Learning Community Approach
iBook laptop. The program involves econd through eighth grade in one school, third through sixth in another, sixth grade only in two schools, and six through seventh in the district’s two middle schools. Kim Bass, a second grade teacher, took part in her school’s implementa- tion of a PLC approach. Each week, her second grade team, like all grade- level teams, met to share student data nd decide how they could improve student learning and instruction. They set up norms to help them stay on track and on schedule. During one meeting, her team shared information about math lessons that focused on telling time to the quarter hour. From their discussion about a set of math assignments, they discovered that most of their second graders were struggling with this standard. One team ember reviewed the school’s website to see which math activities the stu- dents should visit to practice this skill. Others logged on to alternate math websites they use. They discovered that many students who were struggling with the concept had spent little time working on this skill. “As a team, we decided to assign these sites as homework until this skill
was mastered,” she said. “Addition-
ally, we identified that some of our
students were also unclear about the
difference between a.m. and p.m. The
team concluded that a project in Kid-
pix showing different activities that
take place during a.m. and p.m. would
be a great extension project for stu-
dents who did not need direct practice
telling time to the quarter hour.”
A PLC Approach
What brought about collaboration in
the example above? The district adopt-
ed Richard DuFour’s Professional
Learning Community (PLC) approach to planning: a focus on learning rather than teaching, working collaboratively, and holding one’s self accountable for results.
which they planned technology integration into the curriculum. For ex- ample, the third/fourth grade teacher trained his students to use specific
technologies. He communicated this
to the fifth/sixth grade teachers, so
they knew that the incoming fifth
graders from his classroom would not
need application instruction. Overall,
we found that teacher collaboration
took multiple forms but played an important role in the successful implementation at the district level.
Four Factors to Consider
A defined collaboration, such as a
PLC, can help expand your one-to-one program. To start a collaborative
approach, consider these four factors
