professional learning community overview

Professional Learning Community Overview

Jack Baldermann

708-243-0597jackbaldermann@gmail.com

THE COMMUNITY ENTRUSTS THE COMMUNITY ENTRUSTS

TO US WHAT IS MOST TO US WHAT IS MOST

SACRED IN THEIR LIVES.SACRED IN THEIR LIVES.

Every Student is a Genius (Armstrong, 1998)

• “It may be buried under loads of putdowns, negative evaluations, low grades and test scores, delinquent behavior, self-hatred, and more, but like the seed in winter that lies dormant…only to blossom in the sun’s warmth in spring, this genius too can survive if you will take the time to study the optimum conditions for its growth in the classroom” (p. 48).

“This is the team. We’re trying to go to the moon. If you can’t put someone up, please don’t put them down.”

- NASA Motto

What We Believe and Live--Philosophy

“I look for people who are psyched and ready to do whatever it

takes. Attitude is about being on fire—you’ve got to approach work

like it’s a religious experience.”

Charlie Trotter, Lessons in Excellence

What We Believe and Live--Philosophy

““Excellence is the result of caring Excellence is the result of caring

more than others think is wise, more than others think is wise,

risking more than others think is risking more than others think is

safe, dreaming more than others safe, dreaming more than others

think is practical, and expecting think is practical, and expecting

more than others think is more than others think is

possible.”possible.”

High Expectations for High Expectations for ALLALL students students

Riverside Brookfield High School:Results - Accomplishments

• One of the Most Improved High Schools in Illinois/Nation

• Top 100 – America’s Best High Schools – Newsweek (2006)

• “A+” – Highest Rating – School Search, Inc.

• “Outperformer” – Highest Rating – Standard & Poor’s

• 99% Graduation Rate (2004, 2006)

• 100% Graduation Rate for Hispanic & African American students (represent 17% of population) (2006)

• Rated “10 out of 10” – Great Schools

Continuous Improvement

““Good is Good is the the

enemyenemy of of greatgreat.”.”

Jim CollinsJim Collins

Good to Great

“No matter how much you have achieved, you will always be merely good relative to what you can become. Greatness is an inherently dynamic process, not an end point. The moment you think of yourself as great, your slide toward mediocrity will have already begun.”

Jim Collins

Outcomes•To gain a better understanding

of what a professional learning community is and how it works.

•To emphasize the importance of collaboration in order to maximize student achievement.

What are our schools’ What are our schools’ strengths?strengths?

What is a What is a Professional Professional

Learning Learning Community?Community?

Three Big Ideas

• Learning for All– Learning as the constant, time and

support as the variable

• A Culture of Collaboration– “A systematic process in which we work

together, interdependently, to analyze and impact professional practice in order to improve our individual and collective results.” -DuFour, DuFour & Eaker

• Focus on Results

Why PLC?

“The most promising strategy for sustained, substantive school improvement is building the capacity of school personnel to function as a professional learning community. The path to change in the classroom lies within and through professional learning communities.”

-Milbrey McLaughlin

Four Critical Questions

1. What is it we expect kids to learn?

2. How will we know when they have learned it?

3. How will we respond when they don’t learn?

4. How will we respond when they already know it?

Implementing the PLC Model

• Teaching vs. Learning

• Shared Mission, Vision, & Values

• S.M.A.R.T. Goals

• Collaborative Teams

• Establish Essential Outcomes

• Create Common Assessments

• Examine Student Data to Improve Instruction

• Commitment to Continuous Improvement

• Results Orientation

TeachingTeaching

vs.vs.

LearningLearning

“Whereas many schools operate as if their

primary purpose is to ensure that children

are taught, PLCs are dedicated to the idea

that their organization exists to ensure that

all students learn essential knowledge,

skills, and dispositions.”

DuFour, Robert Eaker & Thomas Many; Learning by Doing

Focus on Learning

“Rather than improving students, the business of the school becomes improving the educational experiences provided to students.”

- Phillip C. Schlechty, Shaking Up the Schoolhouse, 2001

Shared Shared Mission, Mission, Vision, & Vision, & ValuesValues

Mission, Vision & Values

“It is impossible to develop a results orientation unless we are clear about the core of the enterprise (mission), about the kind of school we’re seeking to become (vision), and the attitudes, behaviors and commitments we need to promote, protect and defend (values).”

