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Professional LearningCommunities in the 21s t Century
4th Annual Texas High School Project EducationConference
November 11th, 2008 from 12:45 p.m. to 2:00 p.m
Facilitated byLois Brown Easton, ASCD
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Professional Learning Communitiesin the 21st Century
Description
State and district standards require teachers to continually acquire new instructional
techniques. In an era where the educational system is presented with a diverse student
body, yearly assessments of teaching efficacy, and continual evaluation of student
performance, quality teacher preparation and career-learning is integral to school success.
More broadly, professional learning is inextricably linked to school reform, which
requires collaboration between teachers, administrators, and the larger community. This
workshop explores approaches to expanding professional learning opportunities,
including peer instruction (teacher-to-teacher), web-based strategies, and the creation of
professional development communities in which a small group of educators meets
regularly to deepen their knowledge of their craft.
Outcomes
Participants will
Understand what Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) are and what theydo;
Know what professional learning is and how it differs from professionaldevelopment;
Know about several strategies for professional learning; and
Be able to facilitate two protocols for professional learning.
Agenda
PL Experience #1 (30-60-90)
Professional learning and professional development: examples & non-examples
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Professional Learning Communities – what they are and what they do
PL Experience #2 (Last Word Protocol)
About Your Facilitator
Lois Easton works as a consultant, coach, and author. She is particularly interested inlearning designs – for adults and for students. She recently retired as Director ofProfessional Development at Eagle Rock School and Professional Development Center,Estes Park, Colorado. Easton was Director of Re:Learning Systems at the EducationCommission of the States (ECS) from 1992 to 1994. Re:Learning was a partnershipbetween the Coalition of Essential Schools (CES) at Brown University in Providence,Rhode Island, and ECS. Prior to that, Easton served in the Arizona Department ofEducation as English/Language Arts Coordinator and then became Director ofCurriculum and Instruction, and then, Director of Curriculum and Assessment Planning.
A middle school English teacher for 15 years, Easton earned her Ph.D. at the Universityof Arizona. Easton has been a frequent presenter at conferences and a contributor toeducational journals. Her book The Other Side of Curriculum: Lessons From Learnerswas published by Heinemann in 2002. She is editor of a book published by the NationalStaff Development Council in August 2004, Powerful Designs for Professional Learning,which is being reprinted for 2008. Corwin Press published her third book, Engaging theDisengaged: How Schools Can Help Struggling Students Succeed in 2008. ASCD ispublishing her third book, Protocols for PLCs in late 2008, and she is working on a fifthbook called Starting and Sustaining a PLC.
Some Professional Learning Resources
Allen, D. (1995). The tuning protocol: a process for reflection. Studies on exhibitions_No. 15.Providence, Rhode Island: Brown University, Coalition of Essential Schools.
Allen, D. (Ed.). (1998). Assessing student learning: From grading to understanding. NewYork: Teachers College Press.
Bernhardt, V. (2002). The school portfolio toolkit: A planning, implementation, and evaluationguide for continuous school improvement. Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education.
Bernhardt, V. (2003). Using data to improve student learning in elementary schools.Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education.
Bernhardt, V. (2004). Using data to improve student learning in middle schools. Larchmont,NY: Eye on Education.
Bernhardt, V. (2004). Using data to improve student learning in high schools. Larchmont,NY: Eye on Education.
Bernhardt, V. (in press). Using data to improve student learning in schools and districts.Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education.
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Bernhardt, V. (2004). Data analysis for continuous school improvement. Second Ed.Larchmont, NY: Eye on Education.
Blythe, T., Allen, D., & Powell, B. S. (1999). Looking together at student work: A companionguide to assessing student learning. NY: Teachers College, Columbia University.
Darling-Hammond, L. (February 1998). “Teacher learning that supports studentlearning.” Educational leadership, Vol. 55, No. 5, pp. 6-11.
Downey, C. J., Steffy, B. E., English, F. W., Frase, L. E., & Poston, W. K., Jr. (2004). Thethree-minute classroom walk-through: Changing school supervisory practice one teacher at atime. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
DuFour, R., & Eaker, R. (1988). Professional learning communities at work. Bloomington,IN: Solution Tree.
Easton, L. (Summer 1999). “Tuning protocols,” Journal of staff development, Volume 20,Number 3, p. 55-56.
