|
Up close: Deep smarts start here
- We need to talk
- Trust
- Tweeted by Learning Forward
- What's inside
|
The collaborative compact: Operating principles lay the groundwork for successful group work
By Robert J. Garmston and Diane P. Zimmerman
Leaders can accelerate collaboration by creating
collaborative compacts -- a set of agreements on how
group members work together, think together, work
with conflicts, and manage their own behavior.
|
All aboard!: In one Iowa district, all teachers and principals are on the same journey
By Deb Hansen, Colleen Anderson, Linda Munger,
and Mitzi Chizek
Collaborative learning teams are improving teacher
practice and student learning results in the Dallas
Center-Grimes Community School District near Des
Moines, Iowa.
|
A tune-up for stymied teams: When a group's focus falters, take steps to get back on track
By Renee Hesson
Even the most efficient team of teachers can become
ineffective. The keys to refocusing a committed team
on the instructional goals originally established by the
group are through reality, relationships, and reflection.
|
Strong teams, strong schools: Teacher-to-teacher collaboration creates synergy that benefits students
By Dennis Sparks
Schools will improve for the benefit of every student
only when every leader and every teacher is a member
of one or more strong teams. Effective teamwork
creates the environment for meaningful collaboration
that enables teachers to better address the complex
challenges of their work.
|
Create a
learning team
road map: A well-designed plan is flexible and focused on the team's goal
By Anne Jolly
The team plan
is the beginning route that team members agree to
follow to reach a shared goal. To develop a good
plan, team members must spend time exploring ideas,
examining different strategies for reaching the goal,
and deliberating on which approaches they will use.
|
You've been evaluated. Now what?: Use results to pump up professional learning's potential
By Stephanie Hirsh
Teacher evaluations have the potential to achieve more, and to do it more quickly, when they are part of a comprehensive professional learning system tied to a school district's and a school's improvement goals for students.
|
Learning to be a community: Schools need adaptable models to create successful programs
By Bradley A. Ermeling
and Ronald Gallimore
The learning communities movement is at a crossroads. Schools and districts need implementation models flexible enough to adapt to local conditions but sufficiently specific that educators aren't reinventing the wheel.
|
|
From the editor
By Tracy Crow
(Available to the public.)
|
Essentials: Keeping up with hot topics in the field
- Digital learning
- Michigan report card
- School leader challenges
- Teacher leaders
- Urban principals
- Teacher evaluation
- Improving feedback
|
Tool
Team long-term planning guide and plan for team growth.
|
Collaborative culture
By Susan Scott, Deli Moussavi-Bock, Janet Hagstrom Irving, and Lisa Bresnehan
Ask questions, rather than dispense advice, to transform conversations into teachable moments.
|
@ LEARNING FORWARD
NEWS AND NOTES
- Workbook examines
collaboration time
- Book Club
- On Board: Aspire to be remarkable
- Membership referral program
- New IC maps
(Available to the public.)
|
From the director
By Stephanie Hirsh
(Available to the public.)
|
|
What the right data can do: Find sources that can help tailor learning to each educator's needs
By Edie Holcomb
By using student, educator, and system data that provide critical information to customize planning, every educator is learning -- not just attending the same events as everyone else.
|
A powerful partnership: Principal and external provider lead the turnaround at a low-performing urban school
By Maryann Marrapodi and Ora Beard
A strong principal, dedicated staff, and external provider use a data-informed instructional improvement process to change the course of Dixon Educational Learning Academy in Detroit, Mich.
|
Deep impact: A Learning Forward Academy graduate inspires learning in her district
By Shirley Hord, Janice Bradley, and Patricia Roy
As a result of her experience in the Learning Forward Academy, Karla McAdam changed her approach to the work she does with schools -- and influenced learning for the principals, teachers, and students in her district.
|