Learning Outcomes

Our principal expects us to work together on instruction but provides no time in our schedule to do this; furthermore, he makes all the decisions about our classrooms anyway. — Fifth- grade teacher Can you believe it? The school board added several days to our contract year, and spread those days across the school year, so our middle school teachers have time to meet share and learn new instructional strategies. — Middle school principal Did you know? The faculty and administrators in my children’s schools get together regularly just like my medical doctors do to learn the latest and most effective ways to teach children. And to review individual student learning problems. Are we lucky in this district, or what? — Parent in a local school district Our dean is encouraging faculty to meet, to assess how we are impacting our students, and to engage, ourselves, in learning new ways to enable all students to be successful in the new workplace demands for employment. — College history professor

QUESTIONS FOR THOUGHT AND DISCUSSION 1. What is meant by the term “School Climate”? 2. In how many schools have you worked?

Climate is the individuals' perceptions of a work setting in terms of a priori established concepts that can be measured empirically Culture is the individually and socially constructed values, norms, and beliefs about an organization and how it should behave that can be measured only by observation of the setting using qualitative methods Context, as defined in Boyd's (1992b) review of the corporate and school literature, is comprised of (a) culture (as defined above) and (b) ecological factors or situational variables. Social Ecology-concerned with the spacing and interdependence of people and institutions (Dictionary.com)

THOUGHT QUESTION 3. Which school had/has the best school climate as defined above? Describe that climate and its fundamental characteristics

INDICATORS OF A CONTEXT CONDUCIVE TO CHANGE REDUCING ISOLATION Schedules and structures that reduce isolation Policies that foster collaboration Policies that provide effective communication Collegial relationships among teachers A sense of community in the school INCREASING STAFF CAPACITY Policies that provide greater autonomy Policies that provide staff development Availability of resources Norm of involvement in decision making

PROVIDING A CARING, PRODUCTIVE ENVIRONMENT Positive teacher attitudes toward schooling, students, and change Students' heightened interest and engagement with learning Positive, caring student-teacher-administrator relationships Supportive community attitudes Parents and community members as partners and allies

PROMOTING INCREASED QUALITY Norm of continuous critical inquiry Norm of continuous improvement Widely shared vision or sense of purpose

A Thought Vignette In a local school system, a nearby university has been asked to help improve the school and its reading scores. The university people suggest a daily period (45 minutes) of small group instruction called ‘INTERVENTION’ All staff members help to instruct students during this time. After a month of this process representatives of the faculty went to the Assistant Principal (he is in charge of the program) to tell him that the faculty does not think this is helping. They feel that time could be better spent. What might the response be?

Dimensions of Professional Learning Communities Shared values and vision: The staff's unswerving commitment to students' learning, which is referenced for the staff's work Collective learning and application: The application of the learning to solutions that address students' needs Supportive and shared leadership: Jointly held power and authority that involve the stared decision making Supportive conditions: Physical and human capacities that promote collaborative organizational arrangements and relationships Shared personal practice: Feedback and assistance from peers that support individual and community improvement.

THOUGHT QUESTIONS 4. To what extent would you classify your school a Professional Learning Community? If the school is not a PLC, is there a portion of the school that could be called a PLC? 5. What might be the benefits from developing a PLC?

THOUGHT QUESTION 6. WHAT IS THE ROLE OF THE PRINCIPAL IF A SCHOOL IS OR HAS BECOME A PLC?

The positional leader must assume and maintain his responsibilities!!!!! Some strategies to do this are: Developing a shared vision Planning and providing resources Investing in professional growth Checking on progress Providing continuous assistance Creating a context conducive to change

Some stated results of a PLC (Capra, 1997) There was a sense of mutual respect between us. We took the time really talk and reflect about what each thought was important. We listened to each other ever if there were differences. I was accepted and not judged by others in the conservation. We explored questions that mattered. We developed a shared meaning that was not there when we began.

The first is the traditional idea of a leader— the person who is able to formulate the mission of the organization, to sustain it, and to communicate it well The other kind of leadership is what facilitates the development and evolution of the community. This, leadership means creating conditions, rather than giving directions, and includes the freedom to make mistakes. Although the spirit of disagreement and debate is present, these communities are caring communities as well as learning communities.

Joyce, Wolf, and Calhoun ( 1993) contend that the design and operation of the organization, rather than the staff, have been the major problem in improving schools. Further, they maintain that changing the organization will result in increased creativity and vitality of teachers and students. The challenge, then, is to create organizational settings ( the school) that honor all individuals ( children and adults) in a caring, productive environment that invites and sustains a continuous quest for improvement.

Many school leaders assume that providing time for learning teams and the whole faculty learning community to meet will “ do the trick.” It ain’t so. Neither has the abundant emphasis that has been placed on collaborative work as the defining characteristic of the PLC been beneficial. Nor is electing to study and learn about the latest hot topic or innovation du jour a good idea. If the construction of a PLC in your organization seems to be stuck and lacks direction, bring student performance data to a meeting. Ask the members to identify where stu- dents are performing well— then celebrate these results. But, also, examine the data for areas where student results are not favorable. Focus on these data and use them to stimulate conversations and actions on what to do about the disappointing outcomes.

THOUGHT QUESTION 7. Discuss the “ balance of power” in a staff organized as a PLC. 8. You have become the principal of a school and do not feel that the climate and culture are what you want them to be in order to fully benefit the students— What are the initial steps you would take to begin the process of developing a PLC?