atPLCmag 09-04 by Solution Tree

PLC things MAGAZINE all

PLC things all

Volume 9, Issue 4

Features

Fall

Timothy D. Kanold

Finding JOY in a season of new beginnings.

Bouncing Back

Amanda Hathhorn

How targeted interventions in mathematics are closing the COVID gap.

Partnering for Progress

Jenny Gracyalny

Leveraging student-centered coaching to drive student and teacher growth.

The Goldilocks Zone

Kendra Miller

Just a retrieval practice away.

Developing a Mindset for Success

Heather Dillard

How to use the PBL Learning Grid in your PLC. 29

Achieving PLC Right

PLC things all MAGAZINE First Thing

SOLUTION TREE:

CEO

Cameron Rains

PRESIDENT & COO

Edmund M. Ackerman

SOLUTION TREE PRESS:

PRESIDENT & PUBLISHER

The Importance of Conviction in Professional Learning Communities

Joseph Ianora

Kendra Slayton

ART DIRECTOR

Rian Anderson

PAGE DESIGNERS

Laura Cox

Abigail Bowen

Kelsey Hergül

Fabiana Cochran

Rian Anderson

AllThingsPLC (ISSN 2476-2571 [print], 2476-258X [Online]) is published four times a year by Solution Tree Press.

555 North Morton Street Bloomington, IN 47404

800.733.6786 (toll free) / 812.336.7700 FAX: 812.336.7790

email: info@SolutionTree.com SolutionTree.com

POSTMASTER

Send address changes to Solution Tree, 555 North Morton Street, Bloomington, IN, 47404

Throughout the years of helping schools, including my own, transform into high-functioning professional learning communities, a common theme has emerged. Schools often struggle with the transformation, frequently expressing their frustration with statements like: “We have been practicing PLCs for years, but we haven’t been able to implement them with fidelity. How do we get there? What are we doing wrong? How do we move from PLC Lite to PLC Right?” is challenge has been explored in various articles, most notably in the 2016 collaborative work of Rick DuFour and Douglas Reeves, “ e Futility of PLC Lite.” is seminal article outlines the core tenets of a PLC and examines why schools struggle to move beyond PLC Lite. Michael Roberts further expanded on these ideas in his December 2020 blog post, “Don’t Stop at PLC Lite,” emphasizing that PLC Lite schools often lack a crucial element: ensuring that what is discussed in meetings translates into classroom practices with an unwavering urgency to help all children learn.

Building on the work of DuFour, Reeves, and Roberts, I propose an additional assertion based on my 20 years of experience. Many PLC Lite schools follow the core tenets outlined by DuFour and Reeves and believe in the urgency of helping all students learn. However, a key missing element prevents them from moving from PLC Lite to PLC Right: conviction.

The Core Tenets of a High-Functioning PLC

e inability to move from PLC Lite to PLC Right often stems from a lack of conviction—conviction that PLCs are the right framework to ensure improved learning for both students and teachers. Schools must rmly believe in and commit to this process. Before examining conviction, let’s clarify the core tenets of a high-functioning PLC.

1. Collaborative teams: Shifting from isolation to collective responsibility for student and professional learning.

2. Guaranteed and viable curriculum: De ning essential knowledge, skills, and dispositions for students.

3. Assessment process: Using frequent, team-developed common formative assessments aligned with the curriculum.

4. Data-driven decision-making: Leveraging assessment results to identify students needing additional support or enrichment and implementing targeted interventions.

The Role of Conviction in PLC Implementation

Conviction is the foundation of sustainable change. It is not enough to understand the principles of a PLC or to acknowledge the need for collaboration. Schools must embrace the transformation wholeheartedly, even in the face of uncertainty and challenges.

Implementing the PLC process requires schools to confront the fear of change. Many educators hesitate to fully commit to the PLC process because they are unsure of the outcome. e fear of failure often leads schools to fall into the trap of PLC Lite— adopting surface-level structures without true systemic change. However, progress, not perfection, is the goal. e process of becoming a true PLC is nonlinear, involving stops, starts, and adjustments along the way.

Inspiration and motivation are critical components of this journey, but they must lead to action. Many educators attend conferences and return to their schools feeling energized, yet their enthusiasm fades without consistent action. e key to sustaining momentum is to move beyond inspiration and commit to disciplined implementation. When inspiration, motivation, and action align, they create the momentum necessary for lasting change.

