Introduction
©️2022 by Solution Tree Press
While we were educators in Professional Learning Communities at Work ® (PLC at Work) schools, we attended many PLC at Work professional development events. At those events, Richard DuFour, the architect of the PLC process along with Robert Eaker, would often remind participants of the three foundational beliefs that must be at the center of our work: 1.
We accept learning as the fundamental purpose of our school and therefore are willing to examine all practices in light of their impact on learning.
2.
We are committed to working together to achieve our collective purpose. We cultivate a collaborative culture through the development of high-performing teams.
3.
We assess our effectiveness on the basis of results rather than intentions. Individuals, teams, and schools seek relevant data and information and use that information to promote continuous improvement.
In this book, we will demonstrate how a competency-based learning system, when implemented at both the classroom and school levels, allows educators to realize Rick’s vision for all educators. Since 2010, competency-based learning systems have grown in popularity. According to Natalie Truong (2019), forty-nine of fifty states in the United States currently have policies around moving their state to a competency-based system of learning, recognizing the need to adequately prepare learners for a changing world. When students have competency, they have the ability to apply or transfer learning, rather than just the ability for rote memorization of facts. Critical, innovative thinking and problem solving are crucial components of competency-based learning.
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