Paper Trail: What District Procurement Reveals About Professional Learning

The Center for Education Market Dynamics • October 16, 2026

New research from CEMD and the Research Partnership for Professional Learning (RPPL) offers a clearer picture of what districts are purchasing—and opportunities to better align PL investments with sustained instructional improvement.

The average district works with four PL providers. Hundreds work with 11 or more.

The findings reveal a complex and fragmented PL landscape. Districts navigate multiple providers, priorities, and approaches as they work to support educators and strengthen instruction.

67% of PL contracts include workshops. More than one-third are for one-time sessions.

Purchasing patterns raise important questions about how districts and providers can create opportunities for more sustained, job-embedded support.

What the data reveals about district PL:

• A complex provider landscape: Districts work with multiple PL providers, both within and across subjects, creating a fragmented landscape of support.
• How PL is delivered: Workshops dominate contracted PL, with many engagements limited to one-time sessions rather than ongoing support.
• The role of curriculum in PL investments: Curriculum publishers play a leading role in curriculum-linked PL and account for a substantial share of district spending, though these services tend to be narrower in scope.
• Who PL is designed to support: Teachers are the primary audience for contracted PL services—instructional coaches are rarely named.

For district and state leaders, PL providers, advocates, and researchers, this report offers new evidence about how professional learning dollars are being spent—and opportunities to make those investments more coherent and impactful.