ECOS Quality

ECOS Institute Quality Framework for Transformative Professional Learning

Learning with Purpose, Growing with Care.
Quality That Connects, Includes, and Transforms.

At the ECOS Institute, we believe professional learning is a catalyst for change. Those who work with young children shape futures, and they need learning experiences that are reflective, inclusive, meaningful, and grounded in shared values that support children’s wellbeing.



The ECOS Institute's Quality Framework for Transformative Professional Learning establishes a shared understanding of what quality means. It guides the design, delivery, and evaluation of professional learning across roles and settings.


The framework is rooted in ISSA’s values, informed by international evidence and field-based experience, and grounded in adult learning principles, democratic engagement, and social responsibility. This approach highlights that what we offer and how we facilitate learning determine how effectively professionals engage with and apply new practices. It also affirms that quality in transformative learning is not a fixed standard, but a dynamic, relational, and value-driven process—one that calls for learning environments that center the learner, act with purpose, and remove barriers to participation.


This framework is an invitation to raise our collective standards, strengthening professional learning, and ultimately, the children and communities it serves.


Understanding how this transformation occurs begins at what we call the Transformative Nexus.

The Transformative Nexus of Professional Learning

Transformative learning emerges at the intersection of three key dimensions: the integrity of what is taught, the relationships and processes through which learning unfolds, and the structures that enable meaningful participation. At this intersection, learning is not merely about receiving information, but is transformative: a process that reshapes practitioners’ understanding, relationships, actions, and ultimately their practice. This shift is reflected in:

  • how learners understand their role,
  • how they relate to others, and
  • how they act within their systems and contexts.


This nexus is where content integrity, relational pedagogy, and accessible structure come together to create meaningful, empowering, and enduring professional learning.


Three Domains of Quality

Quality Domains

Quality in transformative professional learning is multi-dimensional and emerges when value-driven content, relational pedagogy, and accessible structures work in harmony. When these domains converge, they create a transformative learning space where new understanding becomes action, identity strengthens, and meaningful change becomes possible.
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Next Steps...

We have developed templates to make it easier for you to propose sharing existing offerings through ECOS, or to guide you as you design new professional learning opportunities.

To receive the relevant forms, please contact us (form below). We would be happy to respond to your questions and discuss opportunities together.

We'd love to hear from you.

info@ecosinstitute.net
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