Two authors of Learning by Doing (Fourth Edition), Mike Mattos and Anthony Muhammad, discuss the powerful impact of PLCs. They define a PLC as an ongoing process in which educators work collaboratively in recurring cycles of collective inquiry and action research to achieve better results for the students they serve. The discussion explores shifts in the fundamental purpose of PLCs, the use of assessment, responses when students don’t learn, teachers’ work, focus, school culture, and professional development. It offers an insightful dialogue.

Contact Anthony: [email protected]

Contact Mike: [email protected]

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While teams naturally build cohesion and effectiveness over time, it is possible to accelerate the team-building process. Research suggests that deliberate interventions, such as setting clear goals, establishing trust, and providing structured opportunities for collaboration, can help teams move through the stages  of team process faster and reach the “performing” stage more quickly. Consider intentional strategies that focus on establishing trust, clarity, and alignment early on, to speed up the development of high-functioning teams.  

Watch Patrick Lencioni's video here.  

Find Mitchel Resnick's "Projects, Peers, Passion, Play" here.

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Listen in on a conversation as a school leader shares his experiences working with colleagues to continually increase teacher learning for student learning though professional growth plans. The process continually developed from year to year as insights were gained, and hypotheses were formed and implemented.

Follow up with James Penstone on LinkedIn here.

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Understanding the desired outcome of a meeting is key to teachers knowing the participatory behaviors that are most productive. Everything being called a PLC interferes with participants being able to focus on the educator learning in true PLCs that leads to increased student success. In professional learning communities, purposeful teacher learning around how to increase student achievement is the focus. Teachers are collaboratively asking, "What do the students need us to learn?"

Listen to the podcast on PLCs with Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey here. 

Find Chris Jensen's guest blog, "Teaming and Workflow" here.  

Read the Finland Study, "PLC Characteristics" here. 

Read Zachary Herrmann's article, "Cooperate or Collaborate" here.

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Classrooms with less monologue and more dialogue are key to increasing student thinking and student learning. Peter Liljedahl recommends teachers using a strategy that publicly, randomly groups students.

The students visually seeing the groups form is an important element.  When having these random groups work at easy erase vertical boards, engagement and thinking increases. Students seeing each other’s work and the teacher seeing and hearing student thinking around the room all add opportunities for increased engagement in problem solving.

Mindshift: How to Get Kids Thinking Instead of Mimicking in Math Class

Find Laura Wheeler's blog here and read her article here. 

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Steve Ventura, co-author of "Achievement Teams: How a Better Approach to PLCs Can Improve Student Outcomes and Teacher Efficacy," identifies Achievement Teams as a structured, collaborative model that helps educators improve teaching practices and student outcomes through data-driven decision-making.  Collective Teacher Efficacy supports that working together can have a greater impact on student achievement than working individually. The role of instructional coaches and principals in support of Achievement Teams is also explored.

Visit Steve's website here.

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If teachers in PLCs are to function as teams, taking shared responsibility for student success, vulnerability is critical. A teacher needs to place his students’ work and his instructional practices on display for colleagues to share in structuring a plan to increase student success.  Teaching needs to be a public act for the trust of teams to be developed. Peer coaching among PLC members can provide the opportunity for vulnerability and trust building to occur.

Read "Can You have Trust Without Being Vulnerable?" here.

Read "The Connection Between Vulnerability and Trust in Teams" here.

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Teaming and sharing workflow allow teachers to leverage each other's strengths, reduce redundancy, and build a supportive community, all of which contribute to lower stress levels. Teaming can increase a sense autonomy by providing teachers with a collaborative environment that supports shared decision-making, allows for flexibility in implementation, and fosters professional growth.

Find Dr. Chris Jensen's book, "Triage Your School: A Physician’s Guide to Preventing Burnout" here.

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Whether you are an instructional coach, administrator, or teacher leader planning and supporting the growth of colleagues or designing your own personal improvement plan consider how to maintain momentum and push through the learning dips with implementation intentions, connections to beliefs and values, and a network of colleagues who provide reminders

Visit John Cambell's website & find his book, "3 Ways to Help Sustain Commitment Towards Goals" here.  

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How do instructional coaches address the mentoring concerns and needs of new teachers? Joellen Killion, senior advisor to LearningForward and international consultant to educational leaders addressing professional learning for student success, joins Steve to explore the mentoring elements of instructional coaching. They examine how instructional coaches and administrators can plan for novice teachers’ transitions from learning the “ways of the school through mentoring” to seeking “personal growth for increased student success” through coaching.

Subscribe to the Steve Barkley Ponders Out Loud podcast on iTunes or visit BarkleyPD.com to find new episodes!