Professional Learning Communities

Want to find out more about learning in a network? Recent research found that effective professional learning communities have a positive impact on teachers' morale and practice, as well as making a positive difference to pupils' engagement and learning, and that it can be an effective way of improving the teaching and learning in your school. So, why not have a look at these materials jointly produced by The Innovation Unit, National College for School Leadership, the General Teaching Council for England and the University of Bristol?

Using self-evaluation, reflective enquiry, dialogue, collaborative learning and problem solving, the materials are aimed at school leaders, CPD co-ordinators and other leaders of professional learning interested in developing their school, early years setting, department or faculty as a professional learning community. They will also be useful for others who are helping schools to develop their professional learning.

You can download the PDFs from the links below. There's a user guide and a range of different activities such as think pieces, stories of change, a survey, a reflective timeline, a task involving photos and metaphors etc. The activities are grouped under five headings - Familiarisation and deepening understanding; Audit; Planning; Action; and Monitoring and evaluation - and can be sequenced to suit your particular setting and amount of time available. A route map is included to help you plan how to use the materials.

PLC source materials (PowerPoint - 73 Kb).

Contents guide (PDF - 390 KB).

What is a professional learning community? A summary (PDF - 200 KB).

Route map (PDF - 684KB).

1. User guide: getting started and thinking about your journey (PDF - 533 KB).
2. Creating and sustaining effective learning communities (PDF - 647 KB).
3. Setting professional learning communities in an international perspective (PDF - 552 KB).
4. Broadening the learning Community: Key messages (PDF - 657 KB).
5. Exploring the idea of professional learning communities (PDF - 577 KB).
6. Investigating the culture of your professional learning community (PDF - 746 KB).
7. Comparing your preferred future and the current situation in your professional learning community (PDF - 608 KB).
8. Deciding where you are as a professional learning community (PDF - 736 KB).
9. Planning your professional learning community (PDF - 896 KB).
10. Developing your professional learning community (PDF - 997 KB).
11. Bringing about change: starting developing and sustaining (PDF - 585 KB).
12. Reflect on the progress of your professional learning community (PDF - 222 KB).
13. Assessing the impact of your professional learning community (PDF - 312 KB).

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