainer expectations and copyright guidelines, including the oath to only train educators at their designated school site. Click here for Kagan's copyright policy.
Rationale: Kagan is committed to protecting the quality and integrity of the Kagan model. - School Trainer recertifies every three years to maintain school trainer certification.
Rationale: Materials, content and resources used in training are continually improving and updating.
Application Window is Now Closed.
Next application window will open January 1 – March 1, 2026