DuFour & Eaker

A PLC’s Mission and Vision Must…

– FOCUS ON LEARNING

– EMPHASIZE A COLLABORATIVE CULTURE

– HOLD HIGH EXPECTATIONS FOR ALL STUDENTS

– FOCUS ON RESULTS AND BE COMMITED TO CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

S.M.A.R.T. S.M.A.R.T. GoalsGoals

S.M.A.R.T. Goals

Specific

Measurable

Attainable

Realistic

Timely

“Replace the voluminous strategic planning process

with a few very specific goals.”

-Learning by DoingDufour, et. al.

Page 120

Goals• Results by Mike Schmoker

• Big Hairy Audacious GoalsB.H.A.G.S. – Jim Collins

• The Carrot Principle – Gostick and Elton

• School Goal Setting Rick Dufour

McREL’s meta-analysis of 27 studies on successful school

leadership found:

• Set “non-negotiable” goals for achievement

• Involve others in setting these goals• Continually monitor progress and

make corrections as needed• Focus resources, especially for

training, on district-wide goalsRobert Marzano & J. Timothy Waters

Why Goals?

The The Power of Goals of Goals•Provides Focus

•Sense of Accomplishment for Teachers/Students

•Pride

• For each class, we will work to maintain a graduation rate of 95% or higherStrongly Support-82 Support-24 Disagree-1 Strongly Disagree-0

• To increase academic achievement as measured by the PSAE/ACT so our students’ scores continuously improve and rank in the top 5% or higher of high school districts in IllinoisStrongly Support-65 Support-38 Disagree-2 Strongly Disagree-1

• To challenge and support all of our students to the best of their ability including building one of the best AP programs in the state and nation and having our school rated as one of the top ten high schools in Illinois using the Newsweek Challenge IndexStrongly Support-50 Support-49 Disagree-8 Strongly Disagree-0

• We will continue to implement the Professional Learning Community Model including collaboratively developing common assessments and reviewing student performance data to improve curriculum and instruction Strongly Support-64 Support-28 Disagree-0 Strongly Disagree-0 More info-15

CollaborativCollaborative Teamse Teams

Collaborative Culture

“Creating a collaborative culture

is the single most important

factor for successful school

improvement initiatives and the

first order of business for those

seeking to enhance the

effectiveness of their schools.”Eastwood & Lewis

Collaborative Culture• Advantages for Teachers

– Gains in student achievement

– Higher quality solutions to problems

– Increased confidence among all staff

– Ability to support strengths and accommodate weaknesses

– Ability to test new ideas

– More support for new teachers

– Expanded pool of ideas, materials, methods

Judith Warren Little

Tips for Team Norms

• Each team establishes its own norms• Norms are stated as commitments to

act or behave in certain ways • Norms are reviewed at the beginning

and end of each meeting until internalized

Sample – Norms for Team Meetings

• Be honest and share what you think and feel• Participate in the conversation. It is your

responsibility to get your voice in the room.• Focus on the task.• Think creatively and comprehensively.

• Treat each other as equals.• Listen to and understand one another’s

viewpoints.• Ensure equal time for all participants.

Sample Purposes and Non-Purposes

• Purpose – to share best practice• Non – to compete or out-do each other

• Purpose – to identify criteria for solving a problem and /or to brainstorm solutions

• Non – Shame or blame others for the problem.

• Purpose – to collaboratively raise reading scores for 11th grade students.

• Non – plan and schedule field trips

Collaborative Culture

“In a PLC, collaboration

represents a systematic process in

which teachers work together

interdependently in order to

impact their classroom practice in

ways that will lead to better results

for their students, for their team,

and for their school.”www.allthingsplc.info/

Isolation Collaboration

“It should be evident that schools will never realize the fundamental purpose of helping all students achieve at high levels if the educators within them work in isolation.”

DuFour et al., Whatever It Takes, 2004. p. 60

Isolation Collaboration

“Schools can guarantee all

students have access to the

same essential outcomes only

when the teachers… work

together to clarify and

commit to those outcomes.”DuFour et al., Whatever It Takes, 2004. p. 60

Collaborative Culture

Effectiveness = Focus on STUDENT LEARNING

Special Education Placement

Case Study Evaluation

Child Review Team

Mentor Program Placement

Guided Study Program

Student Assistance Team Referral

SST and Teacher Conference with Parent

Social Work Contact/Peer Mediation

Student Placement on Weekly Progress Reports

Counselor Conference with Student and Parent

Good Friend Program

Counselor Phone Calls to Parents

Counselor Meeting with Student

Counselor Watch/Survival Skills for High School

Freshman Advisory/Freshman Mentor Program

Pyramid of Interventions

DuFour et al., Whatever It Takes, 2004. p. 210

Riverside Brookfield High SchoolResponse to Interventions (RtI)

