Learning by Doing: A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at WorkTM (An Actionable Guide to Implementing the PLC Process and Effective Teaching Methods)

Discover how to close the knowing-doing gap and transform your school or district into a high-performing professional learning community (PLC). The powerful third edition of this comprehensive action guide from experts Richard DuFour, Rebecca DuFour, Robert Eaker, Thomas W. Many, and Mike Mattos updates and expands on new and significant PLC topics. Explore fresh strategies, tools, and tips for hiring and retaining new staff, creating team-developed common formative assessment, implementing systematic interventions, and more.

Learn how to establish professional learning communities in schools:

• Build a shared knowledge of critical vocabulary and the concepts underlying the PLC process.
• Equip yourself with the knowledge and tools necessary to model effective reciprocal accountability and collective teacher efficacy.
• Make honest assessments of your school and teaching methods by examining conventional practices from a fresh, critical perspective.
• Take immediate and specific steps to close the knowing-doing gap.
• Move beyond creating an action plan for school improvement, and start doing.

Changes for the third edition:

1. Two new chapters: One on team-developed common formative assessment strategies and the second on hiring, orienting, and retaining staff members for your PLC
2. A stronger focus on districtwide PLC implementation and avoiding common mistakes related to the PLC process
3. New insight into clarifying the essential standards necessary in a guaranteed and viable curriculum by establishing a collective understanding of best practices in teaching
4. Suggestions for incorporating a focus on learning and deeper knowledge, as opposed to simple recall of information, into curriculum development and teacher-made assessments
5. A deeper and more thorough examination of RTI (MTSS) interventions by coauthor Mike Mattos, a leading expert on intervention
6. Explicit PLC tools and templates that high-performing districts have used
7. An updated research base, including more than one hundred new references and professional learning community examples
8. A shift in focus from why educators should implement the PLC process to steps to take immediately in the implementation process

Contents:
Introduction to the Third Edition
Chapter 1: A Guide to Action for Professional Learning Communities at Work™
Chapter 2: Defining a Clear and Compelling Purpose
Chapter 3: Building the Collaborative Culture of a PLC at Work™
Chapter 4: Creating a Results Orientation in a PLC at Work™
Chapter 5: Creating a Focus on Learning
Chapter 6: Creating Team-Developed Common Formative Assessments
Chapter 7: Responding When Some Students Don't Learn
Chapter 8: Hiring, Orienting, and Retaining New Staff
Chapter 9: Resolving Conflict and Celebrating in a PLC at Work™
Chapter 10: Implementing the PLC Process Districtwide
References and Resources
Index

See also, the companion book, Concise Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About Professional Learning Communities at Work™, that provides readers with quick answers to help them move beyond specific problems in PLC implementation.