The Stockdale Paradox: A Lesson in Conviction

Jim Collins (2001), in his book Good to Great, explores a concept known as the Stockdale Paradox, based on Admiral James Stockdale’s experience as a prisoner of war. Stockdale observed that the optimists among his fellow prisoners often struggled the most because they relied solely on hope. In contrast, those who survived maintained faith that they would ultimately prevail while also confronting the brutal realities of their situation.

is paradox applies directly to schools striving to implement the PLC process. Hope alone is insu cient. Statements like “I hope we can move from PLC Lite to PLC Right” or “I hope teams will collaborate deeply” do not lead to meaningful change. Instead, schools must pair faith in the PLC model with disciplined action—assessing their current reality, confronting challenges, and staying the course despite obstacles.

The Struggle to Move from PLC Lite to PLC Right

For many schools, the transition to a fully functioning PLC is hindered by a disconnect between beliefs and actions. is conict disrupts progress and prevents meaningful change. Some common challenges include the following.

 Lack of collaboration: Some educators resist collaboration because they do not see interdependence as essential to e ective teaching.

 Cooperation vs. collaboration: Many teams share resources and coordinate e orts but fail to engage in deep, interdependent collaboration.

 Norms creation without accountability: Schools often establish norms but do not enforce them, either due to concerns about professional autonomy or discomfort with holding colleagues accountable.

 Selective support: While educators may express a belief in helping all students, their actions may be limited to assisting only those who seek help.

Authentic PLCs are not perfect, but they continuously strive to align beliefs and actions with conviction. Schools that successfully transition from PLC Lite to PLC Right do so because they hold a shared conviction that student learning is the highest priority. is conviction translates into consistent, aligned actions.

The Path Forward: Aligning Belief and Behavior

Conviction is more than belief—it is the integration of belief, evidence, and action. Schools must move beyond compliance and super cial engagement with PLCs to fully commit to the process. is journey requires:

 Changing behaviors —Establishing structures that support collaboration, accountability, and data-driven decision-making.

 Shifting beliefs —Cultivating a culture in which educators genuinely believe in the power of PLCs.

 Developing conviction —Aligning beliefs and behaviors to create sustainable, systemic change.

Are you on the right path? Ask yourself the following questions:

1. In what ways does your school exhibit characteristics of PLC Lite, and where do you see opportunities for growth?

2. How aligned are your beliefs and actions when it comes to implementing and sustaining an e ective PLC?

3. What concrete steps can you take to develop conviction and move from PLC Lite to PLC Right? e journey from PLC Lite to PLC Right is challenging but essential. Schools that embrace conviction, maintain faith in the process, and commit to disciplined action will see transformation. By aligning belief and behavior, schools can create professional learning communities that ensure improved outcomes for all students.

References

Collins, J. (2001). Good to great: Why some companies make the leap and others don’t. HarperCollins. DuFour, R., & Reeves, D. (2016). e futility of PLC Lite. Phi Delta Kappan, 97(6): 69–71. Roberts, M. (2020). Don’t stop at PLC Lite. Solution Tree Blog Retrieved from www.solutiontree .com/blog/dont -stop-at-plc-lite/.

FALL

Finding JOY in a Season of

New Beginnings!

AHH,

WELCOME BACK!

Timothy D. KANOLD

It’s the beginning of a new school year. Fall represents a time to settle into the rhythm, newness, challenges, and beneﬁts of starting anew, once again Fall has a certain magic to it—an optimism.

The new school year and fall season present a time of fresh starts. Perhaps this is your very first year as an educator or your first year in a new role, a new school, or a new building. Perhaps you are returning one year stronger and wiser as you reflect on the lessons learned from previous fall seasons, adjust to new policies and procedures, and yearn for work that really matters. Relationships and bonds are quickly built as friendships with colleagues are renewed.

You start the new school year with intention toward joy. “ is will be my best year yet,” you think and maybe say out loud too. You are living momentarily within a high-energy-level zone! Can you sustain it? You’re not sure.

It won’t be long before your stress levels rise as the high-energy levels from the summer season recede. You intuitively know that your joy, if not intentionally pursued, can fade away during the fall season. And yet, you embrace the teaching and leading journey ahead. You hold on to the idea of joy as your internal decision to practice walking through the fall season in a high-positive emotional state because of the good, and sometimes challenging, circumstances you live within.

