Download or read book Professional Learning Communities and Teacher Enquiry written by Alison Fox and published by Critical Publishing. This book was released on 2020-03-16 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evidence-based teaching is fast becoming a new orthodoxy. There are many strong voices, including policy voices, advocating its adoption. Understanding the underlying principles allows you to better evaluate the benefits of different approaches to evidence-based teaching and how they relate to your own school context. This book provides a critical overview of different ways of thinking about professional learning as a social process through collaborative and collective activity, including the notion of professional learning communities and how these might be used to support teacher enquiry. It examines the opportunities and challenges this poses to teachers and school leaders, and includes practical advice on how to facilitate, engage with and evaluate collaborative teacher enquiry models.

Download or read book Collaborative Action Research for Professional Learning Communities written by Richard Sagor and published by Solution Tree Press. This book was released on 2010-04-01 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Constant, high-quality collaborative inquiry sustains PLCs. Become disciplined and deliberative with data as you design and implement program improvements to enhance student learning. This book delves into the five habits of inquiry that contribute to professional learning. Get to know them and the action research process they represent. Detailed steps show you how to accomplish collaborative action research that drives continuous improvement.

Download or read book Teacher Collaboration for Professional Learning written by Cynthia A. Lassonde and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2009-12-04 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Teacher Collaboration for Professional Learning contains the essential information, tools, and examples teachers and school leaders need to create, manage, and sustain successful collaborative groups. Designed to be a hands-on resource, this practical guide shows you how to: Advocate for collaborative teacher learning Develop and sustain collaborative research groups Organize and conduct productive research projects Address issues of ethics, leadership, and group dynamics Evaluate and sustain collaborative learning activities Based on data from a major survey, Teacher Collaboration for Professional Learning features extensive case examples from model research communities collaborating within schools, across districts, in partnership with universities, and as online networks. The book also offers a wealth of reproducible templates as well as reflection questions and exercises?invaluable tools for organizing study groups.

Download or read book Professional Learning Communities at Work written by Richard DuFour and published by Solution Tree. This book was released on 1998 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides specific information on how to transform schools into results-oriented professional learning communities, describing the best practices that have been used by schools nationwide.

Download or read book Learning by Doing written by Richard DuFour and published by Solution Tree. This book was released on 2020 with total page 267 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the third edition of Learning by Doing: A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work®, authors Richard DuFour, Rebecca DuFour, Robert Eaker, Thomas W. Many, and Mike Mattos provide educators with a comprehensive, bestselling guide to transforming their schools into professional learning communities (PLCs). In this revised version, contributor and Canadian educator Karen Power has adapted the third edition for Canadian educators, emphasizing how Canadian educators can effectively improve learning for each student across their unique and widely diverse provinces and territories. Rewritten so that the scenarios, research, and language appropriately meet the needs of Canadian educators, this version is packed with real-world strategies and advice that will assist readers in transforming their school or district into a successful PLC.

Download or read book Teachers Leading Educational Reform written by Alma Harris and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-07-31 with total page 424 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Teachers Leading Educational Reform explores the ways in which teachers across the world are currently working together in professional learning communities (PLCs) to generate meaningful change and innovation in order to transform pedagogy and practice. By discussing how teachers can work collectively and collaboratively on the issues of learning and teaching that matter to them, it argues that through collective action and collaborative agency, teachers are leading educational reform. By offering contemporary examples and perspectives on the practice, impact and sustainability of PLCs, this book takes a global, comparative view showing categorically that those educational systems that are performing well, and seek to perform well, are using PLCs as the infrastructure to support teacher-led improvement. Split into three sections that look at the macro, meso and micro aspects of how far professional collaboration is building the capacity and capability for school and system improvement, this text asks the questions: Is the PLC work authentic? Is the PLC work being implemented at a superficial or deep level? Is there evidence of a positive impact on students/teachers at the school/district/system level? Is provision in place for sustaining the PLC work? Teachers Leading Educational Reform illustrates how focused and purposeful professional collaboration is contributing to change and reform across the globe. It reinforces why teachers must be at the heart of the school reform processes as the drivers and architects of school transformation and change.

