Apply to Be a Model PLC

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Use the attached templates to provide student achievement data.

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Overview for Recognition as a Model PLC

Thank you for your interest in serving as a model professional learning community (PLC). To receive this honor, a school must:

Demonstrate a commitment to PLC concepts.
Implement those concepts for at least three years.
Present clear evidence of improved student learning.
Explain the culture, practices, and structures of the school or district, and submit it for consideration to the PLC Review Committee using our online submission process.
Update school or district information on the site each year to show your data continues to meet the criteria of the PLC at Work process.

Before You Apply

We recommend gathering the following information and documents before you begin:

Student demographic data
Racial/ethnic percentages (if applicable)
Student achievement data from the past three consecutive years, with a basis of comparison between your school/district and that of your state/province
Awards and recognition
Team-produced products that address the Four Critical Questions

You will also need to prepare responses for the following:

In your “PLC story”:
- Tell us how you built shared understanding and commitment to the PLC at Work process. (Recommended word count is 250–750.)
- Tell us how you are facilitating a culture of continuous improvement in your school (district). (Recommended word count is 250–500.)
Under “PLC practices”:
- Under “Monitoring Student Learning on a Timely Basis”:
  - Describe the process that your school (district) uses to create and implement a guaranteed and viable curriculum. (Recommended word count is 150–500.)
  - Describe the strategies your school (district) uses to monitor student learning on a timely basis. (Recommended word count is 150–500.)
- Under “Creating Systems of Intervention and Extension to Provide Students with Additional Time and Support for Learning”:
  - Share how you are creating and implementing systems of intervention and extension to provide students with additional time and support for learning. (Recommended word count is 150–500.)
- Under “Building Teacher Capacity to work as members of high-performing collaborative teams that focus efforts on improved learning for all students.”
  - Explain how your high-performing, collaborative teams focus their efforts on improved student learning. (Recommended word count is 150–500.)

Our panel of expert PLC practitioners will use the above criteria to assess each school or district. Please consider carefully whether your school or district meets each criterion. To see examples of what you’ll need to submit before you get started, visit the See the Evidence page for sample information and data.

Guidelines for Completing a Successful Application

Once you start the application process, you can save your work and come back to it at any time. To access your saved application, sign in to Your Profile and click Manage Schools. You’ll be able to pick up on the step where you left off.
You will have the opportunity to review your completed application before it is submitted. Please double-check that each required text box is filled out completely. Simply writing “see attachment” in a text box will not meet application requirements.
Before submitting your application, we recommend sending the application to several members of your team for review. You can do this by copying the URL of the application preview in step 8.

Tips for Submitting a Successful Application:

Under “Achievement Data”:

Ensure your data shows three years of successful implementation and significant sustained improvement, with a basis of comparison between your school/district and that of your state/province.
Use the attached templates to provide student achievement data. Please feel free to modify the templates as needed to display most effectively your school’s (district) data.

Under “Awards”:

List any awards and recognition to your school’s (district’s) commitment to the PLC process.

Under “Resources”:

Include products that help to demonstrate your school’s (district’s) commitment to the PLC process (i.e., shared foundation, team-produced products that address the Four Critical Questions, schedules, etc.)

After You Apply

After the committee has reviewed your application, you will receive:
- an email of approval, or
- an explanation of needed improvements, or
- the opportunity to speak with a member of the Evidence of Effectiveness Review Committee to clarify and discuss next steps
Approved schools are required to update their data on an annual basis. To upload new data, sign in to Your Profile and then click Manage Schools. Here you can access your existing application, make the necessary updates, and resubmit your application.
You can upload additional contact information at any time. When you sign in to upload your new data each year, we recommend updating your contact information too. To do this, sign in to Your Profile, click Manage Schools, and then click Manage Contacts.
If your application is not approved, we encourage you to continue your school improvement efforts and resubmit another application in the future.

Criteria for Selection

Evidence of a Commitment to Learning for All Students

Teachers work in collaborative teams to build shared knowledge regarding national, state, or provincial standards; district curriculum guides; the content and format of high-stakes assessments; and the expectations of teachers at the next level to clarify the essential knowledge and skills all students must acquire to advance.

Collaborative teams of teachers have clarified the specific proficiency standards students must achieve on each essential standard and the criteria they will use in assessing each student’s proficiency. They have practiced applying the criteria to ensure consistent, reliable assessment of student learning. They help students understand the criteria, and students use the criteria to monitor their own learning.

The school has a process for carefully monitoring each student’s learning on an ongoing basis. This frequent monitoring of student learning includes common assessments created by the collaborative team of teachers responsible for the same group of students.

The school has a process for responding when students experience difficulty in learning (rather than leaving it to the individual classroom teacher to resolve). This coordinated process ensures students receive additional time and support for learning in a way that is timely, directive (rather than invitational), and systematic. Students do not miss new instruction to receive this additional support.

The school has a process for enriching and extending the learning for students who are proficient.

Evidence of a Collaborative Culture

Teachers are organized into collaborative teams by course or subject area. Members of teams work interdependently to achieve common goals for which they are mutually accountable.

Teachers are provided with time to collaborate during their contractual day.

Teachers use their collaborative time to engage in collective inquiry regarding issues directly related to student learning.

Evidence of a Focus on Results

Each team has identified SMART goals that are aligned with one or more school goals. The SMART goals focus on student learning and require evidence of improved student learning in order to be accomplished.

Teams regard ongoing analysis of results as a critical element in the teaching and learning process. They gather evidence of student learning from a variety of sources to inform and improve their individual and collective practice as part of a process of continuous improvement.

Each teacher receives frequent feedback regarding the success of his or her students in achieving a standard, using agreed-upon assessments in comparison to the other students attempting to achieve the same standard. Transparency regarding results helps teachers learn from one another.

Student achievement in the school is clearly improving across the curriculum. High-performing schools are able to sustain their achievement over time.