Memphis City Schools - Department of Academic Affairs

Professional Learning Communities

Michael Hawkins
Director of PLC

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My Experience With PLC’s

According to Robert Eaker, Richard & Rebecca Dufour in their book, Getting Started – ReculturingSchools to Become Professional Learning Communities, there are several key areas that the school leader and other stakeholders must be willing to shift culturally if a true Professional Learning Community (PLC) is to be created. They have provided a conceptual framework for creating PLC’s within the school environment. In order for a school to function as a PLC, school personnel must adopt the following strategies:

Collaboration

Developing a Mission Statement

Developing a Vision Statement

Developing Value statements

Developing Goal Statements

Focus on Learning

Curriculum

Collective Inquiry

Research and Results

Leadership

School Improvement Plans

Celebration

Persistence

During the 2002-03 school year, Mrs. Virginia McNeil – Academic Superintendent Area 2, shared the above mentioned book in one of our principals’ Meetings. I had begun to hear about the concept of PLC’s and was glad to be able to investigate its tenets more closely. Our school community was involved in all of the strategies at varying levels of effectiveness. I felt, as a school leader, this was a unique opportunity for school to sharpen our focus. For instance, we often say that we want to change the attitude of a colleague, when the focus instead should be on changing the behavior. Another example is demonstrated when teacher are encouraged to focus on learning rather than teaching.

Using the tenets of PLC, I was able to direct the faculty towards achieving school wide proficiency on a yearly basis. These targets were aligned with the school improvement planning process. Teachers were trained in how to take on leadership responsibilities, how to conduct effective team meetings and remain focused on the target. We created study groups, jig-sawed several books over the past several years, created a model for critical friend visits during the school year.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Professional Learning Communities Institute (PLCI) is to support the Memphis City Schools’ Goal # 1 – Academic Achievement. Research over the past several decades in the areas of school improvement and school reform supports the notion of the importance of the principal’s leadership role and behavior (Purkey & Smith, 1983; Sergiovanni, 1992).In his work in the area of school reform, Peter Senge (1994) concluded that “in order to build a leaning community with schools, members must have access to resources as time to collaborate, ongoing leadership support, information, and ready access to colleagues.

A professional community, as identified by S.D Kruse (1995) focused on the cultivation of learning and interaction among teachers and administrators so as to improve teaching and learning outcomes for students and the school community at large. The research findings were on target for creating and supporting this type of working and learning environment. Five key elements of a professional community were cited: (1) reflective dialogue, (2) focus on student learning, (3) interaction among teacher colleagues, (4) collaboration, and (5) shared values and norms.

These research findings are irrefutable in their conclusions on the need to develop conditions for Professional Learning Communities to form in every school. If implemented properly, the PLC concept will produce higher outcomes for students.

Initial/On-going Professional Learning Community Institute Focus Areas

Receive an overview of PLCI and how it supports the schools leadership team’s effort to improve student achievement

Experience the case study process (attached) by reading and discussing two case studies

Engage in discussion and reflection about the current state of psychological safety and culture in their school PLC

Explore the characteristics of an effective professional learning community (PLC)

Reflect on the importance of collaborative work in a professional learning community (PLC)

Connect the relationship between actions taken in a professional learning community (PLC) and school improvement planning

Participate in team reflection and school-specific action planning