PLC+: Better Decisions and Greater Impact by Design

What makes a powerful and results-driven Professional Learning Community (PLC)? The answer is collaborative work that expands the emphasis on student learning and leverages individual teacher efficacy into collective teacher efficacy.  PLC+: Better Decisions and Greater Impact by Design calls for strong and effective PLCs plus—and that plus is YOU. Until now, the PLC movement has been focused almost exclusively on students and what they were or were not learning.  But keeping student learning at the forefront requires that we also recognize the vital role that you play in the equation of teaching and learning. This means that PLCs must take on two additional challenges: maximizing your individual expertise, while harnessing the power of the collaborative expertise you can develop with your peers.  PLC+ is grounded in four cross-cutting themes—a focus on equity of access and opportunity, high expectations for all students, a commitment to building individual self-efficacy and the collective efficacy of the professional learning community and effective team activation and facilitation to move from discussion to action. The PLC+ framework supports educators in considering five essential questions as they work together to improve student learning:   Where are we going? Where are we now? How do we move learning forward? What did we learn today? Who benefited and who did not benefit? The PLC+ framework leads educators to question practices as well as outcomes. It broadens the focus on student learning to encompass educational equity and teaching efficacy, and, in doing so, it leads educators to plan and implement learning communities that maximize individual expertise while harnessing the power of collaborative efficacy.

Table of Contents:
List of Videos About the Authors Acknowledgments INTRODUCTION So What Is a PLC? The Story Behind PLCs Adding the Examination of Teaching Practice to the PLC Story The Five Key Questions What You Will Find in This Book 1. PLC+: The Plus Is YOU Teacher Credibility and Efficacy: The Foundation of the Strong PLC+ Facilitating Collaboration: Making the Plus Count Building Collective Efficacy The Hope for the PLC+ Conclusion 2. Question 1: Where Are We Going? The Story Behind the Question A PLC+ Team in Action Analyzing the Standard(s)/Curriculum Expectations The Role of Teacher Clarity in “Where Are We Going?” Developing Learning Intentions and Success Criteria It’s Not Just High School English Moving Beyond a Single Day Autonomy in Teaching The Professional Learning of a PLC+ Conclusion 3. Question 2: Where Are We Now? The Story Behind the Question A PLC+ Team in Action Deficit Thinking Initial Assessments Analyzing for Equity Gaps Data Collection Data Analysis Protocols Addressing Bias in Data Collection and Analysis Identifying the Common Challenge Conclusion 4. Question 3: How Do We Move Learning Forward? The Story Behind the Question A PLC+ Team in Action Evidence-Based Instructional Practices Assignment Analysis Compensatory and Adaptive Approaches Moving Teacher Learning Forward Learning Walks Using Microteaching to Improve Teaching and Learning Conclusion 5. Question 4: What Did We Learn Today? The Story Behind the Question A PLC+ Team in Action Reflection Expert Noticing Common Assessments as Triggers for Reflection Determining Impact of Instruction Progress Versus Achievement Conclusion 6. Question 5: Who Benefited and Who Did Not Benefit? The Story Behind the Question A PLC+ Team in Action Equity Audit Response to Intervention Universal Screening and Ongoing Assessment High-Quality Tier 1 Instruction Supplemental and Intensive Interventions Meeting the Needs of All Learners The Professional Learning of PLC+ Conclusion 7. The Next Question in the PLC+ Framework After the Fifth Question Beyond a Single PLC+ References Index