AHS Mission Statement and Vision Statement
A Professional Learning Community is a collegial group of administrators and school staff who are united in their commitment to student learning. They share a vision, work and learn collaboratively, visit and review other classrooms, and participate in decision making. The benefits to the staff and students include academic gains for students and better informed and more collaborative teachers.
Our PLC Journey...
WHY PLC's?
The purpose of Professional Learning Communities is to improve student achievement through collaboration with colleagues. PLC work revolves around the following:
- PLC's asking the Four Questions
- What do we want all students to know and be able to do?
- How will we know if they have learned it?
- What will we do if they haven't learned it?
- What will we do if they already know it?
- Creating Essential Learnings
- Each PLC has identified what is essential to know in a particular course. The essential learnings are the "Big Picture" focus.
- Developing a Common Formative Assessment
- Each PLC has/will be giving a common assessment that will measure the essential learning that the PLC has chosen to focus on
- The difference between a Summative and Formative Assessment
- Summative Assessments are like an autopsy
- Formative Assessments are like a physical or wellness check
- Engaging in Data Driven Dialogue
- a 4 step process to look at common assessment data (steps are tied to the 4 questions listed above)
- Exploring the latest Research regarding best teaching practice
Where We Started
A Leadership Team, comprised of teachers, administrators and instructional coaches was created 2 years ago to:
- Help make decisions on behalf of the teachers in regard to PLC work
- Establish credibility for the PLC process
- Brainstorm ideas for future PLC work
- Communication link to the entire staff
- Simulate protocols to be used with entire staff
- Cultivate grassroots decision making
- Be a "sounding board" to assess the progress of the PLC process
What We've Accomplished
- Summer of 2007, entire staff read Rick Dufour's book Professional Learning Communities At Work, chapters 1-5
- With input from staff, students and parents, the AHS Mission Statement was created and approved in fall of 2007 and Vision Statement was created and approved in fall of 2008
- Every PLC team has identified at least one Essential Learning to focus on during PLC's
- Every PLC team has administered a Common Formative Assessment around their Essential Learning
- Instructional Coaches trained a majority of the staff on Data Driven Dialogue process in the spring of 2008
- All PLC Facilitators are receiving professional development training, led by the Instructional Coaches
- Leadership Team continues to meet to provide valuable feedback and direction for the future
Where We're Going
- Begin goal setting in individual PLC's
- Continue to collaborate with colleagues
- Continue to have conversations about sustaining the PLC process and embedding the culture of change in AHS
- Continue to use the DuFour book Professional Learning Communities At Work to guide our work
- Continue to provide research for the staff and community on PLC's
- Continue to provide training and support for PLC Facilitators
- Continue to train staff on the Data Driven Dialogue process
PLC's in Action
Information to be added later
Interested in learning more about PLC's?
- Articles on Professional Learning Communities
- Visit the AHS Library. Browse and check out a book from our professional collection of titles such as:
- Professional Learning Communities at Work: Best Practices for Enhancing Student Achievement, Rick DuFour
- Getting Started: Reculturing Schools to Become Professional Learning Communities, Rick DuFour
- Whatever It Takes: How Professional Learning Communities Respond When Kids Don't Learn, Rick DuFour