You remember too that joy is the residue of a well-balanced life, and you make a promise to yourself to be better at balancing the energy demands during this new school year.

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER

Fall begins as a season when you remember as you re-member. re-member. To become a member again. To become a member of your school, your classroom, and your collaborative team as the new school year starts. To remember with others as you seek out and be intentional about your joy.

Fall is a time to make agreements together, to not let the everyday stress, fear, pain, sadness, frustration, embarrassment, or comparison win the day. ese not-so-pleasant states of being can eat away at an eﬀective start to your new beginning of the school year.

Fall is a time to remember those joy-building physical and mental wellness weekly routines from summer. Routines that help you sustain a balanced life. Routines that bring your best self to work each day, as the renewed pace of life settles in. Take a minute, grab a notebook, and answer the questions in parts A, B, and C. en write about your results. As the new school year begins, how many of the nine routines can you answer yes to?

Joy then, during the fall season, becomes a pervasive and constant state of well-being you cultivate and curate as another marathon of a school year begins. You remember and draw on a few joy hacks that really work. You take walks outside, using your senses to see and breathe and smell the signals of the fall season. You play music and sing your favorite songs on the way to and from work each day. You remember to take time for moments of quiet in each day, to balance your time spent building relationships in and outside of school. You remember to build into your daily work life two- to three-minute micro-breaks away from the daily demands of your job.

A. Physical Well-Being

How many routines can you check off at least ﬁve times per week?

1. Getting seven to nine hours of sleep per night.

2. Moving, exercising, playing sports, or other activities.

3. Drinking at least six cups of water a day.

B. Mental/Emotional Well-Being

How many routines can you check off at least three times per week?

1. Pursuing hobbies in art, music, cooking, gaming, gardening, reading, etc.

2. Practicing mindfulness routines such as journaling, practiced breathing, or pausing before you speak.

3. Sitting in silence and solitude for 15 minutes or more.

C. Social Well-Being

How many routines can you check off at least one time per week?

1. Spending time with family members outside of my household.

2. Spending time with friends outside of my workplace.

3. Spending time outside in nature.

Pursuing these re-membering weekly routines provides pockets of simple joys waiting to be discovered once again. Each intentional moment of seeking and savoring your connections to others around well-being actions becomes a road map toward infusing your days at the start of the school year with a touch of balance and joy.

OCTOBER

Members of your PLC collaborative team might ask, “Why do we have to set SMART goals and create an action plan

together?” is is a question I have been asked many times (usually during the fall season) by preK–12 teacher teams and guiding coalition members in all settings: rural, urban, and suburban; elementary, middle, and high school. And not until now has my answer been joy. Or more speciﬁcally, yearning.

Yes, yearning.

Joy is often understood through the lens of an event—the joy of that concert, or a classroom celebration with students, or a gift of clothes or jewelry, or maybe a weekend getaway. Yet joy is often found in the experience of the preparation, toil, and eﬀort leading up to that event. Yearning conveys a depth of joy beyond a simple wish or hope. Yearning is “a tender or urgent longing” (Merriam-Webster, n.d.b) and is connected to joy in a complex and nuanced way.

While yearning itself may imply a sense of longing or desire for something yet to be attained (student learning goals), the fulﬁllment of that yearning (and the journey to get there) has the potential to bring you profound joy.

at SMART goal plan you submit creates this anticipation for the journey ahead. Can your team work together over the weeks or months ahead to achieve the desired student learning outcome you have set? Moreover, when you realize success toward your yearning (or longing) for that new level of student performance, you most likely will celebrate the results. And that celebration also provides a source of joy.

e connection between yearning and joy is found in both the anticipation of potentially reaching the goal and as part of the journey to get there. e yearning is rooted in our desire to ﬁnd meaning in our work through the eventual achievement of our students. ere becomes an emotional connection to our short- and long-term wins throughout the school year.

re-member:

To become a member again. To become a member of your school, your classroom, and your collaborative team as the new school year starts. To re-member with others as you seek out and be intentional about your joy.

Brain research explores the neural mechanisms associated with our desire and motivation, which are related to the experience of yearning. One relevant area of research involves the brain’s reward system, particularly the mesolimbic dopamine pathway.

