Professional Learning Communities: A Myriad of Possibilities

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Professional Learning Communities A Myriad of
Possibilities

• Stevi Quate
• UCD Colorado CFG
• Stevi.quate_at_cudenver.edu
• Jim Hontz
• Colorado CFG

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Collaboration Breaking the norm

• Norm of Independence
• Teachers work in isolation
• Teachers develop their own practice (plans,
  tests, iinstruction)
• Pockets of excellence
• Teaching as a private practice

• Norm of Collaboration
• Teachers co-plan
• Teachers assess the effectiveness of their work
  together
• Making our teaching public

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Parker Palmer

• the privatization of teaching not only keeps
  individuals from growing in their craft but
  fosters institutional incompetence as well.

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Parker Palmer (again)

• The growth of any craft depends on shared
  practice and honest dialogue among the people who
  do it. We grow by private trial and error, to be
  sure but our willingness to try, and fall, as
  individuals is severely limited when we are not
  supported by a community that encourages such
  risks.

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HOW TEACHERS COLLABORATE

• Storytelling
• Providing help and assistance (sharing tips)
• Sharing resources
• Joint work

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Newmann and Wehlage

• If schools were to enhance their organizational
  capacity to boost student learning, they should
  work on building a professional community that is
  characterized by shared purpose, collaborative
  activity, and collective responsibility among
  staff.

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Examples of PLCs

• Critical friends groups
• DuFours professional learning communities
• Standards in Practice (SIP)
• Lesson study
• Results teams
• Action study teams
• Teacher book clubs