Recent Changes

Martine
Teachers really need to have a clear focus on what this type of collaboration involves. I agree with your point that giving teachers time can actually be a more valuable model for PD than what I have typically seen employed in a lot of districts.

Karen
Thanks for your reflection. Two of the biggest barriers to implementation of PLCs will be the allocation of time and shaping the mindset of teachers to collaborate and work together in this manner. I agree that it could have a major impact on teaching and learning.

Karen
A core belief or action that I believe has the ability to improve the quality of teaching and or student learning is professional learning communities (PLCs). Throughout all of the texts that we have read in our class, this was a reoccurring theme within the texts that I would love to utilize within a future position as principal. I believe that PLCs would improve the quality of teaching and student learning because of teacher and administration collaboration. This time would be used to work together in teams to review student data, compare student work, and collaborate on how to improve student learning.

I chose PLCs because there is a lot of research supporting this collaborative time for teachers to come together and focus on student learning. It is beneficial for teachers to work together and for administrators to be a part of the process, as well. PLCs are something that has never been utilized in any of the teaching positions that I have had. I feel that it would be useful for teachers, students, and administrators to become part of this process.

When I become principal of a school, I will schedule times for each PLC to meet once throughout the week. I will attend as many meetings as I can to ensure that teachers are properly using the time that is given to them and focusing on student improvement. There will also be resources available to help teachers with how the process should work. I will also model what the actual process looks like between teachers and teams.

Great Teachers Don't Always Want to Become Principals
This article was about how many teachers pursuing administrative degrees don't necessarily want to move out of the classroom into administration. Many just want to further their career in education and perhaps take on lead teacher roles. I found it interesting as it brought up the point about teachers and gratitude:

"Just like students, teachers “want to be recognized for their successes, and … all teachers, even novice ones, can share their successes with each other - that's a form of leadership,” says Arianna. “As [teachers] grow, there will be some who can certainly teach and coach others. It’s really important to keep those great teachers in the classroom, at least part of the day, so they're continuing to develop their own skills even as they develop others.” I felt as though this quote tied to the Whittaker text that many teachers need to feel appreciated in order to do their jobs. Being recognized as a "team leader" might be one way to feel appreciated without having to leave the classroom.

Martine
As I've discussed in my discussion of our professional journal article, I believe the most important aspect to inspire great teaching are to establish professional learning communities in the classroom. As a principal, I believe that this is one of the most important things I can do as a school leader to ensure my students are achieving at their highest levels. As Schmoker points out on pg 106, "professional learning communities have emerged as arguably the best, most agreed-upon means by which to continuously improve instruction and student performance". Schmoker goes on to discuss the failed model of workshops or training sessions for teachers. I find this interesting as many of the top achieving school districts in the area still rely on these types of professional development to create the best teaching.

I have seen schools both use and not utilize PLC's in the regular school schedule. I know, without a doubt, that PLC's are something that not only hold staff accountable for their teaching, but also creates the idea of "our kids", not just "my kids". I think that through providing scheduled planning time to allow teachers to meet productively, school leaders can create the habit of having teachers meet to go over student data and modify instruction to best meet student needs.

Martine
Sometimes the best form of PD is the gift of time for teachers to collaborate. Of course, the collaboration must be guided, focused, and result in specific actions that positively impact teaching and learning.

Martine
I agree that this is a practice worth re-examining, but one that would be very hard for teachers to abandon. It comes down to the perceived issue of what is fair. Fairness appears to win out over accuracy!

Susan
I think that this is an important aspect - good choice. In addition to the collaboration aspect, remember that the goal is to examine student work, analyze data, and to specifically discuss how to improve student learning. It's so much more than "regular" collaboration.

Susan
The one core belief or action on the part of the principal that I believe has the ability to improve the quality of teaching and/or student learning is shared leadership through the work of Professional Learning Communities (PLC). I selected shared leadership because I believe it is a means by which to continuously improve instruction and student learning. Much research has been published to support this theory. In Professional Learning Communities, principals and teachers work collaboratively in teams to analyze student work and achievement data, discuss best practices in instruction, determine strategies for improving instruction, and support each other through the process.

The first step I will take in my school is to ensure time is allocated for the PLC meetings to take place weekly. I will have to restructure the teacher and student schedules. We already have curriculum coordinators established for each major subject area so I will adjust schedules so teachers can meet weekly with grade partners to plan units of instruction together. I will attend the monthly curriculum meetings to offer input, support, and provide resources. I will monitor the Common Core State Standards for each subject area. At the meetings, we will develop curriculum mapping so as to ensure continuity in skills at each grade level. I will model for my teachers how to analyze assessment results and adjust instruction to meet the needs of all students. Because we have only 15 teachers in our school, I believe teaming the teachers up with their grade partners with common planning blocks weekly will allow them to plan interdisciplinary units of instruction and to team teach. I will encourage collaboration. My main focus and the focus of my teachers will be on instruction, learning, and assessment. I will look forward to watching my teachers develop as instructional leaders as they take ownership for the learning in our school. Our chief concern will be our students' learning.

Schools Experiment with Extending Schedules
Within this article there are several schools in Colorado that are experimenting with starting the school day earlier and also making the school day longer. This new trend is to give students extra support and enrichment. The schools who are starting the school day earlier are noticing that students are more ready for the actual school day when it comes time to begin. They could not hire more teachers, but there were teacher volunteers to come in earlier, without being paid extra. The class sizes are smaller and students get more individualized help and attention.

The schools that are extending the end of their school day are allowing students to pick a topic that they want to learn about to encourage independent learning. The students are responding positively to the new schedule. Eventually they hope to include more students, due to transportation and teacher support.

I think that this is a great idea to use the extra time to help and support students. If there is an interest in the extra allotted time from parents, students, and teachers it could be an awesome success. Where I currently teach, we have an extended school day. There are days where the students say they are too tired and that their day is too long. We also have an after-school enrichment program, which gives students time to work on their homework and ask questions. In the second half of the program, the students get to choose a subject that they want to learn more about (cooking, karate, tennis, etc.). If there is interest and support, I think that extending the school day is a great idea!