Easton, L. (2002). The other side of curriculum: Lessons from learners. Portsmouth, NH:Heinemann.
Easton, L. (2002). Examining student work. Videotape series. (2002). Alexandria, VA:Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Easton, L. (March 2002). “Collaboratively examining student work,” Educationalleadership, Volume 59, Number 6, pp. 28-30.
Easton, L. (Ed.) (2004). Powerful designs for professional learning. Oxford, OH: NationalStaff Development Council.
Easton, L. (2008). Engaging the disengaged: How schools can help struggling students succeed.Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Easton, L. (2008). Powerful designs for professional learning. Oxford, OH: National StaffDevelopment Council, second edition.
Easton, L. (Fall 2008) Mix it up: Variety is the key to a well-rounded data-analysis plan,Journal of Staff Development, 29:4, 21-24.
Easton, L. (June 2008). From professional development to professional learning, PhiDelta Kappan, 89:10, 755-761.
Gagnon, G. W., and Collay, M. (2006). Constructivist learning design: Key questions forteaching to standards. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Garmston, R. J., & Wellman, B. M. The adaptive school: A sourcebook for developingcollaborative groups. Norwood, MA: Christopher-Gordon Publishers, Inc.
Killion, J. (2008). Assessing impact: Evaluating staff development. Second edition.Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press (with NSDC).
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Killion, J., & Harrison, C. (2006). Taking the lead: New roles for teachers and school-basedcoaches. Oxford, OH: NSDC.
Langer, G. M., Colton, A. B., & Goff, L. S. (2003). Collaborative analysis of student work:Improving teaching and learning. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision andCurriculum Development.
Larner, M. (2007). Tools for leadership. New York: NY: Scholastic.
Lewis, C., Perry, R., and Murata, A. (April 2006). How should research contribute toinstructional improvement? The case of lesson study. Educational researcher, 31(3), 3-14.
Lewis, C. C. (1995). Educating hearts and minds: Reflections on Japanese preschool andelementary education. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.
Lewis, C. C. (2002). Lesson study: A handbook for teacher-led improvement of instruction.Philadelphia, PA: Research for Better Schools.
Love, N., Stiles, K. E., Mundry, S., & DiRanna, K. (2008). The data coach’s guide toimproving learning for all students: Unleashing the power of collaborative inquiry. ThousandOaks: Corwin Press (with TERC, RBT, and WestEd).
March, J. K., & Peters, K. H. (2008). Designing instruction: Making best practices work instandards-based classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
McDonald, J. P. (1996). Redesigning school. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
McDonald, J. P., Mohr, N., Dichter, A., & McDonald, E. C. (2003). The power of protocols.NY: Teachers College, Columbia University.
McTighe, J., & Wiggins, G. (2004). Understanding by design: Professional developmentworkbook. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Palmer, Parker. (1990). The active life. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Palmer, Parker. (1998). The courage to teach: Exploring the inner landscape of a teacher’s life.San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Reeves, D. B. (2006). The learning leader: how to focus school improvement for better results.Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Ruiz, Don Miguel. (1997). The four agreements. San Rafael, CA: Amber-AllenPublishers.
Schlecty, P. C. (2002). Working on the work: An action plan for teachers, principals, andsuperintendents. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Schmoker, M. (2006). Results now: How we can achieve unprecedented improvements inteaching and learning. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Sparks, D. (2005). Leading for results: Transforming teaching, learning, and relationships inschools. Thousand Oaks: Corwin Press (with NSDC and NASSP).
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Stronge, James. H. (2002). Qualities of effective teachers. Alexandria, VA: Association forSupervision and Curriculum Development.
Sweeney, Diane. (2003). Learning along the way: Professional development by and for teachers.Portland, ME: Stenhouse.
VonFrank, V. (ed.) (2008). Finding time for professional learning. Oxford, OH: NationalStaff Development Council.
Weinbaum, A., Allen, D., Blythe, T., Simon, K., Seidel, S., & Rubin, C. (2004). Teaching asinquiry: Asking hard questions to improve practice and student achievement. New York:Teachers College Press (with NSDC).
