PLCs for
Singletons*
Jeremy Koselak
Tom Fleecs & Teri McNeil
Tom Hunt & Scott Fuller
August, 2015
Overview
 Setting
the Parameters around PLCs
 Bringing Everyone into the fold to
make PLCs meaningful and
impactful for all teachers and
students
 Design Thinking: Crafting “Solutions”
together
Setting the Parameters around
PLCs
Recent Developments that are encouraging this type of
gathering:
 We are investing heavily into “rebooting” PLCs across the
district and intending to be more clear and supportive this
time around.
 Additionally we are looking to reboot/reimagine RtI as a
natural extension of the PLC process and more connected to
the whole child. (A new shift is underway towards “MTSS”)
 Strong responses from the trainings in June and during school
visits suggest the time is right to improve the capacity of those
that don’t have a natural seat at the PLC or RtI table because
of current attempts with implementation.
Setting the Parameters around
PLCs
This is also about honoring those that have historically
put the whole child first, but haven’t found an easy
connection to PLC and RtI.
We want to be more intentional this time around…
and it will take some creative thinking, risk taking, and
responsible innovation.
Because a PLC is not a meeting….
Setting the Parameters around PLCs
Professional Learning Communities are “the ongoing
process in which educators work collaboratively in
recurring cycles of collective inquiry and action research
to achieve better results for the students they serve.”
(Dufour, DuFour, Eaker & Many: Learning by Doing, 2010).
They provide the ideal environment for professional
learning, purposeful collaboration around student work,
and responsible innovation. Working as a Professional
Learning Community ultimately builds a team’s collective
capacity to deliver upon the promise that all students can
learn at high levels when provided the opportunity, extra
time, support and enrichment.
Setting the Parameters around
PLCs
In reading the rest of the Quick Reference Guide for
Professional Learning Communities,
What areas present the greatest challenge?
The greatest leverage point?
Your Experience?
Write down your Best PLC Experience on one
side of a sheet of paper.
 On the other side, write down your Worst PLC
Experience.
Stand up, make eye contact with 1 other
person not at your table; share with them and
reverse.
Repeat with 1 other person.
Return to your table and discuss themes
What Conditions led to either the best or worst?

Using a Design Process
From those Best and Worst PLC experiences,
and the conditions that were in place,
and from the Parameters we reviewed…
We will work through the design process to
ensure our prototype solution addresses
these areas proactively.
Design Thinking
Design Thinking
Norms
 Defer judgment
 Look to rule things in rather than rule them out
 Rule things in that are both comfortable and
uncomfortable
 Listen to receive
 Push the thinking….get radical
 Bias toward action
 “Yes and…”
Design Thinking
Norms: “Yes and…”
Example of Yes, but
Vs
Yes and…
There is a time for “Yes but” thinking… and
isn’t it nice to know that today isn’t one of
those times?
Design Thinking
Norms: Bias toward action
The goal is for you to walk out of here today
with a prototype that
 Makes PLCs more meaningful and impactful
upon your practice
 Provides support to PLCs in your setting
 Improves results for the students you teach
Design Thinking
And the “solution” won’t be perfect…
Because we don’t have the answers…
This is about action research
and responsible innovation
done collaboratively
(sound familiar?”)
What Could the PLC Journey
look like?
Craft a prototype that will
address 3 major things:
Improve Professional Practice
Improve Student Learning
Provide Support to PLCs in
your setting
Gift for you!
 Time
to dig in and wrap our minds around
a solution we can field test.
 Feel
Free to use the graphic organizer
and additional resources to support your
collaborative efforts
What Could the PLC Journey
look like?
Possible Approaches
 Vertical teaming
 Cluster Teaming
 Interdisciplinary teaming
 Virtual Teaming and Face to
Face
 Structural Changes
Keep the target simple
 Find
Common Ground
 Focus on Essential and Enduring Skills and
or Competencies that set our students up
for lifelong success
 Maintain a “Yes, and…” orientation and a
bias towards action
Divide up, use space around
us, seek out other spaces as
needed, including (? ?):
 Read,


reflect, research and seek out
Others with common ground
Additional resources and support
 Tom
or Scott*, Jeremy or Tom or Teri
 Text us if you need support and are in a different
location
 Develop
a Prototype that you can share out
to the group with a specific goal around PLC
“time”.
Report Back
Describe your Prototype (at whatever state of
development). We will collect these ideas and
amplify them.



Teams provide open, positive feedback: Yes,
and…
Who else should know about this and connect
to your effort?
What supports will you need to make this work?
Be honest about potential obstacles that we
need to work on as a group: share on
comment sheets.
Please provide us with
feedback and ideas for
supporting your efforts.