In professional learning communities, administrators and teachers share a vision for learning and address the needs of all learners. They are “collaborative teams whose members work interdependently to achieve common goals linked to the purpose of student learning” (DuFour, 2006, p.3). Increasing student achievement is at the forefront of the purpose. A professional learning community possesses: (1) shared mission and vision, (2) collective inquiry, (3) shared leadership, (4) action orientation, (5) collective learning, and (6) a focus on results (DuFour & Eaker, 1998; Hord, 1997). 1) Shared Mission and Vision: Shared values and vision – demands an unwavering commitment from the school leadership to student learning that is consistently articulated …show more content…
Effective organizations can be identified by a strong production emphasis, or commitment to results. They take risks in the service of attaining their goals and have clearly defined school-wide expectations. The principal must encourage risk taking and the response of leaders to failures sends a powerful message to staff about whether or not risks are really encouraged or not. Learning centered leaders integrate both internal and external accountability systems and hold their staffs accountable for aligning teaching and learning within the context of the broader achievement goals set by policy. They are relentless in the pursuit of continuous improvement, knowing that status quo is often linked with decline. Learning-centered leaders acquire and use resources in support of every student reaching ambitious performance targets. They are skilled in locating and securing additional resources for their schools. They link resource allocation to the mission and goals of the school, and they occupy their time with management and politics only to the extent that they strengthen the quality of school programs and student learning (Murphy et al., …show more content…
They spend considerable time supporting school staff in their efforts to strengthen teaching and learning. Learning-centered administrators give specific feedback about teacher performance. They hire and promote effective teachers, and they counsel poor teachers to leave the classroom. Learning-centered leaders make sure that a majority of the school day is devoted to instructional activities and non-instructional activities are kept to a minimum. They protect the instructional time from interruptions and coordinate time usage among teachers and across classes. They celebrate the instructional accomplishments of teachers and recognize individual achievements (Murphy, et al.,
Ms. Hall has had many years of public education experience and higher education training in which to hone her leadership style and framework. She started her career as a teacher in the Kirkwood School District. She then served as an assistant elementary principal at both Ritenour and Pattonville School Districts before being selected to serve as the assistant superintendent of the Maplewood Richmond Heights School District in 2008. Throughout her career she continued to pursue her education as a means o...
Frank, V. V. (2009, September). Framework for Improvement: Effective School Leadership Translates into Increased Student Learning. The Learning Principal: National Staff Development Council , pp. 2, 6-7.
Shortly after our session began, Dr. Hooper asked us to give a short “elevator speech” designed to provide others with a glimpse of the nature and work of the PLC groups we are leading in our schools and departments. As each of us shared our thoughts, one recurring theme emerged – time. Most students stated finding the time to meet with their PLC was difficult. Some said their PLCs were frequently cancelled. Others indicated they wanted to ensure the PLCs they were leading made the most of teachers’ time. A few shared their creative scheduling tips. As we progressed through the day, we learned that a strong learning organization has effective instructional leaders who develop school and teacher schedules that maximize instructional time and provide educators with job-embedded collaborative professional learning opportunities. Even though administrators are faced with competing initiatives, priorities and the day-to-day demands involved in teaching and leading schools, leaders should make professional learning communities a priority. Vescio’s (2006) review of the literature indicates when teachers participate in learning communities: (1) Student achievement scores improve over time as a result of the focus on student learning; (2) Teaching practice is impacted positively; and (3) Teaching and school culture improve because teachers become more collaborative and empowered. Learning communities can encompass multiple learning levels ranging from a classroom community of learners, to teachers, to parents, multiple schools, and district-level departments. Dr. Hooper shared an effective practice of a school administrator who formed a learning community with his cafeteria workers.
A school’s lifeblood is its students however, a school’s lifeline stems from the community partnerships that it forms and retains over the years of its existence in the community. Just as times change, so does the list of potential partners within the community. One of the most valuable resources a school can use in its quest to form community partnerships is the faces, voices, and support of its leadership staff. Schools typically have an internal chain of command; however, the quest for partnerships requires that the chain of command, littered with bureaucratic red tape, be abandoned in exchange for one where those in decision-making positions are more easily accessible to members of the community. The following is a
...e have to lead teachers, but we must also lead students, parents, and community members. Part of exercising the firs practice will be constantly bringing back to my teachers, students, parents, and community members our shared value of educating students. The last practice, encouraging the heart, is also something that I apply in my setting daily. Most stakeholders in the educational process contribute so much to the process and it is imparitive to continue to recognize the work that they do. With continued reflection, it is clear that great educational leaders do, in fact, model the way, inspire a shared vision, challenge the process, enable others to act, and encourage the heart.
DEVELOPMENT & IMPLEMENTATION OF A SHARED VISION: Education leaders facilitate the development and implementation of a shared vision of learning and growth of all students, (1C) Implementing the Vision connection to my action plan. I collaborate with key stakeholders with the intention of fostering a shared vision, one that is proactive in nature. Proactive interventions, such as the development of a BIP will aid in a shared vision of learning and growth for all students regardless of ability levels. INSTRUCTIONAL LEADERSHIP: Education leaders shape a collaborative culture of teaching and learning informed by professional standards and focused on student and professional growth (2C) Supporting Teachers to Improve Practice (2D) Feedback on Instruction, directly relates to my action plan as I will engage in open collaborative conversations with teachers, administrators, and essential staff members. I will conduct informal classroom observations with the intension of providing feedback, constructing classroom materials, dispersing information. EXTERNAL CONTEXT AND POLICY Education leaders influence political, social, economic, legal and cultural contexts affecting education to improve education policies and practices (6A) Understanding and Communicating Policy correlates with my action plan. I will inform all essential members of the current legal mandates established by federal law, as safeguarding student
1 - What is a professional learning community? Provide a brief description on how you can create, and/or engage in, a PLC.
