How does MiBLSi

support

Professional Learning
Communites?
MiBLSi supports the
development of
Professional Learning
Communities (PLC) by
helping educators to learn
HOW TO IMPLEMENT the
“Big Ideas” of a PLC.
 Professional Learning
Communities are built around
three “Big Ideas”:
 Big Idea #1: Ensuring That
Students Learn

 Big Idea #2: A Culture of

Collaboration

 Big Idea #3: A Focus on Results

 Big Idea #1: Ensuring That Students
Learn
Educators work not just to ensure that
students are taught but to ensure that
they learn.

Educators ask…
 What do we want each student to
learn/accomplish?
 How will we know when each student has
learned/accomplished it?
 How will we respond when a student
experiences difficulty in
learning/accomplishing?

The answer to the third question separates

learning communities from traditional
 Big Idea #2: A Culture of
Collaboration
 Teachers work together to analyze
and improve their classroom
practice.

 Teachers work in teams, engaging in

an ongoing cycle of questions that
promote deep team learning. This
process, in turn, leads to higher
levels of student achievement.
 Big Idea #3: A Focus on
Results
 Professional learning communities judge their
effectiveness on the basis of results.

 Working together to improve student

achievement becomes the routine work of
everyone in the school.

 Every teacher team participates in an

ongoing process of identifying the current
level of student achievement, establishing a
goal to improve the current level, working
together to achieve that goal, and providing
periodic evidence of progress.
 MiBLSi
provides training, coaching, assessment tools,
materials, funding and technical assistance to
help educators…
 Build effective grade level and building leadership
teams through the ongoing development &
refinement of each team’s purpose, process and
planning.

 To systematically collect and review formative

data regarding literacy and behavior

 To use this formative data to determine which

practices are working and which are not and to
identify student and staff needs

 To change, refine, develop or adopt best

practices and/or secure necessary resources to
meet identified needs
The professional learning community’s
response to students who experience
difficulty is:
 Timely. The school quickly identifies students
who need additional time and support.

 Based on intervention rather than

remediation. The plan provides students with
help as soon as they experience difficulty rather
than relying on summer school, retention,
remedial courses (or simply an increase punitive
measures regarding behavior errors).

 Directive. Instead of inviting students to seek

additional help, the systematic plan requires
students to devote extra time and receive
additional assistance until they have mastered
MiBLSi supports the Vision
and Mission of Portage
Public Schools by helping
participating staff meet the
district’s expectations to….
 Ensure a high quality innovative
curriculum (for both Behavior &
Literacy)
MiBLSi helps by providing training, coaching,
tools, and technical support to…
 ensure the curriculum in each grade level
is based on clearly defined goals,
objectives & priorities
 ensure each school’s instructional
programs and materials…
 have documented efficacy
 are drawn from research based findings and
practices,
 align with state standards and benchmarks
 support a full range of learners.
 Provide research-based
instruction (for both Behavior &
Literacy)
MiBLSi helps by…
 providing training, coaching,

funding, materials, and technical

assistance regarding the use of
evidence-based instructional
strategies
Offer students opportunities for
practice (for both Behavior &
Literacy)

MiBLSi helps by helping staff to assess

and
develop or improve a schoolwide plan
that:

 Allocates sufficient, prioritized

reading time that is protected from
interruption
 Measure student
achievement (for both
Behavior & Literacy)
MiBLSi helps by evaluating and ensuring
that instruments and procedures for
assessing reading and social/behavioral
achievement are:

 clearly specified
 measure essential skills
 provide reliable and valid information
about student performance
 inform instruction in important,
meaningful, and maintainable ways
Ensure a safe learning
environment that empowers
students to be responsible,
confident, independent thinkers
and able to monitor their own
behaviors and performances.

Build positive relationships in a

professional, ethical manner, by
honoring diversity, modeling life
skills, and meeting the physical
and emotional needs of all
students.
 MiBLSi helps by…
 providing PBS training, coaching,
materials, implementation assessment
tools, and examples to school staff in
order to implement effective, data-driven
school and classroom-wide positive
behavior support practices within the
building.

 helping staff to implement a three-tiered,

prevention–based model for helping all
students meet their behavioral and