Professional

Learning
Communities
 Challenge yourself to make one
improvement within your own PLC
based on the material learned today
SU
CC
ES
Learn the six essential S
characteristics of a PLC
& the value of each
WO
RK
Today’s Understand the
purpose of PLC
Objectives: teams
LE
AR
N
Reflect on the
status of your
current PLC
IDE
A

CREDITS: FREEPIK.COM
 The Balcony View
Imagine you are on a balcony
watching your professional
learning community in action.
Think about what you would see.
Who is present? What are your
team members doing? What are
they saying? What attitudes and
behaviors do you notice?
Write your thoughts in the first puzzle piece on
your handout
 Let’s Make ● What might the jar represent in the context of our
Some school?
o nne c t i o n s !
C ● Why did the fleas stay within the confines of the
jar? What might this represent in terms of teaching
and learning?
● How can we be the most effective and create
meaningful learning experiences for our students?
One answer to this question is certain:
High Functioning PLC’s
“If you genuinely believe that every kid deserves an
equal opportunity to master skills that are essential
for success in an increasingly complex and
competitive world, then you simply can’t settle for
school cultures that allow teachers to work alone.
No one teacher has the professional skills to serve
every student well” (Ferriter, 2018).
 “Quality teaching is the responsibility of the entire
school community. Fostering a supportive
community that helps new teachers become good
teachers - and good teachers become great
teachers - is critical to providing a rewarding career
path for educators and a quality learning
environment for students” (Fulton, Yoon, & Lee,
2005, p. 1)
 TITLE HERE Six Essential Characteristics of a
Professional
Make it more impactful Learning Community
Here you put a little description, Keep it short
and to the point.
SU
CC
ES
TITLE HERE S
Here you put a little description, Keep
it short and to the point. Make it
more impactful
WO
RK
Today’s TITLE HERE
Here you put a little
Objectives: description, Keep it short and
to the point.
LE
ARN
TITLE HERE
Here you put a little
description,

IDE
A

CREDITS: FREEPIK.COM
 1.
Shared Mission, Vision,
Values, & Goals
 A PLC with a shared mission, vision, values, and goals...

...looks like? ...sounds like? ...feels like?

★ Educators collaborating ★ Discussions around student ★ Comfortable
★ Norms posted or present on learning ★ Productive
the meeting agenda ★ Creation and monitoring of ★ Focused
★ Shared understanding SMART goals ★ Respectful
★ Roles and shared ★ Use of common language ★ Everyone has a voice
responsibility ★ Reflection ★ Safe
★ Consensus ★ “We” mentality
 2.
Collaborative Teams
Focused on Learning
 A PLC with collaborative teams focused on learning...
...looks like? ...sounds like? ...feels like?

Resource A (Handout)
Resource B (Video)
 3.
Collective Inquiry
 A PLC with collective inquiry...
...looks like? ...sounds like? ...feels like?

Resource A (Handout)
Resource B (Video)
 4.
Action Orientation
 A PLC that is action oriented...
...looks like? ...sounds like? ...feels like?

Resource A (Handout)
Resource B (Video)
 5.
Commitment to
Continuous Improvement
 A PLC with a commitment to continuous improvement...
...looks like? ...sounds like? ...feels like?

Resource A (Handout)
Resource B (Video)
 6.
Results Orientation
 A PLC that is results oriented...
...looks like? ...sounds like? ...feels like?
★ All team members have ★ Conversations around data ★ Productive
student work samples and and student achievement ★ Focused
data from benchmarks ★ Discussion of student ★ Safe
and/or common needs, including ★ Meaningful
assessments with them intervention and ★ Professional
★ Having Proficiency Scales acceleration ★ Self-Discovery
for each standard being ★ Sharing best practices
discussed/analyzed ★ Reflecting on student
★ Creation of flex groups evidences and refining
based on data analysis teaching and learning
★ Capitalizing on individual processes
teachers’ strengths and
weaknesses
Cultural Shifts that must happen to create true PLC’s...
● From a focus on teaching → to a focus on learning
● From each teacher clarifying what students must learn
→ to collaborative teams building shared knowledge
and understanding about essential learning
● From individual teacher assessments → to
assessments developed jointly by collaborative teams
● From an assumption that “these are my kids, those are
your kids” → to an assumption that “these are our kids”
 Think back to your balcony view...

Now, put yourself in the meeting. Based

on what you learned today, what is one
#PLChallenge action step you are going to take to
make a positive difference within your
professional learning community?

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