RSA#2 Solution Tree: Leadership in Professional Learning Communities at Work™ Learning by Doing

By Chris Bohula

Online Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9QD6xMnshA

The remainder of the text by Martin-Kniep (2008) focuses on not the theory, design and creation of a Professional Learning Community (PLC) as the early charters cover, but move on to discuss methods of examining analyzing and assessing the outcomes of a PLC and student achievement.

In Solution Tree: Leadership in Professional Learning Communities at Work™ Learning by Doing (Solutiontree, 2009).  The idea of “tight” and “loose” are developed.  “Tight” refers attributes of a Professional Leading Community which are required and have little must be embraced by the community.  The “what” of teaching, or what we are going to teach, or what the PLC will do to improve teaching and student achievement.  Examples of these “tight” characteristics include meeting times, common assessments, PLC goals, subject matter, teacher accountability and mission of the PLC.  The principal interviewed emphasized that one of the “tightest” areas is the accountability of the teachers to use the assessment data to identify and implement interventions for students as early as possible. Whereas the “loose” refers to characteristics of teaching which refer to the art or “how” to teach a particular subject matter. These loose characteristics include how a teacher might present a concept and order of presentation. 

Both of these pieces of work emphasize the necessity for assessment.  They both agree it is very important have a common goal/objective for the students and the measure of success is determined by data collected from the assessment. Martin-Kniep (2008) additionally implies the success of the community should also be measured in not only other growth of the students but also in the community members as well.  Increased measures of interest, commitment, growth, dispositions, commitment of reflection of community members should also be evaluated when assessing the productivity and success of a PLC.

References

Martin-Kniep, G. (2008). Communities that learn, lead, and last: Building and sustaining

educational expertise (pp. 77-110). San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Solutiontree. (2009, October 9). Solution Tree: Leadership in Professional Learning Communities at Work™ Learning by Doing [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9QD6xMnshA