Ribbon with PZ in the middle
Ribbon with PZ in the middle

Certification Programs

Earn Certification in
Visible Thinking or Cultures of Thinking!

Project Zero (PZ) Certification Programs in Visible Thinking (VT) and Cultures of Thinking (CoT) confirm your proficiency in one or the other of these core PZ ideas. Each program track (VT or CoT) is designed to deepen your understanding, equip you with powerful strategies to transform your learning context, and provide you with job-embedded feedback in team-based learning experiences. Centered around the core PZ idea, the Certification track includes:

  • Full completion of three separate 4-week mini courses
  • Successful completion of a performance of understanding in the core idea to demonstrate your proficiency with the ideas and your capacity to use the ideas in different ways.

Upon fulfilling these requirements, you will receive a Certification of Proficiency in Visible Thinking or Cultures of Thinking from Project Zero at Harvard Graduate School of Education. The certification documents your proficiency in using the ideas and the 45 professional learning hours.

The Certification Programs are overseen by Mark Church and Ron Ritchhart, researchers and lead developers of these ideas and designers of the courses and the performance of understanding exercise.

Take three short courses in any order

Learn from VT and CoT experienced practitioners

Engage in team-based learning

Complete a Performance of Understanding

Earn a certification in Visible Thinking or Cultures of Thinking

Already completed one or more of the VT or COT courses in the past?  Please email us at pzlearn@gse.harvard.edu and provide information about the courses taken and when you took them. The Learning and Outreach team will be in touch with approval (or the need for further feedback) to let you know you are eligible for the Certification. Then, complete the remaining relative Certification Program requirements. Take note: If you took the in-depth course, Visible Thinking, in the past two years, you only need to complete the Power of Making Thinking Visible. If you have completed the Visible Thinking in-depth course and the Power of Making Thinking Visible, complete the form with your documentation of the dates you took the course and receive confirmation from us and a link to register directly for the Performance of Understanding ($295).

PZ Certification: Visible Thinking

In each course:

  • Discover how thinking routines function as tools and structures that shape students’ patterns of thinking behavior.
  • Develop a better understanding of the power of thinking routines, and learn how the most effective teachers are using them for maximum impact.
  • Transform your learning context with an expanded set of strategies to encourage lasting thinking habits in your students, leading to deeper content understanding and a more thoughtful approach to learning.

Complete the Courses

  • Using Thinking Routines Effectively
    • Through exploration of research and hands-on practice, you’ll discover how thinking routines are powerful tools and structures for developing students’ patterns of thinking behavior.
  • The Power of Making Thinking Visible
    • Develop a better understanding of the power of thinking routines, and learn how the most effective teachers use thinking routines for maximum impact.
  • Developing Thinking Dispositions: When Thinking Becomes Routine
    • Continued exploration of an expanded set of thinking routines - learn practical strategies for empowering students to develop lasting thinking habits, leading to deeper content understanding and a more thoughtful approach to learning.

Complete a Performance of Understanding

The Performance of Understanding (PoU) is a set of assignments that asks you to demonstrate your knowledge of the VT or CoT ideas and your capacity to use them in different teaching and learning contexts. View more details here.

PZ Certification: Creating Cultures of Thinking

In each course: 

  • Discover the cultural forces that shape learning and discover how to leverage them to promote deep learning and thinking.
  • Develop a better understanding of why culture matters and analyze how you can leverage culture in your own learning context.
  • Transform your learning context using powerful strategies and tools to create a community where thinking is valued, visible, and actively promoted.

Complete the Courses

Complete a Performance of Understanding

The Performance of Understanding (PoU) is a set of assignments that asks you to demonstrate your knowledge of the VT or CoT ideas and your capacity to use them in different teaching and learning contexts. View more details here.

Performance of Understanding

The Performance of Understanding (PoU) is a set of assignments that asks you to demonstrate your knowledge of the VT or CoT ideas and your capacity to use them in different teaching and learning contexts. Within 10 business days of registering for the PoU, you will receive access to the online course site with the assignments and the name of the PoU facilitator, an experienced practitioner in the VT or CoT ideas, who will assess your work against a rubric designed by Mark Church and Ron Ritchhart.

  • You will submit a draft of your responses to the assignment by a date you choose but it must be within two months of your registration date.
  • The PoU facilitator will review your submission and then meet with you for a 30 minute Zoom conversation to share the feedback and talk through suggestions and possible revisions.
  • You make adjustments and revisions and then submit the final draft.
  • The PoU facilitator reviews the submission and grades it.

Each Certification Program gives you the opportunity to deepen your understanding and support meaningful change in your practice.

Dates: November 1, 2025 - May 31, 2026

Cost: $295

Please email us at pzlearn@gse.harvard.edu to confirm registration.

Questions?
We're here to support your learning journey. Reach out to us at pzlearn@gse.harvard.edu