Download or read book Professional Learning Communities written by Louise Stoll and published by McGraw-Hill Education (UK). This book was released on 2007-03-16 with total page 232 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “All who are interested and concerned about educational reform and the improvement of schools will find this book a must read. It stimulates, it challenges, and it informs, such that the reader is most surely enriched by its plenitude.” Dr Shirley Hord, Scholar Emerita “At last we have a book of international cases to add to the literature on networks! Policymakers and practitioners alike will find the reasons why networks are fast becoming the reform organizations of choice. The book elevates network understanding to a new level.” Ann Lieberman, Senior Scholar at the Carnegie Foundationfor the Advancement of Teaching What is a professional learning community? What are the key challenges facing these communities and how might they be resolved? Is it time to extend our thinking about professional learning communities? There is great interest internationally in the potential of professional learning communities for enhancing educational reform efforts and sustaining improvement. This international collection expands perceptions and understanding of professional learning communities, as well as highlighting frequently neglected complexities and challenges. Drawing on research, each chapter offers a deeper understanding of topics such as distributed leadership, dialogue, organisational memory, trust, self-assessment and inquiry, and purpose linked to learning. The last section of the book focuses upon three of the most challenging dilemmas that face developing professional learning communities - developing professional learning communities in secondary school, building social capital, and sustaining professional learning communities. The authors provide pointers on why these challenges exist, offering rays of hope for ways forward. Professional Learning Communities is key international reading for education professionals, school practitioners, policymakers, academics and research students. It is a must-read for anyone interested in building capacity for sustainable learning and the ability to harness your community as a resource for change.

Download or read book Professional Learning Communities and Teacher Enquiry written by Alison Fox and published by Critical Publishing. This book was released on 2020-03-16 with total page 154 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evidence-based teaching is fast becoming a new orthodoxy. There are many strong voices, including policy voices, advocating its adoption. Understanding the underlying principles allows you to better evaluate the benefits of different approaches to evidence-based teaching and how they relate to your own school context. This book provides a critical overview of different ways of thinking about professional learning as a social process through collaborative and collective activity, including the notion of professional learning communities and how these might be used to support teacher enquiry. It examines the opportunities and challenges this poses to teachers and school leaders, and includes practical advice on how to facilitate, engage with and evaluate collaborative teacher enquiry models.

Download or read book The Art and Science of Teaching written by Robert J. Marzano and published by ASCD. This book was released on 2007 with total page 233 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presents a model for ensuring quality teaching that balances the necessity of research-based data with the equally vital need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of individual students.

Download or read book The Reflective Educator s Guide to Professional Development written by Nancy Fichtman Dana and published by Corwin Press. This book was released on 2008-05-01 with total page 209 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "A tool box overflowing with ideas that will help every staff developer craft a school culture hospitable to adult and student learning." —Roland S. Barth, Author, Lessons Learned "The book speaks to many audiences, including instructional coaches, PLC leaders, action researchers and group leaders, and university professors working with action researchers and PLCs." —Gail Ritchie, Coleader, Teacher Researcher Network Fairfax County Public Schools, VA "A terrific resource for connecting teacher networks and action research to create powerful professional development opportunities. This book is a joy to read." —Ellen Meyers, Senior Vice President Teachers Network Powerful tools for facilitating teachers′ professional development and optimizing school improvement efforts! Professional learning communities (PLCs) and action research are popular and proven frameworks for professional development. While both can greatly improve teaching and learning, few resources have combined the two practices into one coherent approach. The Reflective Educator′s Guide to Professional Development provides educators with strategies, activities, and tools to develop inquiry-oriented PLCs. Nationally known school reform experts Nancy Fichtman Dana and Diane Yendol-Hoppey cover the ten essential elements of a healthy PLC, provide case studies of actual inquiry-based PLCs, and present lessons learned to help good coaches become great coaches. With this step-by-step guide, readers will be able to: Organize, assess, and maintain high-functioning, inquiry-oriented PLCs Facilitate the development of study questions Establish the trust and collective commitment necessary for successful action research Enable PLC members to develop, analyze, and share research results Lead successful renewal and reform efforts By combining two powerful training practices, coaches, workshop leaders, and staff developers can ensure continuous, robust school-based professional development.

Download or read book How to Conduct Collaborative Action Research written by Richard Sagor and published by ASCD. This book was released on 1993-02-15 with total page 88 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book details a five-step process to creating a positive climate for school restructuring by conducting collaborative action research, shows eight ways to gather valid and reliable data, explains techniques for identifying and understanding problems, and illustrates four basic strategies for managing conflict and changing the status quo.

