Learning to identify allies. Part 2

"Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success." - Henry Ford

I attended a Professional Learning Community meeting this morning at Goshen Middle School. Several times a month the 8th grade social studies teachers meet together to collaboratively plan lessons for the upcoming week. The teacher I am observing really values this time to work with colleagues and bounce ideas off of other teachers.

I was able to directly participate in this collaborative process this morning with two other students in my Middle School Curriculum and Instruction Class. We are all teaching our first lesson next Tuesday and we used the half hour slot of time to plan our lesson together. Our teachers had given us a rough idea of what we could do, but the three of us worked together to iron out the details. I quickly realized that in working together we were able to combine our best ideas and come up with a solid lesson plan for Tuesday. Our final project will be much stronger now than it would have been if we had worked separately.

I have been told that some teachers at Goshen Middle School grumble about the PLC meetings. They do not find them valuable or a good use of time. I am impressed with how my teacher has turned this mandatory meeting time into a valuable teaching tool. The PLC allows her to work with "allies" in her department. It also cuts down on prep time when teachers are able to work together and share ideas.