Dopamine, a neurotransmitter, plays a crucial role in our brain’s reward and pleasure circuits. When we anticipate or experience rewards, such as the fulﬁllment of our short- or long-term SMART goals, the release of dopamine contributes to positive reinforcement and joy (Lieberman & Long, 2019).

Interestingly, the action we take on our SMART goal plans serves our joy-yearning connection by creating conditions that can lead to joy at work. Consider the following.

• Anticipation: e joy in yearning is found in the anticipation of meeting the goal chosen. e prospect of attaining what is longed for (more students performing at grade level, for example) can evoke a sense of excitement and positive expectation, contributing to the joy associated with the process. e joy is literally in the journey itself.

• Achievement: When the yearning is satisﬁed and our desired goal or experience is attained, it can bring a deep and fulﬁlling joy. Party time! e contrast between the initial yearning (SMART goal plan and action) and the realization of the desired student learning outcomes (achievement of the goal) enhances the positive emotional reward.

• Meaning and purpose: Yearning for something meaningful, such as connection to the reason we are showing up for work each day (improved student learning), can lead to a profound and lasting joy when our deeper aspiration of student learning is fulﬁlled.

So, why do we yearn?

Neuroscience suggests our brains are wired to crave what we don’t have. Dopamine is released not when we get what we want as much as when we anticipate getting it (Lieberman & Long, 2019). SMART goal setting sparks our anticipation! To experience joy, anticipation does not require a guaranteed payoﬀ. When we work with our team toward a common student learning goal, not knowing if we will for sure reach the goal does not take away from the joy of the eﬀort and the potential to reach that goal.

ere is one caveat, however.

Once we get what we want (we achieve the student achievement goal we set), the dopamine fades and so we yearn (long for more). And thus, we need to set a new SMART goal for the next season ahead to keep the joy-yearning connection alive.

Essentially, the professional learning community mantra, forever improvement, produces a continual dopamine release as you anticipate and then achieve along the journey toward those improved student learning outcomes in your SMART goal plans!

e journey then is as important as the destination! is fall, what do you yearn for in your personal/professional journey? Set a goal, create a plan, and then enjoy the anticipation and the achievement that lie ahead!

NOVEMBER

You have a story of perseverance, I am sure of it. You chose this profession, after all.

Perseverance is the continued eﬀort to do or achieve something despite diﬃculties, failure, or opposition (Merriam-Webster,

Duncan Lake Middle School’s PLC Journey

CHALLENGES

In 2018, our team at DLMS committed to rethinking how we ensured learning for all students. While we had passionate educators and high expectations, our e orts were not aligned systemically. Collaboration occurred, but it was not focused, intentional, or cohesive. ere was a lack of clarity not only around what students should learn but also in how we functioned as a uni ed team. is fragmentation led to signi cant challenges: inconsistencies in curriculum pacing, varied expectations across classrooms teaching the same subject, and an uneven distribution of support for struggling learners. Teachers, despite their dedication, often found themselves recreating resources or addressing student misconceptions in isolation, leading to immense pressure and, inevitably, burnout. e expectation of doing all of it alone was unsustainable and ultimately detrimental to both sta well-being and student outcomes.

What ultimately brought us together was our shared

commitment to students. We began using student data and learning evidence to unite our e orts. Importantly, data was never used as an indictment of teaching—it became a driver of how we, as a team, chose to focus our energy. It became our common language and our rallying cry to function as one cohesive team. It was the driving force behind our transformation from a group of dedicated individuals into a high-performing professional learning community.

As principal, I made a promise to our sta : “ e art of instruction—how you deliver your lessons—is your professional craft and will be respected as such. However, what we assess must be common. Our collective energy must go toward ensuring that every student reaches the nish line—and we will do that together.” is commitment set the stage for a cultural shift, fostering an environment where shared responsibility for student learning became the norm rather than the exception.

Jaym Abraham

DEMOGRAPHICS

697 students • 48 certiﬁed sta members • 22.8% free and reduced lunch

9.8% students with disabilities • 1.5% English learners

88% White • 4% Hispanic • 3% Black • 2% Multiracial • 2% Asian

Duncan Lake Middle School (DLMS) is a seventh- and eighth-grade building in Caledonia Community Schools, located in southwest Michigan. We serve a diverse student population from a blend of suburban and rural communities. Our commitment to equity and meeting the needs of every learner is paramount, which made the systemic alignment of the PLC process so critical to our success.