Download or read book Professional Learning in Action written by Victoria J. Risko and published by Teachers College Press. This book was released on 2016-07-01 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Risko and Vogt provide a unique and progressive approach for engaging the professional learning of teachers of literacy, reading specialists, literacy coaches and instructional leaders, content specialists, and administrators. Their deliberate use of Professional Learning signals the importance of educators engaging in authentic and inquiry-based decision-making. They describe and provide examples of needs assessments and progress monitoring activities that are embedded within differentiated professional learning activities, such as book clubs, lesson study, family literacy groups, and peer and literacy coaching. Actions and decisions are directed by questions generated by teachers, coaches, and administrators as they engage in collaborative and self-directed efforts to advance their knowledge and resolve dilemmas that impact instruction and students’ learning. Book Features: Provides authentic examples for implementing professional learning (PL) that addresses and resolves authentic dilemmas educators and students face.Synthesizes current research on effective professional learning with a literacy emphasis.Describes evidence-based and differentiated professional learning opportunities that engage instructional changes that are situated within meaningful and school-based applications.Advances knowledge about applications of professional learning that is collaborative, substantive, situated, dynamic, intense, and personal. Makes explicit connections to Common Core and similar State standards-based instruction.Includes reflection and self-study questions at the end of each chapter. “Professional Learning in Action will help close the ‘knowing/doing’ gap.... [The authors] have developed a systematic way to ensure that teachers are members of collaborating learning groups that harness the power of collective teacher efficacy.” —From the Foreword by Douglas Fisher, professor of educational leadership, San Diego State University “A must-read for educators involved in supporting high-quality literacy teaching. Current research about the importance of job-embedded, authentic professional learning serves as the foundation for the many practical ideas in this book.” —Rita M. Bean, professor emerita, University of Pittsburgh “This book will make a compelling contribution as a guiding resource for teachers and for those who support teachers' professional learning. It is focused on the needs of adult learners, respectful of teachers’ knowledge, and responsive to dynamic changes in educational standards.” —Maryann Mraz, University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Download or read book Leading Professional Learning Communities written by Shirley M. Hord and published by Corwin Press. This book was released on 2008-02-01 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Hord is the originator of the triple-headed concept of professional learning communities. Sommers is an experienced administrator and past president of the National Staff Development Council. With the authors′ extensive backgrounds in educational evaluation and the implementation of school change and development, they are uniquely equipped to delineate and defend a particular vision of professional learning communities that has educational depth, professional richness, and moral integrity." —From the Foreword by Andy Hargreaves "The most important volume available to help principals undertake the challenging yet exhilarating work of building true communities of professional learning." —Joseph Murphy, Professor Vanderbilt University "The book does not gloss over the challenges that leaders will encounter. The authors draw upon rich research evidence and personal experiences and offer many practical, proven change strategies. This is a valuable resource for any educational leader who wishes to become a ′head learner.′" —Arthur L. Costa, Professor Emeritus California State University, Sacramento "Hord and Sommers create a powerful bridge between the research base on PLCs and practitioner knowledge and action. The book′s dual focus on principles and ′rocks in the road′ provide a grounded basis for school leaders. A dog-eared copy should be in every principal′s office and in every professional developer′s tool kit." —Karen Seashore Louis, Rodney S. Wallace Professor University of Minnesota, Minneapolis "The authors′ rationale and suggestions will resonate because they come from experience and great insight. The bottom line remains steadfast for these two distinguished educators: you implement a PLC so that teachers learn and students achieve. This text will help educators reach toward that compelling vision." —Stephanie Hirsh, Executive Director National Staff Development Council Imagine all professionals in all schools engaged in continuous professional learning! Current research shows a strong positive relationship between successful professional learning communities and increased student achievement. In this practical and reader-friendly guide, education experts Shirley M. Hord and William A. Sommers explore the school-based learning opportunities offered to school professionals and the principal′s critical role in the development of an effective professional learning community (PLC). This book provides school leaders with readily accessible information to guide them in developing a PLC that supports teachers and students. The authors cover building a vision for a PLC, implementing structures, creating policies and procedures, and developing the leadership skills required for initiating and sustaining a learning community. Each chapter includes meaningful quotes from the field, "rocks in the road" and ways to overcome them, examples from real PLCs, and learning activities to reinforce chapter content. The text illustrates how this research-based school improvement model can help educators: Increase leadership capacity Embed professional development into daily work Create a positive school culture Develop accountability Boost student achievement Discover how you can grow a vital community of professionals who work together to increase their effectiveness and strengthen the relationship between professional learning and student learning.

