Making Time Count

Tips for Making Lesson Study PLC Time Valuable:

• Keep the focus on students and student needs (prevent a gripe session).

• Distinguish between learning and "business as usual" with the focus on learning during PLC time.

• Establish expectations for team learning (NOT organizing class parties)

• Specify the content for team learning time

• Teach processes that encourage smooth meetings (setting norms, using protocols, facilitating, use of dialogue, etc.)

• Focus on teamwork by doing real work, not on doing unconnected activities

• Practice skills of collaboration by agreeing to them, then trying them out with real work and individually and as a group evaluating how well they worked

• Establish mechanisms for being accountable to the rest of the school/others in terms of PLC work (blog, email, post minutes, share learning, log, personal journal, portfolio, etc.)

• Plan for transitions (turnover in faculty or administrators, especially)

• Begin with more objective activities – such as a book study – saving more personal activities – such as examining student work – until the group has found a way to work together well.

• Focus on data – from a variety of sources, including interviews with students, analysis of student work, notes from classroom walk‐throughs, etc.