That forms a group of professionals, group of teachers within our school.
This can be the whole school or it can be a group within the school as well.
Or it can be even outside the school,
so any group of professionals any group of teachers who
have a common focus can establish a professional learning community.
Once the group is formed, then we start the process of learning.
This starts with an action with an enquiry.
So I might have an issue that I face during my class.
I have an issue dealing with a parent.
I might an issue deal with another colleague.
So I just share that with the community.
With my professional learning community or with a group with a common focus.
So once shared, the group will start discussing on
the different ways in which to deal with those issues and how to innovate,
how to change the ways that we deal with issues.
How to change the instruction, how to address a particular type of student.
These are things that will be discussed within the community, and
they will come up with a change in practice and ideas.
So once the idea is formed, we will try it as a group,
we'll try it in our classrooms, and then we will get feedback.
Feedback on what happened after the trial, and based on that,
if any refining is needed, then we will do the refining of our innovation.
And once it's complete,
we will share our outcomes with the rest of the community as well.
We will share each with other teachers even outside a group.
So this is a cyclic process.
So again, the same action can begin to
trigger innovation changes, trial and refining and sharing our outcomes.
So that's how you establish a professional learning community.
And some of the things that we need to know and understand is in order
to make a professional learning community successful, we need to have data that is
shared data that is important and accessible to the rest of the community.
We need to have a culture of collaboration,
a culture of making decisions together.
We need to build trust within our community, and
we need to have common values.
That's all I have for you this session
regarding professional learning communities and working with colleagues.
In the next session, Professor Tony Townsend and we'll be going through with
you looking at developing positive teacher parent relationships.
By looking at why involving parents will help students to be more successful.
Thank you very much.
[MUSIC]