The Journey to Becoming a Professional Learning Community

The Journey to Becoming a Professional Learning Community is a unique resource designed to keep schools transforming into PLCs on track. Just like students, adults learn in different ways?for visual learners a tool that depicts the PLC journey graphically can help clarify the process of transformation. This roadmap literally shows the way. Featured on the roadmap are 10 ?postcards,? each listing helpful questions or issues to address during the process. The banners and accompanying guide booklets are not intended to provide rigid timetables, step-by-step directions to which schools must faithfully adhere, or even a linear approach to becoming a PLC. This resource simply helps educators address critical issues that may arise during their journey. Consider this analogy: There is no one right way to drive from San Francisco to New York. People can choose very different routes and proceed at very different speeds depending on a number of variables and still arrive in the Big Apple. Similarly, there is no one right way to become a PLC. A school with a single champion of the concept will proceed at a much different pace than a school with multiple leaders and widespread enthusiasm for moving forward. A school with a tradition of adults working in isolation may take a different path than a school in which adults are accustomed to working together. While there may be no one right way to proceed, there are certain issues that ultimately must be addressed. Educators must take action, and they must move in the right direction. This roadmap encourages educators to take that action and points them in the right direction, while at the same time promoting and encouraging flexibility and autonomy for those on the journey. The Journey to Becoming a Professional Learning Community provides a helpful model, both in textual (booklet) and graphic (map) form, outlining several important steps to streamline the journey to becoming a PLC: ? Identify the appropriate activities and the order in which they need to be accomplished to reach the goal. ? Identify who will have the primary responsibility for each activity along the way. ? Develop a timeframe for when things will be accomplished. ? Identify necessary resources (time, money, training, etc.). ? Address the critical questions, ?How will we monitor our progress and assess our effectiveness?? and ?What evidence will we examine to determine if we have been successful??