September 2009—Published On-line Monthly Shawnee Mission Public Schools East Lancers 51 Years
Lancer Newsletter
Shawnee Mission East High School www.smsd.org/schools/smeast
Development and Implementation of Professional Learning Communities Message from the Principal Over the past 15 years, the explosion of research in education has been prolific. Most of the research has centered on addressing the perceived inadequacies of schools as judged by declining test scores. As a result, many theories on learning and teaching have developed; which in turn brought about changes in either content or content delivery. Unfortunately, many of these programs have been short-lived or proven to have only limited success, depending on the community or school setting. During this same period of time, a group of researchers approached this concern through a different set of glasses. Instead of focusing on the content knowledge or how to best to teach the content (both of which are still addressed in their program), Robert DuFour and his colleagues looked at developing a process which would ensure a high level of achievement for all students. The “process” termed Professional Learning Communities (PLC) is different than the word “educational program.” There is ample compelling research available to
Key Dates: 8/31 7pm Fall Meet the Coach Night 9/1 11:30am PTA Meeting 9/1 7pm Back to School Night 9/7 No School, Labor Day 9/8 Late Start 9:20am 9/15 Early Dismissal 1:10pm 9/23 9am Parent/Principal Coffee 9/24 Evening Open Conferences 9/25 No School, Conferences
confirm PLC schools meet the goal of raising the level of achievement of all students. It is important to realize that it is nearly impossible to share all the knowledge about the PLC in a onepage article. However, it is our desire to educate you and our students about the process. In the past, most educators would not even consider including students in the conversation of educational change. This process comes close to making it a requirement. To start, PLC’s have the following characteristics: Common Mission, Vision, Values, and Goals Collaborative Culture Collective Inquiry Action Orientation Continuous Improvement Focus on Results From these characteristics, PLC’s have nine goals. Each of these goals will appear in every classroom in our building. 1. Mission — Is it evident that learning for all is our core purpose? 2. Collective Vision — Do we know what we are trying to create? 3. Shared Values — How must we behave to advance our vision? 4. Goals — What are our priorities? How do we know? 5. Communication — How do we share what is important? 6. Clarity — What must students know, think and be able to do? 7. Assessment — Have students learned the essential curriculum?
How do we know? 8. Systematic Interventions: — Do we ensure that all students receive additional time and support for learning when and if it is needed? 9. Focus on Results — Are the results of assessments used to adjust the instruction of individual students? How? We plan to share this information with our staff and begin talking with our students about this new process. Many might be wondering why a school like SME should get involved in such a process, given our academic success of the past. The answer is really simple – all organizations regardless of mission need to continually improve! We are not planning to discontinue any educational programs currently in place. Obviously, it would be ridiculous to abandon anything which has worked well in this building the past few decades. One thing we have to keep in mind is that SME is slowly changing, just like all the other high schools in Shawnee Mission and throughout the United States. As these changes occur, new challenges in the area of academics will arise. The Professional Learning Community process provides the means necessary to maintain high levels of achievement for all students over an extended period of time; even during times of challenge and change. Look for more information about PLC’s and our progress with implementation on the SME website. Have a great year!
Karl R. Krawitz, Ed.D Principal