Guest Blog: What REALLY Makes a Professional Learning Community?

Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) provide a format for people to come together and talk deeply about the issues that surround their profession, in this case, education. PLCs take on many different forms, but the essence of any PLC is focused, passionate conversation about the issues at hand. I had the opportunity to participate in one such PLC very recently—the DSC Annual Sales Meeting. You might stop and wonder, a sales meeting? Yes, a sales meeting.

Conversations at the DSC sales meeting, whether professional development focused, product-driven, or about the deep relationships that are built throughout states, districts, and schools, were all about one essential question: How can we help teachers meet the demands of the education system and the diverse needs of students in the DSC Way? The conversations were enthusiastic, thoughtful, and informative. They were about sharing what is working and what supports still need to be developed and strengthened to assist the educational system.

The sales meeting was invigorating; it reminded me that there is a community beyond the teacher and the school/district staff that is concerned about discussing important issues in education and planning and preparing to meet those issues head on. An annual sales meeting may not be the PLC format that comes to mind, but I was reminded that PLCs can come in many powerful and diverse formats. 

DuFour, DuFour, Eaker, and Many (2006) define a Professional Learning Community as a group of educators committed to working collaboratively in ongoing processes of collective inquiry and action research to achieve better results for the students they serve. Think about that definition. Think about how you can be involved in a PLC beyond what we have created them to be. I had that opportunity this weekend. I leave the sales meeting enriched and focused on what the important issues are around the country and reminded of how a community of educators and others passionate about education can make a difference for the public school system, but most importantly for the teachers and students doing the hard work in the classrooms daily.

As the new school year begins, I challenge you to engage in a PLC, to find a community of learners to embrace, share, learn, and extend the craft of teaching.

Gina Zugelder

P.S. One way to extend the PLC is engaging in Lesson Study!

Gina Zugelder is the Associate Director of Literacy at RtI TLC.