MISSION

At DLMS, we empower every student to achieve academic excellence, develop strong character, and embrace lifelong learning in a safe, supportive, and inclusive environment. Through innovative instruction, meaningful relationships, and a commitment to personal growth, we prepare students for success in high school and beyond.

VISION

Duncan Lake Middle School will be a model of educational excellence where students are challenged to reach their full potential. Through collaboration between students, sta , families, and the community, we will foster a culture of respect, resilience, and responsibility, ensuring that all learners are equipped with the skills and knowledge necessary to thrive in an ever-changing world.

NO MATTER HOW GOOD anideamightsound, practitionerswanttoknow,“Yes,butdoesitwork? Canitpositivelyaffectmyclassroom,myinstructional practice?”Teachersandprincipalsoftencollect storiesfromotherschools,butscholarlyresearch alsocontributestounderstandingwhatmakesPLCs effective. Thiscolumnwillintroduceyoubrieflyto contemporaryresearchaboutPLCsinpractice. Sharethissynopsiswithcolleaguesandpolicymakers who wonder how to make PLCs work more effectively,

anddigdeepertolearnmoreonyourown.

DEEP IMPACT

The Study

Stewart, T. A., & Houchens, G. W. (2014). Deep impact: How a job-embedded formative assessment professional development model a ected teacher practice. Qualitative Research in Education, 3(1), 51–82.

Formative assessment is widely recognized as a powerful tool to enhance student learning. To be impactful, the data must be used to provide timely feedback and guide instructional adjustments. However, teachers may lack the training or knowledge to apply this process in a meaningful way, and determining the right professional development approaches to increase teacher learning in this area can be challenging. Professional learning communities have been shown to be a strong model for enhancing teacher practice and student learning. In this article, omas Stewart and Gary Houchens (2014) make use of the PLC structure to examine how a targeted professional development initiative could support teachers in understanding and applying the process of formative assessment more e ectively in their classrooms.

e researchers conducted a qualitative case

study to examine how a series of after-school workshops, referred to as the Formative Assessment Academy (FAA), could enhance the use of formative assessment among teachers at a middle school in Kentucky. is initiative, requested by the school principal, followed the adoption of the Common Core Standards and the state’s mandate for formative assessment within its balanced assessment initiative. Before participating in the FAA, the school’s educators had already unpacked the state standards into student-friendly learning targets and were prepared to work toward better understanding and implementing formative assessment strategies.

e researchers intentionally developed the FAA to align with the school’s PLC model, which emphasized high expectations for commitment and active participation and focused on making decisions that would improve student learning. e academy sought to equip volunteer teachers with foundational knowledge and strategies related to the formative assessment process that they could apply in their

Heather K. Dillard and Kendall D. Naceanceno

Research Report

classrooms and share with colleagues. Additionally, the initiative was designed to provide school leaders with the knowledge needed to build capacity among their teachers. e team, which included the researchers, 12 volunteer teachers, one curriculum leader, and one principal, met monthly after school for six months to discuss and share the principles and applications of formative assessment. For the study, data collection consisted of semi-structured interviews with 19 total participants, including nine of the FAA participants, six of the participants’ colleagues, and four administrators.

The Findings

Based on the analysis of the transcribed responses, several positive ndings emerged. First, the PLC model was an essential structure for making the FAA meaningful and sustainable. Participants consistently attributed their professional growth, collaboration, and con dence in learning to the supportive and collegial environment fostered by their PLC. One teacher speci cally noted, “It’s not ‘sit and get,’ but it’s more, ‘Sit and let’s learn together—and do” (p. 70).

Next, the academy directly contributed to the participants’ increased use of formative assessment in their classrooms. While some participants mentioned they had learned about formative assessment in the past, they still did not know how to use it. e academy helped them understand formative assessment as a process and what to do with the information they had learned. One teacher stated that, because of the academy, she mindfully integrated formative assessment a lot more throughout the year.

Finally, the researchers found that the academy contributed to the participants sharing the learned information with their non-participant colleagues. Some administrators reported both formal and informal observational evidence of participants’ and non-participants’ use of formative assessment in their classrooms. e authors recommended the use of PLCs as a vehicle for ongoing formative assessment–related professional development and learning for all teachers and administrators.

