 SEP Administrative Institute December 11, 2012 Professional Learning Communities & LCCI Survey Data

Overview of the Afternoon 9:00-12:00 PM  Welcome  Norms and Courageous Conversations  LCCI Survey  PLC Video  Data Protocol and Analysis  Where are we going (next steps)?  Celebrations and Summary  Closing Video

7 Norms of Collaboration (Garmston & Wellman, 1999)  Pausing  Paraphrasing  Probing for Specificity  Putting Ideas on the Table and Pulling Them Off  Paying Attention to Self and Others  Presuming Positive Intentions  Pursuing a Balance Between Advocacy & Inquiry

4 Agreements of Courageous Conversations (Singleton & Linton, 2006)  Stay Engaged  Staying engaged means “remaining morally, emotionally, intellectually, and socially involved in the dialogue”.  Experience Discomfort  Acknowledge that discomfort is inevitable and that participants make a commitment to bring issues into the open. It is through dialogue, even when uncomfortable, that healing and change begin.  Speak Your Truth  Remain open about thoughts and feelings and not just saying what you think others want to hear.  Expect and Accept Nondisclosure  Hang out in “uncertainty” – don’t rush to quick solutions because it is uncomfortable.

 Transforming a school to a PLC is a journey that takes time and effort.

What is a PLC? (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker & Many, 2006) “…..educators committed to working collaboratively in ongoing processes of collective inquiry and action research in order to achieve better results for the students they serve. PLCs operate under the assumption that the key to improved learning for students is continuous, job-embedded learning for educators.”

Why PLCs? (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker & Many, 2006) “Throughout a ten year study - whenever we found an effective school, without exception, that school had established a culture of collaborative learning within the context of a learning community model”.

Characteristics of a PLC (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker & Many, 2006)  Shared mission, vision, values, and goals  Collaborative teams focused on learning  Collective inquiry into best practice and current reality  Action orientation and experimentation  Commitment to continuous improvement  Results orientation

3 Big Ideas of a PLC (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker & Many, 2006)  Unwavering focus on student learning  Collaborative teaming  A results orientation

4 Crucial Questions (DuFour, DuFour, Eaker & Many, 2006)  What do we want each student to learn?  How will we know when each student has learned it?  How will we respond when a student experiences difficulty in learning?  How can we enrich and extend their learning when they already know it?

Montview Elementary School (Aurora, Colorado) Montview PLC Video  Use the checklist as you watch this video. Make note of each element you observe.

 LCCI Survey Data

Why Reflect ?

Examine the Results  Survey elements  Common Mission, Vision, Value, and Goals  Interdependent Culture Based on Trust  Collaborative Teaming  Systems of Prevention and Intervention that Assures Success for All  Data Based Decision-Making Using Continuous Assessment  Professional Development Is Teacher Driven and Embedded in Work  Principal Leadership Focused on Improving Teaching and Learning  Participative Leadership Focused on Improving Teaching and Learning  Explain survey overview and how to read boxplots.

Reading a LCCI Report

Looking at section one – Common mission, vision, values and goals

Reflect on Results

Think Together  Talk with your tablemates on the strengths and concerns you identified for the first PLC culture element.  One by one, share each strength, then each area to strengthen.  Group like comments together on the poster.  For each strength collectively add the evidence for why that is a strength, dealing with only one strength area at a time.  For each concern, collectively add the evidence for why it is a concern, dealing with only 1 concern area at a time.

Looking at Your Thinking Collectively

Looking at Your School’s Culture  Each element of your school’s culture is on a poster.  Count off so that there are equal groups at each poster to discuss the element.  We will repeat the process of identifying strengths and areas to strengthen for each element.

Reflect on Results

Think Together  Talk with your tablemates on the strengths and concerns you identified within each element.  One by one, share each strength, then each area to strengthen.  Group like comments together on the poster.  For each strength collectively add the evidence for why that is a strength, dealing with only one strength area at a time.  For each concern, collectively add the evidence for why it is a concern, dealing with only 1 concern area at a time.

Think Together  Talk with your tablemates about the strengths and concerns you identified.  Summarize your discussion.  Be ready to share a summary of your main points.

Looking at Your Thinking Collectively Around the room are posters for each element of a PLC measured by the LCCI. On each poster the strengths and concerns have been identified and evidence recorded. You will be given 10 stickers. 3 yellow and 7 other color

Walk About  Take a field trip around to each element. Read the specific strengths and concerns with related evidence.  Be thinking about the elements that you would like to collectively focus on to strengthen.  Distribute your stickers to identify three strengths and use the remaining seven stickers on priority areas to strengthen.  If you feel particularly strong about a specific element, you may wish to put most of your stickers on that element.  If you have three elements of which you are equally concerned, distribute your stickers across those elements.

Making a Collective Choice  Closing comments  Areas of strength  Areas for collective focus to strengthen

Celebration and Closure  Celebration  Closure Video Closure Video