Blog
The Evolution of a Virtual Coach
I was given a Framework for PLC Principals which included seven main topics which I approached as my curriculum therefore I had to be “tight” in that they must be the foundation of my sessions. How I planned each session gave me the autonomy or “looseness” to make it my own. Read more
Decreasing Despondency by Increasing Decision-Making
Most of the schools I have the privilege to work with are identified as "Priority" or low-performing schools. Sadly, one of the things I often encounter with the teachers and administrators I meet is an increasing sense of despondency. It’s not that they don’t care deeply about their students and want to do what’s best for them; they do! It’s just that there still seems to be an underlying current of doubt that things will ever actually change, or that they have the ability to impact that change. Read more
How Can Districts Build the Self-Efficacy of Their Principals?
As Rick DuFour and Robert J. Marzano state in Leaders of Learning, “Creating a PLC will always require a collective effort, but the fate of that effort will depend to a large extent on the . . . Read more
What If Efficacy Did Not Matter in Schools?
What if efficacy did not matter in schools or on the PLC journey? What if we focused exclusively on the knowledge and skill set of every individual on a team? In the sports world... Read more
PLC Team Efficacy: If We Think We Can, Can We?
You’ve probably heard the saying, “If you think you can, you can. If you think you can’t, you can’t. You’re always right!” (Not sure who originated that saying, but mothers everywhere seem to have adopted it!)... Read more
Creating Buy-In for PLCs
It is not unusual to have persons excited about the professional learning community concept but express concern that others will not “buy-in.” Educators not buying into research-based . . . Read more
Promoting Social and Emotional Learning Within a PLC
Who among us doesn’t remember Stuart Smiley, Al Franken’s character from Saturday Night Live (“I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me!”) While Stuart may not have been able to help Michael Jordan develop a stronger sense of self-esteem… Read more
PLCs and Self-Efficacy: What Is the Connection?
For those on the PLC journey, one of the most puzzling and frustrating realities is that we still see what Rick DuFour calls the “knowing-doing gap.” We know what to do, but we just don’t seem to… Read more
Student Grouping in a PLC
We received a message from a school that had concluded assigning students to academic classes based on their ability was the best way to promote differentiated instruction for students. While we . . . Read more
Team SMART Goals vs. Smart Students
There are two assumptions we can make about teaching and learning. One is that students will learn according to their effort and ability and that their teachers and their school have no impact on their learning. The other is that… Read more