About the Book
Build cohesive PLC+ teams to improve learning outcomes
Effective teacher collaboration can amplify student learning and well-being outcomes, increase teacher satisfaction rates, and improve the onboarding of new teachers. Yet developing a cohesive PLC+ team isn’t always so simple. Designed as a companion to PLC+: Better Decisions and Greater Impact by Design and The PLC+ Playbook, this easy-to-use playbook for school leaders provides strategies, techniques, and evidence-based approaches to help leaders foster successful collaboration among teachers and positively impact student learning.
Four cross-cutting values are infused within each guiding question: high expectations, activation, individual and collective teacher efficacy, and equity. Building on this framework and drawing from Visible Learning research, the guide offers specific instructional leadership actions and behaviors to promote cohesion in PLC+ teams. Leaders will learn:
Contextual information to boost knowledge about effectively engaging with adults
Essential information on how to lead PLC+ teams to become strong, interdependent, and productive
Leadership tools to support and inspire others to work at optimal levels
Examples and insights into time management, decision-making, successes, failures, and learning opportunities
Discover how to build social, human, and decisional capital within your organization, equipping teachers with the skills they need to drive school improvement.
About the Author :
Nancy Frey is a Professor in Educational Leadership at San Diego State and a teacher leader at Health Sciences High and Middle College. She is a credentialed special educator, reading specialist, and administrator in California. She is a member of the International Literacy Association’s Literacy Research Panel. Her published titles include 50 Strategies for Activating Your PLC+, The Illustrated Guide to Visible Learning, Welcome to Teaching Multilingual Learners, Teaching Foundational Skills to Adolescent Readers, and RIGOR Unveiled:A Video-Enhanced Flipbook to Promote Teacher Expertise in Relationship Building, Instruction, Goals, Organization, and Relevance.
Dave Nagel has been a professional developer and educational consultant both nationally and internationally since 2003 and has done so as his primary job in education since 2008. Prior was a middle and high school science teacher and administrator in a large district in Indianapolis. As a school leader at Ben Davis High School (enrollment 3000 students) Dave was instrumental in developing a focused plan for differentiated goals for students based on specific proficiency measures which supported the school in improving its graduation rate 14% in just over 4 years.
Dave’s primary areas of expertise are in the areas of effective teacher and leader collaboration, assessment and feedback, and specifically effective grading actions both at the school and classroom level. He has been working specifically with Professor John Hattie’s Visible Learning research since 2011 that is a driving force for all of his work with teachers, coaches, and administrators. He has authored 5 books previous to this one, including four within the PLC+ series of publications (Corwin).
Published multiple times in various publications such as Principal Leadership and Educational Leadership, Dave has also presented at various national conferences.
Dave has a strong moral aspect, strives to be very relatable and practical when working with people, and has a savvy sense of humor that supports him in his life and work. Dave stays very busy with his beautiful and supportive wife, Kristen, and three boys (ages 20, 15, and 13). He acknowledges every day that the Lord guides his actions and is the driving force in his life. Dave is an independent consultant for Corwin Press and is the owner of NZJ Learning LLC (named after his three boys) and the Founder of The Center for Collaborative Expertise.
Douglas Fisher is professor and chair of educational leadership at San Diego State University and a teacher leader at Health Sciences High and Middle College. Previously, Doug was an early intervention teacher and elementary school educator. He is a credentialed English teacher and administrator in California. In 2022, he was inducted into the Reading Hall of Fame by the Literacy Research Association. He has published numerous articles on reading and literacy, differentiated instruction, and curriculum design, as well as books such as The Teacher Clarity Playbook 2/e, Your Introduction to PLC+, The Illustrated Guide to Teacher Credibility, Instructional Strategies that Move Learning Forward: 30 Tools that Support Gradual Release of Responsibility, and Welcome to Teaching!
Toni Faddis joined Corwin as a full-time professional learning consultant in 2021. Before that, she was a bilingual teacher in elementary and middles schools as well as a Reading Recovery specialist before becoming a principal and principal coach in San Diego, California. In addition, Toni served as the Director of Equity, Access, and Leadership Development at the district level. Toni holds teaching and administrative services credentials in California and earned her doctoral degree in Educational Leadership from San Diego State University.
Toni is the co-author of Collaborating Through Collective Efficacy Cycles: Ensuring All Students and Teachers Succeed, PLC+ for Instructional Leaders, How Teams Work, and The Ethical Line, as well as numerous professional articles about adolescent literacy.
Aida Allen-Rotell, MA, is currently a full-time professional learning consultant for Corwin and a teaching clinician. She was previously a bilingual teacher in an elementary school, where she taught grades K-6 for 15 years, as well as a high school special educator, academic coach, coordinator of services for multilingual learners, and administrator. She holds teaching and administrative services credentials in California and earned her master’s degree in education from San Diego State University. She led efforts to improve student learning, which resulted in her school earning academic distinction for impacting the lives of students living in poverty, becoming a Visible Learning+ Gold Certified school, and improving academic language for multilingual learners. She also served as an advisor to many high school clubs, was the student government advisor, and led students to championships for 10 years in Health Occupations Students Association (HOSA) competitions. She is dedicated to developing teacher and leadership mindsets for diverse learning populations. Aida is the co-author of PLC+: A Playbook for Instructional Leaders.
Review :
This companion guide masterfully and succinctly offers leaders a crash course in the why, the what, and the how for effective implementation of PLC+ teams. With authentic examples, ready-to-use templates, and thought-provoking reflection exercises, this guide thoroughly equips leaders with planning and monitoring pieces that are often so elusive when attempting to launch (& sustain) an impactful PLC culture. I just wish it had been on the market a decade ago!
As schools recover from pandemic achievement losses, educators need new teaching strategies specific to these fragile learners. Professional Learning Communities provide a supportive approach to instructional development as we strive to bring students back to grade level and beyond. ′PLC+: A Companion Guide for Leaders′ is a succinct guide for leaders to successfully implement pedagogy growth strategies with their teachers.
PLC+: A Companion Guide For Leaders is the right book at the right time. Where many of our original PLC leaders are reaching retirement age, we’re finding it necessary to revisit the core principles of PLCs, inspiring one another as we navigate turbulent times and leaning into the power of the PLC/Team. PLCs that use their time wisely advance student learning. Working together at optimal levels shows advanced positive impact in overall school improvement. The 14 major ideas provide resources in the form of self-assessments and tools to incorporate throughout a school year. I’d recommend PLC+: A Companion Guide for Leaders as an exceptional Team Book Study as you approach your next school year.
A successful school provides opportunities for teachers to collaborate about teaching and learning. PLC+: A Companion Guide for Schools provides the know-how in not only acknowledging teacher voice but also the steps to a thriving school culture.