Download or read book Guiding Professional Learning Communities written by Shirley M. Hord and published by Corwin Press. This book was released on 2010 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This research-based sequel to Leading Professional Learning Communities focuses on the practical process of implementing, improving, and sustaining PLCs. Appropriate for groups at all stages of PLC development, this field book helps educators improve PLC operations by facilitating individual and group development and growth. The authors provide learning opportunities that generate conversations about adult learning and contribute to supportive conditions that strengthen teacher quality and raise student outcomes.

Download or read book The Definitive Guide to Instructional Coaching written by Jim Knight and published by ASCD. This book was released on 2021-11-05 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Even under ideal conditions, teaching is tough work. Facing unrelenting pressure from administrators and parents and caught in a race against time to improve student outcomes, educators can easily become discouraged (or worse, burn out completely) without a robust coaching system in place to support them. For more than 20 years, perfecting such a system has been the paramount objective of best-selling author and coaching guru Jim Knight and his team of researchers at the Instructional Coaching Group (ICG). In The Definitive Guide to Instructional Coaching, Knight offers a blueprint for establishing, administering, and assessing an instructional coaching program laser-focused on every educator's ultimate goal: the academic success of students. Organized around ICG's seven "Success Factors" for great instructional coaching, this book offers * An in-depth guide to the Impact Cycle, ICG's research-based and field-tested model for coaching teachers through issues that matter most to them; * Detailed guidance on how to create a "playbook" of instructional strategies to share with collaborating teachers—and how to model those strategies under different conditions; * Practical advice on preparing for and engaging in substantive, reflective, and teacher-centered coaching conversations; * Best practices for gathering, analyzing, and responding to data for improved teaching and learning; and * Real-life anecdotes and testimonies from educators and coaches who have reaped the benefits of the Impact Cycle in a diverse array of schools. In addition, each chapter of the book contains a learning map to help orient you and a list of valuable additional resources to complement the text. Whether you're new to coaching or well versed in the practice, The Definitive Guide to Instructional Coaching will no doubt prove a cornerstone of your coaching library for years to come.

Download or read book Demystifying Professional Learning Communities written by Kristine Kiefer Hipp and published by R&L Education. This book was released on 2010-02-16 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The purpose of this book is to clearly define an approach to school improvement that uses professional learning community (PLC) practices to achieve school improvement and success for every student. This book offers information, examples and case studies to clarify the concept of a PLC, to respond to critical issues in schools, and to support educational leaders in addressing the important mandates of accountability and school improvement. As school leaders proactively lead efforts to create learning communities, their schools, districts, and staff will incorporate knowledge, skills, and practices that focus on teaching and learning for all. The authors' findings will assist leaders, change agents, policy makers, and university faculty in guiding schools toward creating and maintaining PLCs as they sustain school improvement for student learning.

Download or read book Action Research Communities written by Craig A. Mertler and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-09-01 with total page 126 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Action Research Communities presents a new perspective on two current and proven educational practices: classroom-/school-based action research and professional learning communities. Implementation of one or the other of these practices often results in a variety of possible benefits for the teaching–learning process, for student achievement, and for overall school improvement. While these might seem to be separate, isolated practices, the author has taken the beneficial aspects of each practice and merged them into a cohesive and potentially powerful concept, coined "action research communities." Each of the two concepts or approaches (action research and professional learning communities) is presented and discussed in detail. Because they both focus on local-level improvement of educational practice and share several overlapping features, the two concepts are then merged into a single entity—action research communities, or ARCs. These professional learning communities, with action research at their core, hold an immense amount of power and potential when it comes to enhanced professional growth and development for educators, increased student achievement, school improvement, and educator empowerment. ARCs essentially capitalize on all the individualized benefits and strengths of action research and of professional learning communities, and merge them into a single educational concept and practice. ARCs have the potential to help educators everywhere experience: •a common and collective focus and vision; • sustained collaborative inquiry; •individualized, customizable—and meaningful—professional growth; and •true empowerment that comes with this form of collaborative, inquiry-based, and reflective practice. Practical guidance for the development and implementation of ARCs is also provided, by focusing on ways in which professional educators (teachers, administrators, support staff, etc.) can implement, sustain, and extend the impact of their respective action research communities. Specific roles for district administrators, building administrators, and teachers are presented and discussed in depth, as are ways that ARCs can be used both to deepen professional learning for educators and to improve student learning.