Implications for PLCs

High-performing collaborative teams use team-developed common formative assessments to answer the second critical PLC question: How will we know if each student has learned it? (DuFour et al., 2024). From the analysis of these assessments, team members can make data-informed decisions about student learning and teacher e ectiveness. Teams can identify individual students in need of inter-

vention on speci c content. Students can determine their next steps on the learning progression. e strengths and weaknesses of the individual teachers are uncovered, providing teachers with opportunities to either support one another or gain support from their team members. Furthermore, it provides teams with information regarding the types of supports needed by the students so that better teacher strategies can be developed (DuFour et al., 2024).

Considering the deep impact that common formative assessments provide for both students and teachers, administrators should consider what prevents a team from utilizing them fully. Administrators must “beware of any action that removes teachers from the process” of building shared knowledge “because doing so minimizes their role, limits their learning, and diminishes the impact of common formative assessments” (DuFour et al., 2024, p. 195). ey should assist teams in developing a protocol for team members to create formative assessments and engage in rich conversations about the results. One such protocol, developed by E. Stevenson High School (Blythe, Allen, & Powell, 2015), requires team members to present student work examples; explain their questions or concerns; provide feedback that is positive, questioning, and challenging; re ect on new insights; and seek feedback on their perception of the process. is process is systematically implemented in a 45-minute planning period.

ere is no need for schools to continuously question why they are not gaining the desired results. Rather, they should implement common formative assessments and the protocols necessary to discuss these results. Consequently, students and sta members will be deeply impacted by their learning and motivated to continue learning together.

References

Blythe, T., Allen, D., & Powell, B. S. (2015). Looking together at student work (3rd ed.). Teachers College Press.

DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., Many, T., Mattos, M., & Muhammad, A. (2024). Learning by doing: A handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work (4th ed). Solution Tree Press.

HEATHER K. DILLARD, professor at Middle Tennessee State University, teaches the Schools as Professional Learning Communities course in the Assessment, Learning, and School Improvement Doctoral Program.

KENDALL NACEANCENO is the K–12 director of academics at Jackson Christian School in West Tennessee. He is also a student in the Assessment, Learning, and School Improvement Doctoral Program.

Why I Love PLCs Standing the Test of Time

RACHEAL BRANCH

I recently watched a video on social media of a principal talking about why he hated PLCs. I normally would have scrolled past this kind of nonsense, but I stopped because my rst thought was, How could someone hate PLCs? So I listened to his arguments and realized as he spoke that all his reasons for hating PLCs brought to mind all the reasons why I love them. My first experience with PLCs was over 20 years ago. PLCs are not just another fad; they have stood the test of time, because they work. e rst argument asserted that PLCs are just another meeting with poor execution and busywork. My first experience with PLCs many years ago was exactly what he said; we were not focused on the four questions, and more important, we were not focused on student outcomes. What I experience now is why PLCs work: true teacher collaboration focused on student outcomes and student growth. The conversations around what it means to be pro cient on a standard and then how to measure that pro ciency can produce results for students. Without the PLC process, teachers may not have that deep understanding of what students need to know.

His next argument was that teachers don’t have enough time to plan. But what if they plan for the wrong outcomes? A teacher could have all the time in the world to plan, but if they are on the wrong path, it could be disastrous for students. When we rst started implementing true PLCs focused on the four questions and the learning cycle, my teachers pushed back. ey used this same excuse to try to get out of collaborative time. However, we continued to make this time a priority, kept our focus on ensuring instruction was based on priority standards, and made intervention and extension nonnegotiable.

