Developing Social Capital
with Authentic PLCs
August 9, 2012
School Administrators of Iowa Conference
Daniel R.Venables
Founding Director
Center for Authentic PLCs
CONTACT INFORMATION
dvenables@authenticPLCs.com
803 / 206-3578 c
www.authenticPLCs.com
AGREE OR DISAGREE
“The key to school reform lies in
improving the competencies and skills of
individual teachers.”
Human Capital
v.
Social Capital
Dr. Carrie Leana (U of Pittsburg) 10+ Year Study
1200 NYC Elementary Teachers
• Social Capital highest predictor of student
achievement (higher than Human Capital)
• Social Capital highest when “high trust, frequent
interactions” of faculty
• 1 standard deviation increase in SC => 5.7% point
increase in 5th grade math scores
• teachers 4x more likely to turn to colleague than
Principal
• 25% of Principal’s time spent on instructional
activities (57% on administrivia)
• Notion of P as Instructional Leader not valid
STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT
LOW HUMAN
CAPITAL
HIGH HUMAN
CAPITAL
HIGH
SOCIAL
CAPITAL
MODERATELY
HIGH
HIGH
LOW
SOCIAL
CAPITAL
LOW
MODERATE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6Ma
IRhInE0
“After decades of failed programs aimed
at improving student achievement
through teacher human capital and
principal leadership, investments in social
capital are cheap by comparison and offer
far more promise of
measurable gains for students.”
(Leana, 2011)
(Authentic) PLCs are “the surest, fastest
path to instructional improvement.”
(Schmoker, 2006)
Authentic PLCs
Customary
Teacher Groups
Highly focused
Easily unfocused
Problem-solving
Planning,
housekeeping
Data driven
“Hunch” driven
Student-oriented
Teacher-oriented
Collaborative
Co-blaborative
Interdependent
Success
Independent Success
A CULTURE
A GROUP
“The question is not
Are the teachers collaborating?
but rather
What are they collaborating
about?
and
How are they collaborating?”
(Venables, 2011)
What are they collaborating about?
• Looking at Student and Teacher Work
• Designing Common Assessments
• Reviewing and Responding to Data
How are they collaborating?
• Guided by a skilled facilitator
• Working within group-established
Norms
• Using Protocols for focused,
structure conversations
• Making meaning together by
Constructing Community Knowledge
• Using a systematic approach to
responding to data (Data Action
Model)
High-Functioning PLCs
• Highly Focused on Common Vision
• High Trust & Honesty
• Interdependent Teacher Success
• Mutually Accountable Teachers
• Data-driven Instructional Decisions
• Continual Improvement & Teacher
Learning
• Highly Trained & Skillful Facilitation
• Highly Supported by Admin
From: The Practice of Authentic PLCs (Venables, 2011)
DEVELOPING SOCIAL CAPITAL
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Principal’s Priority
Schedule Allowances
Training of PLC Coaches
Monitoring of PLCs
Building Trust & Buy-in
PLC x PLC Observations
Teacher x Teacher Observations