York-Barr, J, Sommers, W., Ghere, G. and Montie, J. (2001). Reflective practice to improveschools. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Some Professional Learning Websites
Annenberg Institute: http://www.annenberginstitute.org/Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development: www.ascd.orgCoalition of Essential Schools: www.essentialschools.org/cs/resrouces/view/ces_res/57Colorado Critical Friends Group: www.coloradocfg.orgLooking At Student Work: www.lasw.orgMaine Department of Education:www.elm.maine.edu/development/tools/atlas.stmNational School Reform Faculty: http://www.nsrfharmony.org/National Staff Development Council: www.nsdc.orgRutgers: cesp.rutgers.edu/events/CFG03-1.htmlStar Tech Program: www.startechprogram.org/stech/lasw.html
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30 – 60 – 90Step One:
Think of something that went very well for you this past year: aninstructional strategy, a lesson, an assessment, a classroom managementtechnique, an experiment, an interaction . . . .
Step Two (30 Seconds):Find someone you don’t know very well in 30seconds and each of you take 30 seconds toshare what went well with you. Make a noteabout what you heard.
Step Three (60 Seconds):Take 30 more seconds to find someone else youdon’t work with a lot. Each of you take 60
seconds to talk about what went well for you as well as what went wellfor the person you met before this round.
Step Four (90 Seconds):Take 30 seconds to find someone else you haven’t talked with yet. Each ofyou take 60 seconds to describe what went well for you as well as what wentwell for the 2 people you’ve already talked with.
Step Five:Return to your own table and each of you shareone thing that went well this past year forsomeone in this room (any one you talked withduring 30-60-90 or yourself). Listen carefully towhat others describe.
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TWELVE QUALITIES OF POWERFULPROFESSIONAL LEARNING
(from the second edition of Powerful Designs for Professional Learning, edited by Lois Brown Easton,published in 2008)
1. Powerful professional learning arises from and returns benefits to the
real world of teaching and learning. This is more important than it sounds.
Often the superintendent or principal who wants to start the school year off
right hires a speaker. Sometimes a committee chooses the person. But
usually staff are clear that not much change is expected as a result of the
speech. It may also be clear that the speaker knows very little about the
school or district or their needs and may be giving a generic speech, perhaps
one that has gone well in other venues. After such speakers have bowed to the
applause, folded up their notes and disengaged their technology, nothing much
does change in the real world of teaching and learning – unless the school
engages in professional learning activities related to what they have heard.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
2. Powerful professional learning requires the collection, analysis and
presentation of real data -- from student work and teacher practice. Test
scores matter but so do other representations of achievement, demographics,
perceptions, and programs and practices that operate in the school. All these,
according to Victoria Bernhardt who wrote Chapter XX, are important to
collect. . .before, during, and after professional learning experiences. Before,
they help educators decide for themselves what they need to learn. During,
they help educators monitor changes happening in classrooms and schools,
adjusting as necessary. After, they provide evidence of improvement and
suggest next steps.
EXAMPLES:
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NON-EXAMPLES:
3. Powerful professional learning begins with what will really help young
people learn, engages those involved in helping them learn, and has an effect
on the classrooms (and schools, districts, even states) where those students
and their teachers learn. Educators who engage in powerful professional
development first work to understand how a school or district can improve
learning for all children, using data as well as their own skills, knowledge, and
experiences.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
4. Powerful professional learning results in application in the classroom.
Throughout the professional learning experience (which may be continuous),
the focus remains on what is happening with learners (both student and adult)
in the classroom, school, and district. The strategies in this book keep the
focus on learning for everyone involved. During their learning, educators
return to the learning environment to do the following:
• Try out a new technique with learners;
• Set up a research process to obtain data;
• Receive feedback from students and coaches and mentors;
• Reflect on what they are learning;
• Confer others about what is being learned;
• Report results; and
• Modify what they are doing and repeat these processes.
They may also plan next steps.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
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5. Powerful professional learning experiences may not formally end; they
may simply evolve into other powerful forms as participants raise more
questions or want to try another strategy. Powerful professional learning
usually leads to the desire to make continued improvement. It may even
change an institution into a learning community.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
6. Powerful professional learning honors the professionalism, expertise,
experiences, and skills of staff. When administrators rely on outsiders, they
may communicate the message that those within a school or district lack
expertise. Although this can sometimes be the case, with powerful
professional learning experiences school and district staff can develop their
own expertise. During the process, educators identify content needs (Chapter
Three) that fit the context of their environment (Chapter One) and select
powerful professional learning strategies (Chapter Two) that will help them
learn; they also identify the people who can lead the learning, people who
might very well be in the school or district itself.