I was a rst-year principal in 2020. My campus had begun the work with collaborative teams the year before, and then, of course, everything came to a halt in the spring with the beginning of the pandemic. As we planned to bring students back that year, the need for collaborative teams became heightened by the widening educational gaps caused by the ongoing pandemic. We now faced even more challenges trying to meet as collaborative teams at a time when being in the same room together created anxiety. I believed in the work and knew it o ered us an opportunity to meet kids where they were and grow them through our use of targeted interventions created during our collaborative meetings. So we found ways to meet and collaborate and even move kids around to create intervention groups based on student needs. At the end of that rst year, we saw student gains on our state assessments, something no one expected with half our kids virtual and the others facing the chance of missing school for weeks at a time because of possible exposure or illness. At the end of my second year, we were able to raise our accountability rating two letter grades. e only way this happened was through the culture we created around PLCs and collaboration. When they are able to achieve student success, how can this collaboration be a waste of a teacher’s time?

e nal argument was that teachers need more autonomy. Why does teacher autonomy have to be at the expense of collaboration? I believe they can mutually exist. e work that happens during a collaborative meeting does not limit autonomy. Teachers can still make decisions about how they are going to present material or run their classrooms. During a collaborative team meeting, decisions are made based on student outcomes and data. Once you reach consensus

on learning targets and how you will intervene or extend material, then you have autonomy on how you will teach that standard. But if you never reach that consensus, then teacher autonomy could do more harm than good. Understanding the standards and teaching to mastery could look different in every classroom, and at that point, you can no longer guarantee your curriculum. Autonomy without consensus is like shooting in the dark: you may hit the target, but chances are that you will miss every time. Our job as leaders is to grow our teachers so they can, in turn, grow students. When you are a true PLC, then you have provided the structure and environment to ensure student success. A rmations of the work are the best compliments a leader can receive. One of my former teachers reached out to me to let me know that she was taking what she had learned to her new school. Hearing those words was the best validation of why I love PLCs.

RACHEAL BRANCH has worked in education for 33 years. She was the principal of an intermediate school that was awarded Model PLC status in 2023. She now serves as a director of human resources.

Discussion Questions

Use this convenient tear-out card to go over and reinforce the topics discussed in this issue with the members of your team.

Fall (p. 8)

1. Which routines from parts A, B, and C do you need to work on? Create a plan to incorporate these routines in your upcoming weeks.

2. What do you yearn for in your personal or professional journey this fall? Set a SMART goal to achieve it.

3. What is your plan to persevere and persist throughout the fall season?

Bouncing Back (p.

16)

1. What are some of the challenges your school has dealt with due to the pandemic?

2. What strategies have been put in place to face these challenges? Are they working?

3. Are there any takeaways from Miller’s story that you can utilize in your school?

Partnering for Progress (p.

20)

1. What challenges or opportunities might arise in integrating the core practices of student-centered coaching into collaborative teams?

2. What steps can school and district leaders take to build trust and foster a culture where coaching is seen as a shared, collaborative effort focused on student outcomes rather than teacher performance?

3. How can schools effectively measure the impact of student-centered coaching on both teacher practice and student learning in a PLC? What specific tools, strategies, or data sources would be most valuable in assessing this impact?

The Goldilocks Zone (p.

29)

1. How do the three practices of retrieval work together to affect student learning?

2. What is the Goldilocks zone? Provide an example from your personal experience.

3. With your collaborative team, create a plan to incorporate retrieval practice in an upcoming unit of study.

Developing a Mindset for Success (p. 33)

1. How is the PLC at Work process viewed in your school—as a passing phase, as part of the school’s identity, or somewhere in between?

2. In what ways can the PBL method aid the implementation of the PLC process?

3. With a particular team in mind, answer the three questions and fill out the PBL Learning Grid. What does this data tell you? What are your next steps?

Because everyone needs a reminder now and again.

The fundamental purpose of the school is to ensure high levels of learning for all students. This focus on learning translates into four critical questions that drive the daily work of the school. In PLCs, educators demonstrate their commitment to helping all students learn by working collaboratively to address the following critical questions:

4. What will we do if they already know it? 1

1. What do we want students to learn? What should each student know and be able to do as a result of each unit, grade level, and/or course?

2. How will we know if they have learned? Are we monitoring each student’s learning on a timely basis?

3. What will we do if they don’t learn? What systematic process is in place to provide additional time and support for students who are experiencing difficulty?

• No school can help all students achieve at high levels if teachers work in isolation.

• Schools improve when teachers are given the time and support to work together to clarify essential student learning, develop common assessments for learning, analyze evidence of student learning, and use that evidence to learn from one another.

• PLCs measure their effectiveness on the basis of results rather than intentions.

• All programs, policies, and practices are continually assessed on the basis of their impact on student learning.

• All staff members receive relevant and timely information on their effectiveness in achieving intended results.