PROFESSIONAL LEARNING COMMUNITIES AND TEACHER COLLABORATION
Teacher collaboration is a crucial component of teacher effectiveness. It will not only impact students learning but it will also increase teacher satisfaction as well as teaching practices. According to Berry, Daughtrey and Wieder (2003), 68% of teachers go to other teachers when they need help and support. After teachers have collaborated, 90% of those teachers feel like they have improved their practices. If there is a 90% chance that a teacher will feel like they have improved their practices by collaborating, then what is holding them back from collaborating more?
One way to collaborate is by having a Professional Learning Community (PLC). A Professional Learning Community is a group of teachers, support staff, specialists, stakeholders, etc. who meet regularly to discuss student progress, instruction, small-group interventions, accommodations and so much more. Everyone has a say in PLCs and plays an important part in the PLC. Teacher collaboration is vita
REFERENCES
Berry, B., Daughtrey, A., Wieder, A., & Center for Teaching Quality. (2009). Collaboration: Closing the effective teaching gap. Center for Teaching Quality. Retrieved from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED509717.pdf
Darling-Hammond, L. (2015). Want to Close the Achievement Gap? Close the Teaching Gap. American Educator, 38(4), 14-18.
Hattie, J. (2012). Visible learning for teachers: Maximizing impact on learning. New York, NY: Routledge.
Poulos, J., Culberston, N., Piazza, P., & D'entremont, C. (2014). Making space: The value of teacher collaboration. Education Digest, 80(2), 28.
Wong, H., & Wong, R. (2011, March). Learning objectives: The heart of every lesson. Retrieved from http://teachers.net/wong/MAR11/
Solution Tree. (2009, October 9). Solution Tree: Richard DuFour PLC Keynote [Video file]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/GlJcFW9qMiI