A culture becomes a continuous learning community when educators are
asked to apply their skills and professionalism to improve student learning -
and when they recognize the skills and professionalism everyone else brings
to the improvement process.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
7. Powerful professional learning is content-rich because the content is the
school or district itself. . .its staff. . .its learners. This is content that matters to
the people engaged in the experience.
EXAMPLES:
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NON-EXAMPLES:
8. Powerful professional learning is collaborative or has collaborative
aspects to it. Educators learn from each other, enriching their own
professional lives and the culture of the school or district. They build a shared
vision of a school or district, and – contrasting that with realities – they work
on what matters and help each other make changes. They set goals, help each
other meet these goals and hold themselves and other accountable.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
9. Powerful professional learning establishes a culture of quality. Powerful
professional learning encourages discussion about what quality looks like,
both in terms of the work educators and their students do.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
10. Powerful professional learning results in automatic “buy-in” because it
utilizes the talent within. Those who are going to implement change will be
more likely to do so if they are involved in the design of the change through
powerful professional development. An aphorism speaks to this phenomenon:
Them’s as does the doin’ does the decidin’.”
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
11. Powerful professional learning slows the pace of schooling, providing time
for the inquiry and reflection that promote learning and application.
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Educators seldom pause in our hectic schedules to make sense of what is
going on. They just keep going. Powerful professional learning is a gift to
educators who seldom have a chance to reflect on their own teaching and
learning.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
12. Powerful professional learning designs provide the activities that make
professional learning communities (PLCs) more than just a structure.
Without meaningful learning activities that occur during PLC time, PLCs may
go the way of so many other structures, such as block scheduling and small
schools, that were instituted without enough attention to what teachers and
students do that would take advantage of those structures.
EXAMPLES:
NON-EXAMPLES:
Examples of Powerful Professional Learning Designs(from the second edition of Powerful Designs for Professional Learning, to be published in 2008; new or
greatly revised chapters in bold)Accessing Student VoicesAction ResearchAssessment as ProfessionalDevelopmentBook StudyCase DiscussionsClassroom Walkthroughs withReflective InquiryCritical Friends GroupsCurriculum DesignData AnalysisDifferentiated CoachingImmersing Teachers in Practice
JournalingLesson StudyMentoringPortfolios for EducatorsSchool CoachingShadowingStandards in Practice (AssignmentAnalysis)Study GroupsTraining the TrainerTuning ProtocolUsing Video to Change PracticeVisual Dialogue
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POWERFUL PROFESSIONAL LEARNING
What It Is What It Isn’t
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What People In PLCs Do1
Directions: Place an X in front of each description that appeals to you.
What People in PLCs Do, Generally
_____ 1. People share new knowledge about teaching and learning.
_____ 2. They share insights about how to reach certain students.
_____ 3. They share new ideas about how to improve teaching
_____ 4. They share perspectives on strengths and weaknesses in teaching.
_____ 5. They find an outlet for expressing and sharing frustrations, concerns,problems with teaching.
_____ 6. PLCs help members gain confidence in using a wide range of instructionaland assessment methods.
_____ 7. PLCs help members feel a stronger sense of connection or support fromeach other.
_____ 8. PLCs help members feel professional.
Specifically
_____ 1. Members analyze and discuss student needs
_____ 2. Members read research and study successful strategies for addressingstudent needs, and discuss applications of what they’ve read.
_____ 3. Members discuss similarities and differences in Educators’ approachesand beliefs about teaching.
_____ 4. Members investigate programs, strategies, and materials that might helpmotivate students and help them to learn.
_____ 5. Members design new materials, lessons, or assessments for students.
_____ 6. Members try out new techniques, materials, approaches in teaching and 1 Adapted by Lois Easton from Collaborative Professional Learning in School and Beyond: A Tool Kit forNew Jersey Educators. From SERVE, Atlanta,
15
assessing students.
