Professional Learning Communities: Building a Collaborative Culture

Rikki K. Wheatley Center for the School of the Future Utah State University

Session Goals/Outline
- Introduce the PLC framework - Characteristics of PLCs - Benefits/drawbacks of PLCs

What is a collaborative culture?

When teams engage in a systematic process in which team members work together, interdependently to analyze and impact professional practice in order to improve individual and collective results.
- DuFour

What is a collaborative culture?

When teams engage in a systematic process in which team members work together, interdependently to analyze and impact professional practice in order to improve individual and collective results.
- DuFour

What is a collaborative culture?

When teams engage in a systematic process in which team members work together, interdependently to analyze and impact professional practice in order to improve individual and collective results.
- DuFour

What is a collaborative culture?

When teams engage in a systematic process in which team members work together, interdependently to analyze and impact professional practice in order to improve individual and collective results.
- DuFour

Are PLCs effective? What do the experts say?

Creating a collaborative culture is the single most important factor for successful school improvement and the first order of business for seeking to enhance the effectiveness ofschools.
- Eastwood & Lewis

If schools want to enhance their capacity to boost student learning, they should work on building a collaborative culture.
- Newman

What are some characteristics of PLCs?

Effective PLCs: Actively work together to promote student success Hold themselves responsible and accountable for continual improvement Regularly collect and analyze data Judge their effectiveness on the basis of results Share ownership and responsibility

What are some key benefits of PLCs?

Good work environment Improved staff communication Shared ownership and responsibility for tasks Utilizes individual expertise Common commitment to goals and values Proactive Innovative approach to problem solving Early warning system for problems Take advantage of many perspectives

What are some key drawbacks of PLCs?

Can be time consuming (especially at first) Members must transition from other roles Members may have negative attitudes Results take time, members must be patient May require people to change

Some critical behavior changes may include:

Learning to speak up in groups Taking responsibility for own actions Stating your opinion Disagreeing appropriately Responding to criticism Making requests Negotiating

Comers Three Principles for Successful Learning Communities

In order to sustain a learning community in which all adults feel respected and all students feel valued and motivated to achieve, the work of teams (or communities) should be guided by three principles.

Collaboration
The greatest benefit to the students will come through a willingness to work as part of a team instead of as a group of individuals.
Collaboration requires respect for other points of view and a desire to see the group succeed.

Consensus
Consensus decision making promotes ownership and common understanding. Consensus decision making allows for brainstorming, in depth discussion, cross-sharing of ideas, and a plan for trying different solutions.

No-Fault Problem Solving

In a no-fault approach to problem solving everyone accepts equal responsibility for change. No-fault, no-blame problem solving allows teams to build trusting relationships so they can analyze problems and try new solutions without fear of rejection by peers.

What do PLCs do?

Identify major areas of concern or opportunity for improvement Develop philosophy, policy and direction Establish goals and objectives Formulate implementation plans Identify resources needed to achieve goals Monitor progress, measure and report results Establish timelines and completion or target dates

Research shows that the effectiveness of teams (PLCs) is greatly influenced by members attitudes about the organization. If members feel support and commitment they are productive; if not, they will limit their efforts.
- Deborah Harrington-Mackin