Week+5+PLC+Studying+Teaching+Practice+in+Professional+Learning+Communities

PLC Meeting Location: Cite Lab PLC Meeting Time: 9:30 am PLC topic for 9/24/10: Teacher Inquiry: Studying Teaching Practice

**Hour 1**
Please view the video below as an anticipatory set for today’s lesson, to get your attention focused on using Inquiry to study Teaching Practice in collaborative groups: [] (seems to take a while to load and displays very small, but is worth it! Approximately 15 min.)
 * //ENGAGE//**

Dear PLC members, please review this website ahead of time and we will discuss our findings during the meeting: []
 * //EXPLORE//**

**Hour 2**
As a group, we will respond to the following questions: 1) Besides a study group, what other programs can teachers implement into their school for more time with their colleagues?
 * //EXPLAIN//**

2) How will student learning benefits teachers?

3) Why creating a supportive environment is important for teachers?


 * //ELABORATE//**

First, take turns discussing the data you have collected so far on your Child Inquiry. These questions might guide your conversation:
 * Who did I choose?
 * What did I see?
 * What does it mean?

Next, it is time to analyze the data you have collected, or in other words, figure out what is going on with this student! Either individually, or in partners, take some time right now to read and listen to Modules 4 and 5. Once everyone has gone through these, discuss. Finally, the Inquiry #2 assignment requires you to select a teaching practice of your cooperating teacher to study—something that seems to work or something that doesn’t seem to work or something that has just caught your eye. Could be:
 * Grouping
 * Presenting
 * Classroom management
 * Communicating
 * Technology use

As a group, make a list of teaching strategies that you see used in your class. Take turns formulating a “wondering” about one strategy. How can your PLC group help you to initiate, analyze, and write-up this inquiry?

**Hour 3**
We began by discussing Professional Learning Communities for teachers. The teachers in these groups are able to reflect on their student’s learning and progress and their abilities to teach. In these groups teachers are able to support each other, share resources, get new perspectives and expand knowledge to help students. As a group, we agree that exploring new technology, describing new teaching methods, and sharing lesson plan ideas will help teachers be effective educators. We disagree on whether study should focus on the students or on teacher planning. We believe that a study group should be equally balanced on focusing student concerns and teacher’s ideas.
 * //EVALUATE//**

We know that we learned because everyone was able to connect their experiences to this discussion. We heard new perspectives from each other about classroom management strategies, teachers panning observations, communication and technology use. We know that we have grown from this discussion because we reflected on our experience and made plans to use each others' ideas for our own classrooms. We also learned and grown this discussion because we acknowledged that we can help each other by sharing ideas, teaching methods, and resources available in our community.