_____ 7. Members assess and share results of new approaches to teaching with thelearning team.
Even More Specifically
_____ 1. Educators talk to each other about how they teach and the results they get.
_____ 2. Educators learn from each other by watching each other work.
_____ 3. Educators design lessons, assessments, or units together.
_____ 4. Educators critique lessons, assessment or units with each other.
_____ 5. Educators review the curriculum across grade levels in a particular subject– or within a grade level across the subjects.
_____ 6. Educators develop interdisciplinary strategies to increase student interestand learning.
_____ 7. Educators share articles and other professional resources and read anddiscuss books.
_____ 8. Educators ask each other for advice and help with particular students andtopics.
_____ 9. Educators visit each other’s classrooms to examine instructionalapproaches.
_____10. Educators visit other schools to examine instructional approaches in othersettings.
_____11. Educators work together to examine student work samples andassessments in order to better understand student strengths andweaknesses and improve instruction and other aspects of learning.
_____12. Educators provide moral support and encouragement to each other intrying new ideas.
_____13. Educators help each other implement ideas from workshops they attend.
_____14. Educators engage in other professional learning strategies or designs, suchas the following:
Examples of Powerful Professional Learning Designs(from the second edition of Powerful Designs for Professional Learning, to be published in 2008; new or
greatly revised chapters in bold)Accessing Student VoicesAction ResearchAssessment as Professional DevelopmentBook StudyCase DiscussionsClassroom Walkthroughs with ReflectiveInquiryCritical Friends GroupsCurriculum DesignData AnalysisDifferentiated CoachingImmersing Teachers in Practice
JournalingLesson StudyMentoringPortfolios for EducatorsSchool CoachingShadowingStandards in Practice (Assignment Analysis)Study GroupsTraining the TrainerTuning ProtocolUsing Video to Change PracticeVisual Dialogue
What PLC Members Get From Active Involvement in a PLC:
Active involvement in a PLC
_____ 1. Improves overall teaching effectiveness.
_____ 2. Improves skills in helping students learn.
_____ 3. Changes perceptions about some students’ learning abilities.
_____ 4. Increased understanding of how to motivate student to work better.
_____ 5. Significantly changes how people teach.
_____ 6. Significantly changes how people work with each other.
_____ 7. Improves confidence.
_____ 8. Improves morale, feelings of self-efficacy, and enthusiasm about teaching.
What PLC Members Do In A PLC2
___1. Offer facts, opinions, ideas, suggestions, and relevant information during teamdiscussions.
___2. Express willingness to cooperate with other group members and my expectation isthat they will also be cooperative.
2 Adapted by Lois Easton from Collaborative Professional Learning in School and Beyond: A Tool Kit forNew Jersey Educators. Adapted with permission from the South Carolina State Department of Education.
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___3. Remain open and candid in dealings with the entire group
___4. Support team members who are on the spot and struggling to express themselvesintellectually or emotionally.
___5. Take risks in expressing new ideas and current feelings during a team discussion.
___6. Communicate to other team members awareness and appreciation of theirabilities, talents, capabilities, skills, and resources.
___7. Offer help and assistance to anyone on the team in order to improve the team’sperformance.
___8. Accept and support the openness of other team members, supporting them fortaking risks and encouraging individuality.
___9. Share materials, books, sources of information, and other resources with teammembers in order to promote the success of all members and the team as a whole.
___10. Open my classroom and offer my curriculum, instructional strategies, andassessments for the purposes of group learning.
___11. Share student work with my team so that all may learn how to teach better.
___12. Participate in a variety of professional learning activities with my team.
___13. Look for ways to increase the effectiveness of our work together.
Scoring
Directions
1. Add up the number of Xs you placed. Write that number here: _____
2. Use the scoring guide below to determine your interest in forming and/orbeing a part of a PLC:
39 – 50 X marks = Gung ho! Get outta my way. My initials are PLC.
20 –38X marks = Great! It’s about time that educators took professionaldevelopment into their own hands. They can learn a lotfrom each other!
10– 19 X marks = Wow! I can’t quite believe that schools are doing this. Is itreal? I will participate, but I’ll take it slowly. I’ll watchwhat happens.
0 – 9 X marks = Been there, done that. Have seen things like this come andgo. It’ll never work. This too shall pass. Leave me out.
