Creating and Sustaining Effective Professional Learning Communities
by Ray Bolam, Agnes McMahon, Louise Stoll, Sally Thomas, Mike Wallace et al.
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Overview
The research brief is a summary of the large research study that has produced findings about the effect of school-based professional learning communities (PLCs) on student achievement and sustained teacher professional development. Both the research brief and the full report are available as PDFs from this link.
An effective professional learning community has the following characteristics:
- shared values and vision
- collective responsibility for students’ learning
- collaboration focused on learning (teachers’ and students’)
- engagement with individual and collective professional learning
- reflective personal inquiry
- openness to and participation in networks and partnerships
- experience of mutual trust, respect, and support.
The research indicates that the members of an effective PLC have improved student learning as their foremost concern and that they work together to achieve it. In addition, for a PLC to be effective the school leadership needs to ensure that it has excellent resources in terms of time and support.
One question that emerges is the breadth of membership of a PLC. Should it include support staff, students, members of the board of trustees, and other parent representatives? There is some controversy about what constitutes a ‘professional’ community.
The report provides some helpful material for schools considering setting up a PLC in their context, and makes a clear connection between the quality of teacher professional learning and the level of improvement in students’ achievement.
Reflective questions
These reflective questions might guide you in your reading of the research brief and report:
- How would you need to alter your use of human and financial resources to assist the establishment of an effective professional learning community (PLC)?
- Which groups from your wider school community should be asked to participate in the PLC?
- How would you go about developing a concerted whole school focus on improving student learning outcomes?
- Are there any issues of mutual trust and respect that might need addressing in order to get the PLC working effectively?
References
Bolam, R., McMahon, A., Stoll, L., Thomas, S., & Wallace, M. et al. (2005). Creating and sustaining effective professional learning communities (Research Brief RB637). Nottingham UK: Department for Education and Science, DfES Publications.
Download a PDF of the article from this website. Scroll to No.2 on list.
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