1. Continuous Improvement in the Classroom
-Professional Learning Communities

2. Agenda February 26, 2009 PLC Overview Learning by Doing
Chapter 5
Subject Area discussion
What’s worked and what hasn’t with your low performing students?
Team time
Next steps
Closing & Evaluation

3. Al aligned and focused on the process of PLC and the product of formative assessment
Principles and Building Leadership Teams on Process
Learning Council and In-service on Product and using the Process of PLC
FYI: Learning Council is made up of curriculum facilitators and lead teachers who have responsibility for curriculum

4. PLC Big Ideas & Core Values
Continuous Improvement Philosophy
Ensuring that students learn
Learning for all
A Culture of Collaboration
Teamwork
Focus on Results
Data-Driven Decisions
Same as PDSA

5. PLC Crucial Questions
What do we want each student to learn, know, or be able to do?
What evidence do we have of the learning?
How will we respond when some students don’t learn?
Frame our conversations and allow us to drill deeper
Introduced these Q’s during the school year
How will we respond to those who have already learned?

6. Student Crucial Questions
What do I need to know?
Where am I now?
How do I get there?
What happens if I fail?

7. PLC Critical Questions
What do we want students to know and be able to do?
Standards/Student Learning Expectations
Classroom SMART goals
How will we know if they can do it?
Formative assessments
Multiple data sets
How will we respond when they don’t? or they already have?
Differentiated Instruction
Systems of intervention (supplemental to intensive)

8. What do you expect to see?
Student learning Expectations
Formative Assessment
Collaboration

9. In-Process Measures – Summative & Formative Assessments
Building Leadership Team
ITBS/ITED
Summative
Assessments
School Improvement Plan
ARD Team
Communication
ARD Team
SEB
ARD Team
Math
SMART Goal
SMART Goal
SMART Goal
In-Process Measures – Summative & Formative Assessments

10. Most effective/best practice teaching and learning strategies?
Pre Planning: Identification of Need
1. Develop/Review Student Learning Expectations
2. Examine alignment of learning expectations with assessments
3. Review assessment data
4. Identify areas of need based on assessment
Identify areas of
strength and weakness?
Plan:
1. Describe the current process for addressing the identified area of need (flow chart)
2. Review data to determine baseline performance in the specific area identified
(Run Chart/Pareto Diagram)
3. Identify potential root causes contributing to the identified area of need
(Cause & Effect Diagram, 5 Why’s, Relations Diagram)
4. Study research-based best practice/improvement theory addressing areas of need
What do they know?
What have they learned?
Action Research
Overview
for
Professional
Learning Communities DO
1. Plan for implementation of improvement theory (Force Field Analysis, Action Plan)
2. Implement research-based best practices improvement theory based on root causes according to the Action Plan
3. Monitor the implementation of research-based best practice/improvement theory to insure integrity and fidelity 4. Assess student learning
Act:
1. Standardize the implementation of research-based best practice (improvement theory) that improved student learning (revise the flow chart to reflect changes made to the system)
2. If improvement theory was unsuccessful continue the PDSA cycle (try another improvement theory based on the next identified root causes)
Most effective/best practice
teaching and learning strategies?
Into your classroom
Study:
1. Examine student assessment results (compare to baseline)
2. Assess the impact of research-based best practice/improvement theory on student achievement
Have they learned it?
What do we do if they don’t?

11. What to learn? Evidence of learning? If they don’t? If they do?
PLAN DO
STUDY
ACT
ITBS Summative Assessment
BL Team School
SIP
ITBS Summative & Formative Assessment
PLAN DO
STUDY
ACT
AR Teams
Math-Communication-SEB
SMART Goal
Formative Assessment
What to learn?
Evidence of learning?
If they don’t?
If they do?
PLAN DO
STUDY
ACT
Grade Level team
Using I can statements to look at what students know and evidence of the learning
What does the teacher do if students aren’t learning – regroup students as needed
Subject Area Teams
Std Learning Expectations

12. Learning by Doing Chapter 5 Pg 91
Collaboration focused on the right things
Critical Issues pgs
Emotional Intelligence pg 103
Where do we go from here?
Questions to guide our work

13. Are the strategies identified in the SIP Action Plan improving student achievement?
How Do You Know?
What’s worked and what hasn’t with the low performing students?
Share, by school, your SIP goal, improvement theory, data and results
Be prepared to take the information back to your school team

14. Team Tasks Preliminary SIP Planning Task from last session
Share what you learned from the subject area discussions
How might this effect your school improvement plan for next year?
Task from last session
What is your PLC vision for this school year?
Identify 2 or 3 things you would like to have in place in your school by the end of the year.
Choose one person to report aloud to the whole group.