Strategies

Individualized StrategiesAdministrative Teaming, Alternative Placement,

Alternative Schedule, Behavior/AcademicContracts, Classroom Observation, IEP,

504 Accommodation Plan, Intervention Teams,Outside Referrals, Progress Monitoring, Records Review,

Weekly Progress Reports

Universal StrategiesBefore School/After School Help, Articulation with Feeder Schools, CAP,

Clubs/Sports/Extra-Curricular Activities, College Planning Workshops and Programs, Common Assessments, Drug/Alcohol Prevention Presentations, Ed-Line, Freshman Orientation,

Naviance, Parent/Teacher Conferences, Progress Reports, Universal Freshman Screening, W/F List

Targeted StrategiesAcademic Support, ADA, Ambassador Program, Behavior/Academic Referrals, Blitz, Classroom

Profiles, Correspondence Courses, Counselor Watch Program, Drug & Alcohol Counseling, ESL, Executive Functioning Program, Freshman Academic Success Seminar, Learning Resource Center, National Honor Society Tutoring, Parent/Student/Counselor/Teacher

Meetings, Parent Support Groups, Progress Monitoring, Read 180, Social Worker Groups, Study Skills Course, Summer School, Credit Recovery, Transition Teams, Truancy Tickets,

Zone Program

Establish Establish Essential Essential OutcomesOutcomes

Essential Learning

1. Must be aligned with state standards and district curriculum guides

2. Must ensure students demonstrate proficiency on state, district, and national assessments

3. Must provide timely information and be precise

Dufour, DuFour, Eaker, & Many. Learning by Doing, 2006. (pp.46-47)

What is Essential?

• Do students need to know this to be successful at the next level of schooling?

• Do students need to know this to be successful on district, state, and national tests?

• Do students need to know this to be successful in life? (relevance)

Create Create Common Common

AssessmentsAssessments

Common Assessments

• Summative • Infrequent

– Specific deadline– “assessment of learning”

• Formative– Frequent– Inform teachers regarding effectiveness– Provide for additional time and practice– “assessment for learning”

Dufour, DuFour, Eaker, & Many. Learning by Doing, 2006. (p.55)

The Research on Formative Assessments

• Black and Wiliam – Inside the Black Box

• Ahead of the Curve – Reeves, Guskey, Stiggins, Marzano, DuFour et all.

• Mindset – Dr. Carol Dweck Fixed vs. Growth Mindset

Two Types of Assessments

• Assessment of Learning- Did the kid make it to Minneapolis?

• Assessment for Learning- Was the kid passing through Kansas City at the time I thought she/he might?- How long did it take him/her to get to Kansas?- At this rate, when do I think s/he’ll reach Minnesota?- Do I need to investigate alternate transportation methods?

* What kind of support does the child require to catch up with his/her peers?

Common Assessments

• More efficient

• More equitable

• Guarantee common curriculum

• Inform the practice of individual teachers

• Build capacity to improve

• Systematic, collective response to struggling students

Dufour, DuFour, Eaker, & Many. Learning by Doing, 2006. (p.57)

Examine Examine Student Results Student Results

to Inform to Inform InstructionInstruction

Examine Student Data

• Tests, homework, student products• Protocols to collaboratively study

lesson design• Protocols to collaboratively examine

student work

Examine Student Data• Use feedback on results to inform, not

punish.• Provide the basis of comparison that

translates data into information.• Use apples-to-apples comparisons.• Use balanced assessments.• Teachers and principals must engage in

data analysis rather than outsourcing the task to others.

• A fixation with results does not mean inattention to people.

Dufour, DuFour, Eaker, & Many. Learning by Doing, 2006. (pp.158-160)

Commitment to Commitment to Continuous Continuous

ImprovementImprovement

Continuous Improvement

““Good is Good is the the

enemyenemy of of greatgreat.”.”

Jim CollinsJim Collins

Good to Great“No matter how much you have achieved, you will always be merely good relative to what you can become. Greatness is an inherently dynamic process, not an end point. The moment you think of yourself as great, your slide toward mediocrity will have already begun.”

Jim Collins

Results Results OrientationOrientation

Results Orientation

•Essential to –Organizational effectiveness–Team effectiveness–Motivation–Continuous improvement

Dufour, DuFour, Eaker, & Many. Learning by Doing, 2006. (pp.150-151)

Show Me The Data

www.allthingsplc.info/• School success stories from around

the country• Tools and resources developed by

schools like you

On Common GroundDuFour, et al.

• Best minds in education agree about PLC