School administrators are important in setting the path for a successful school (Glickman, et al., 2014). The principals could play a dynamic leadership depending on how they exercise their beliefs of the organizational and social environment (McNair, 2011). The principals are the primary facilitators for developing the foundations in learning that will last, to manage the student’s performance at schools, and seeking the improvement at school that will cause great impacts in school‘s education (Gordon,1989). In the recent years in the U.S., education has change in a more cultural diversity population, it is imperative that school supervisors, are trained to encounter this cultural issues, but also assisting others with the opportunities to develop appropriate abilities to deal with different cultures (Glickman, et al., 2014).
Assuring faculty and staff will work collaboratively in a singular focus is extremely important to the success of the PLC and student achievement. The following strategies are used to support faculty and staff to improve student learning: shared purpose and vision, shared decision making, supportive environment, common staff schedule, common norms and processes. The school principal is crucial in the success of the PLCs and enhancing the schools culture. Roberts & Pruitt state, “Principals promote trust in their schools by first fostering trust between themselves and their teachers. The process starts when a principal initiates shared leadership” (2009. p.51).
The shared vision must be followed up with collective commitments that align with the vision and describe individual behaviors that staff agree to follow to make a contribution to achieve the shared vision (p. 11). Once the foundation of the PLC is in place school leadership must move staff from status quo to a whatever it takes attitude for student achievement. This occurs by organizing people into meaningful teams focus on learning, providing time to collaborate, and ensuring that the campus layout supports ongoing collaboration and shared responsibility for student learning (p. 15). Student and staff growth cannot happen unless teams have time to meet and collaborate.
Shared Leadership for School and Community Relations The Educational Leadership Constituent Council (ELCC) standards serve to provide a skillset that administrators can employ in order to work towards obtaining continuous, fundamental change. It is clear that its primary goal is to identify standards and dispensations that, when implemented by a visionary leader, initiate a transformational process in schools whereby the core beliefs, norms, and values of the organization are analyzed and restructured in an effort to produce more effective schools (Pitre & Smith, 2004). This paper assesses Standard Elements 2.1, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, and 4.4 2.1 Candidates understand and can sustain a school culture and instructional program conducive to student learning
Traditionally, teacher development typically occurs through trial and error in the isolated confinements of each teacher’s classroom with some periodic whole-group professional development (Goddard & Goddard, 2007). Within the past few decades, many schools and districts, including ours, have considered and experimented with Professional Learning Communities (PLC) as an alternative framework in guiding a more efficient development program for their teachers. PLCs are focused on enhancing student learning through developing teacher practices. The concept of PLC relies on using structured collaborative sessions amongst teachers within the school to build internal capacity. Through PLCs, teachers critically reflect on current practices, brainstorm solutions, and obtain help and advice from others in a supportive growth-oriented environment over an extended period of time (Vescio, Ross, & Adams, 2008; Nelson, 2009; Scher & O'Reilly, 2009; Bolam, McMahon, Stoll, Thomas, & Wallace, 2005). The theory of change guiding PLCs holds that by providing teachers with targeted support from within the school community, as oppose to hiring additional outside experts, professional developments can become for efficient. Implementation of effective PLCs requires intentional effort, school-wide and possibly district-wide restructuring of teacher schedules, and additional resources. For schools considering implementing PLCs, it is important to understand the logic of action and the benefits of PLCs as it relates to teacher improvement and increased student achievement.
Public school systems are constantly undergoing change, as they continue to face numerous reform movements and society-driven value fluctuations. Whether the arguments center on the idea of the Common Core State Standards or to teacher evaluation reform efforts or perhaps even to the validity of school vouchers, there has been an increasing amount of pressure placed on district administrators to provide leadership, vision, support, and action within the scope of their job’s roles and responsibilities. Ultimately, school districts operate with the intention of increasing student learning and academic achievement. District-level administrators facilitate this process by providing the overseeing and overarching leadership needed to take on such a tall challenge.
Although there are a few set ways in which a school can ‘officially’ communicate their ethos, mission, aims and values to parents, pupils and staff, in reality everything that the school participates in should demonstrate these things. Communicating ethos and values can be done through leading by example – where staff is all kind to each other and the children, the school children are then also more likely to be kind. It can also be done through reward schemes, where more than just academic achievement is celebrated.
Principal Pettis has to come to the realization that it is not possible to “have all the competence, all the time, and all the information needed at any one time to get the job done.” (Sergiovanni, 2015, p. 12). She will have to empower and cultivate leadership skills in teacher-leaders to give her an equitable perspective on the needs of her school. In this way, learning is ongoing for all, making the important connection between leadership and learning that is so powerful in successful schools. With these few changes, the heartbeat of the school is