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Historical Characteristics of Professional Learning Communities*
From Peter Senge (1990)1. Systems Thinking2. Personal Mastery3. Mental Models4. Team learning5. Shared Vision
From Kruse, Louis, and Bryk, (1994)1. Reflective dialogue among educators2. Deprivatization of practice3. Collective focus on student learning4. Collaboration5. Shared norms From Shirley Hord (1997)
1. Supportive and shared leadership2. Shared values2. Collective learning and application3. Shared personal practice4. Supportive conditions (including human
and physical or structural capacity
From Richard DuFour & Robert Eaker (1998)
1. Shared mission, vision, values and goals2. Collective inquiry3. Collaborative teams4. Action orientation and experimentation5. Continuous improvement6. Results-oriented
From Alan Blankstein (2004)
1. Common mission, vision, values and goals2. Ensuring achievement for all students; creating systems for prevention and
intervention3. Collaborative teaming focused on teaching and learning4. Using data to guide decision making and continuous improvement5. Building sustainable leadership capacity
CFGs (1980s)1. Critical Friends
Groups2. Peer-to-peer3. Looking at student
work4. Protocols5. Text-based discussions
Quality Circles (1970s)1. Theory Z2. Mixed job teams3. Focus on quality4. Changing the
system5. Deming originates
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A Working Definition of a PLC:
A PLC is
A group of educators who meet regularly to engagein professional learning. . .
For the purpose of enhancing their own practice aseducators. . .
In order to help all students succeed as learners.
Variables AbsolutesThe group size
Members of the groupHow often they meet and for howlongWhat they call themselves
Focus on professional learningactivitiesFocus on what educators do,what’s happening in classroomsand how educators can get betterin terms of what they doFocus on helping all studentssucceed
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Key Characteristics:
• Team learning• Shared vision, values & beliefs• Reflective dialogue• Deprivitization of practice• Collective focus on student learning• Collaboration• Supportive leadership; sustaining
leadership• Supportive conditions• Action orientation and
experimentation; results-oriented• Collection and use of effective data
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Comparing PLCs To “Business As Usual”
PLCS “BUSINESS AS USUAL”A different way of “doing business” inschools
A new name for “business as usual” – thelatest educational fad
People meeting together to focus onprofessional learning
People meeting together to focus on anagenda (busyness, business,announcements, etc.); accomplish tasks;learn something new from outside expert
A variety of people meeting together The usual groups: whole faculty, grade-level teams, subject-area disciplines,department meetings (although these CANbecome PLCs)
Focus on new ways of meeting Use of agendas (same old, same old)Egalitarian (peer-to-peer) Hierarchical (principal, department chair,
in charge, etc.)Supportive, collegial, collaborative Objective, task orientedWork driven by data about students/staff Work driven by agendaVariety of tools (protocols, lesson study,SIP)
Agenda or one-shot workshops;presentations
Outside work important: visiting otherclassrooms, schools; creating lessons andunits and studying them
Ends when agenda is accomplished orwhen workshop is over
Action oriented in terms of implementingnew strategies; experimenting; conductingaction research
Action oriented in terms of accomplishingagenda or completing workshop
Study oriented – books, articles; bookstudy; data analysis
Agenda oriented or presentation oriented
Helpful: coaching mentoring, follow-up Isolated, isolating; abandonment in termsof workshop follow-up
Principal as co-learner Principal as manager, leaderDialogue Decision-making; debate; discussionCollective inquiry Pre-set agenda, workshop topicContinuous One shot deals (meetings or workshops)Student focus Focus on management items or focus on
outside expertise in workshopsSystemic change (one event at a time) Incremental change
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Possible Configurations Of PLCs
WHOLE SCHOOL PLC PLC WITHIN A SCHOOL
SEVERAL PLCS WITHIN A SCHOOL EVERYONE BELONGS TOA PLC IN THE SCHOOL
plcs PLCS FORMED WHEN PEOPLE (SUCH ASPRINCIPALS) COME TOGETHER
OTHER???????
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Do PLCs Work?
