PreK-12 Professional Learning Market 2020

Report Overview

PreK-12 Professional Learning Market 2020 is Simba Information’s most recent examination of the dynamic school professional learning market, which continues a transformation from top-down professional development to teacher-led, job-embedded, continuous professional learning.

The report breaks down the customer and roles of school districts and states, as well as the influence of federal and state policies on the estimated $5.71 billion market in 2020.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic headlines the trends in professional learning that include a look at increasing personalization, a focus on technology, and topical content areas.

The report slices the highly competitive market into seven provider types ranging from independent consultants to instructional materials providers to foundations and associations with estimated market shares for each category.

The report includes four case studies, as well annual growth projections for professional learning through 2022-2023, and brief profiles of 14 leading commercial and non-profit providers of professional learning.

The Need for Professional Learning

In PreK-12 Professional Learning Market 2020, Simba Information examines the professional learning segment, also known as professional development, for teachers, administrators, and other educators with a focus on factors influencing change in the market, challenges facing the sector, and the forces driving demand.

• Sales of professional learning materials and services used in U.S. PreK-12 schools reached $5.71 billion in 2019-2020, up 4.2% from $5.47 billion the previous year. Growth is due in part to increased funding and legislation dedicated to professional learning as well as recognition that high-quality PD can move the needle on student performance.
• The shutdown of schools across the country caused a brief stoppage of professional learning as schools transitioned to remote learning, followed by a strong need for immediately applicable lessons on how to effectively drive student learning in a remote environment. The coronavirus crisis accelerated some trends that were happening already in both student and professional learning, most notably a move to digital learning.
• The need for PD on social-emotional learning topics already was increasing and is likely to intensify in the next year or two, many experts believe, due to the pandemic. The crisis caused students to feel fear and uncertainty, and they have been dealing with isolation from their friends and trusted adults at school. Educators are expecting the re-entry process to be challenging.
• Poor NAEP results in reading have underlined the need for professional development in literacy over the past few years. The move to at-home learning in spring 2020 intensified this need as researchers are predicting significant losses in student progress during that period. Foundational literacy topics, as well as foundational math, are likely to be key needs going forward.