Background & Context
College Station ISD serves students across 19 campuses — 10 elementary, 3 intermediate, 3 middle, and 3 high schools — with Dynamic Science implemented K–12, from Kindergarten through Biology and IPC.
Amanda Gibson has been the district's K–12 Science Coordinator for nearly a decade. Her job is equal parts curriculum development and teacher support, split across every grade level and every campus. When Texas dramatically redesigned its science TEKS, Amanda's job got a lot harder — and a lot more important.
The new standards demanded something most of the district had never done before: three-dimensional, phenomena-based instruction. That meant anchoring phenomena, the model revision cycle, and recurring science and engineering practices woven intentionally through every unit. With the exception of 19 teachers across the entire district, nobody had ever taught this way.
"None of us had ever taught using an anchoring phenomena, none of us had ever done the model revision cycle, none of us had ever taught with three dimensions — with intentionality. None of us had ever done that before."— Amanda Gibson, K–12 Science Coordinator, College Station ISD
The district was also out of its adoption cycle. The timing wasn't ideal. But the standards weren't waiting.
The Challenge
The redesigned TEKS didn't just ask teachers to learn new content. They asked teachers to learn a completely new way of teaching. That's a different kind of challenge — and most curriculum publishers weren't built to meet it.
Amanda and her team needed more than a textbook. They needed a partner that could teach teachers how to teach this way. A product that had three-dimensional instruction built in — not bolted on as an afterthought. Engineering design embedded into the core sequence, not offered as a bonus activity for classes with extra time.
They also knew what was coming: an implementation dip. When teachers are learning new instructional routines while also teaching students, things feel slow. Things feel clunky. Data can dip before it rises. College Station was prepared for that reality.
What they weren't prepared for was what actually happened.
The Search for a Better Solution
Amanda ran a rigorous adoption process. The district developed a detailed rubric. They evaluated multiple publishers. They asked hard questions — including whether the product would actually continue to evolve after purchase, or whether it would be frozen the moment the adoption was finalized.
Most publishers gave her the same answer: once the content is built, it's done.
Summit K12 was different.
"I feel like you guys listen — and when y'all have come for site visits, that's been one of the best things, for y'all to see how the product looks with students."— Amanda Gibson
Dynamic Science checked every box on the rubric — and checked them the right way. Engineering design wasn't a sidebar. Anchoring phenomena weren't optional enrichment. The model revision cycle wasn't described as a strategy — it was built directly into the starred activity sequence, the way it was always meant to be taught.
College Station had found their partner.
The Solution
Amanda didn't ease into implementation. She went all in.
Before the 2024 school year, she assembled a cohort of "inquiry mentors" — teachers who would lay the groundwork and help extend the ramp-up as far ahead of launch as possible. Then year one arrived, and the whole district jumped in together: every teacher, every grade level, every unit. All of Summit K12's investigative phenomena. All of the starred activities.
District and campus leadership set clear expectations. Everyone would learn this together. It was going to feel hard. That was okay.
"It felt a little clunky year one — but I was at professional development this week and a veteran teacher said: 'Last year was really hard. But this year is so much better, and I know that next year and the next year and the next year are just going to be better and better.'"— Amanda Gibson
By year two, College Station was refining. Teachers were gaining efficiency with instructional routines. The district was expanding into additional platform features. Curriculum writers were going deeper on fewer phenomena, choosing anchoring phenomena that could carry an entire unit rather than moving through many smaller ones. The rhythm was settling in.
In classrooms, something was clearly shifting. Students weren't just doing labs — they were doing labs with purpose. They were trying to explain a phenomenon. They knew why the learning was sequenced the way it was. They were showing up to class asking not "what are we doing today?" but "what are we doing next?"
"We're seeing students make connections — we figured this part out but we haven't figured this part out yet. That engagement is more sustained over the unit because they're trying to answer that driving question."
Even the youngest students surprised their teachers.
"I had no idea my students knew that much already."
Most Impactful Features
- Anchoring phenomena and investigative phenomena frameworks that sustain engagement across entire units
- The model revision cycle, built into the core instructional sequence
- Engineering design embedded into starred activities — not treated as an add-on
- A dynamic product that continues to evolve based on real teacher feedback
- On-site visits and direct teacher engagement from the Summit K12 instructional team
Ongoing Partnership and Support
Amanda described the Summit K12 partnership as unlike anything she'd experienced with other publishers. The team made on-site classroom visits, spoke directly with teachers, and made real adjustments to the product based on what they heard. Instructional coach Jen Meyer, along with Tony and former sales rep Kathy Harter, were responsive, accessible, and genuinely invested in College Station's success.
"There are people I can talk to that I've communicated with enough that I can just send a personal email and say, 'Hey, I have this one question' — and everyone is very responsive."
For Amanda, that kind of partnership isn't just nice to have. It's what makes the difference between a product that gets used and a product that transforms a district.
"We wanted a partner that would aspire with us. The aspiration wasn't here — it's here. And y'all get us on that."
The Results
College Station expected a dip. They got growth instead.
- STAAR percent passing improved across all three tested subjects — 5th grade, 8th grade, and Biology — from 2024 to 2025, with mid-year 2026 MAP projections showing continued increases in all three courses
- Short Constructed Response scores improved significantly in both 5th grade and Biology — fewer students scoring zeros and ones, more students moving to higher scores — achieved through daily science writing, not SCR drill and practice
- NWEA MAP growth percentiles trending upward year over year when tracking student cohorts diagonally — with winter 2026 achievement percentile data described by Amanda as "totally blown away"
- Gains across high-need subpopulations in 5th grade from 2024 to 2025, demonstrating that phenomena-based instruction works for all learners — not just students who are already good at school
"For our data to look as strong as it is — to be close to maintaining or continuing to grow — was a very pleasant gift."— Amanda Gibson
The work isn't done. But the direction is clear.