Shirley Hord’s (1997) research on professional learning communities found the followingresults for staff:
• Reduction of isolation of Educators;
• Increased commitment to the mission and goals of the schooland increased vigor in working to strengthen the mission;
• Shared responsibility for the total development of students and collective
responsibility for students' success;
• Powerful learning that defines good teaching and classroom practice and
that creates new knowledge and beliefs about teaching and learners;
• Increased meaning and understanding of the content that Educators teach
and the roles they play in helping all students achieve expectations;
• Higher likelihood that Educators will be well informed, professionally
renewed, and inspired to inspire students;
• More satisfaction, higher morale, and lower rates of absenteeism;
• Significant advances in adapting teaching to the students, accomplished
more quickly than in traditional schools;
• Commitment to making significant and lasting changes; and
• Higher likelihood of undertaking fundamental, systemic change.
Shirley Hord’s 1997 research also validated the benefit of PLCs for students. She foundthe following effects for students:
• Decreased dropout rate and fewer classes "cut";
• Lower rates of absenteeism;
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• Increased learning that is distributed more equitably in the smaller high
schools;
• Larger academic gains in math, science, history, and reading than in
traditional schools; and
• Smaller achievement gaps between students from different backgrounds.
More about her work can be found in Learning Together - Leading Together, 2004, fromEducators College Press.
Additional research on the effects of PLCs/teacher collaboration:
Annenberg Institute for School Reform. (2004). Professional learning communities: professionaldevelopment strategies that improve instruction. Retrieved October 7, 2007, fromhttp://www.annenberginstitute.org/images/ProfLearning.pdf
Cochran-Smith, M. & Lytle, S.L. (1999). Relationships of knowledge and practice: Teacher learning incommunities. In A. Iran-Nejad & P.D. Pearson (Ed.s), Review of Research in Education, 24.Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association.
Darling-Hamond, Linda, Orcutt, S. & Martin, D. Pulling It All Together: Creating Classrooms and Schoolsthat Support Learning. In The Learning Classroom: Theory into Practice (pp. 1-5, 25-27). Stanford,CA: Stanford University School of Education.
Duke, D. L. (2006, June). What we know and don’t know about improving low-performing schools. PhiDelta Kappan, 87(10), 728-734. Retrieved October 7, 2007, fromhttp://www.pdkintl.org/kappan/k_v87/k0606duk.htm
Erb, T. O. (1995). Teamwork in middle school education. In H. G. Garner (Ed.) Teamwork models andexperience in education, (pp. 175-198). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Fal, J., Drayton, B. E., & Lee, S-Y. (2004) The pivotal role of teacher collaboration in sustaining systemicreform efforts. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the American Education ResearchAssociation on April 13, 2004. Accessed October 7, 20067, athttp://convention.allacademic.com/aera2004/view_paper_info.html?pub_id=4651&part_id1=24127
Goddard, R. D., Hoy, W. K., & Woolfolk, Hoy, A. (2000). Collective teacher efficacy: Its meaning,measure and impact on student achievement. American Educational Research Journal, 37, 479-508.
Hausman, C. S., & Goldring, E. B. (2001). Sustaining teacher commitment: The role of professionalcommunities. Peabody Journal of Education, 76(2), 30-51.
Inger, M. (1993). Teacher collaboration in urban secondary schools (ERIC/CUE Digest No. 93). NewYork, NY: ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education. Retrieved October 7, 2007, fromwww.ericdigests.org/1994/teacher.htm
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Your Turn: Your Choice of an Activity
PLCs Through Metaphor
What are PLCs like? Choose one of these categories and aspecific item from the category. Be ready to explain whythe metaphor works for you.
Categories:Container Game SportPlant Food/Menu Item BusinessAnimal TV Show/Movie HobbyOther
PLCs Through A Poem
Create an acrostic poem using the letters P, L, and C to start eachline.
Express what you know/think you know about PLCs in each line.Each line can be a different statement OREach line can be connected.Have fun and be ready to share. . . .
Or write a limerick. . .or a haiku. . .or
PLCs Through A Diagram
Show a PLC through a diagram, schematic, or drawing. Be readyto explain it. . . .
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The Last Word Protocol• Get into groups of 3 to 4• Introduce yourselves• Start with the person first introduced.• The first person should make a statement about the topic being
considered, which is
Professional Learning Communities
• Each subsequent person should respond to the first person’s statementwith a comment, question, example, support, detail, etc.
• The person who made the statement initially responds to others’statements – gets the last word!
• Then, the second person makes a statement about the topic• Others respond to this statement• The person who initiated this round responds.
The protocol continues until all have initiated a statement, had othersrespond to them, and then responded to what others said (had the last word).
