A better PLC

Reflections from the third grade team at General Stanford Elementary on using TeachFX in their PLC

What do you think of when you hear the term “PLC”?

Do you imagine “professional” conversations about your instructional practice? Do you picture an environment where you and your colleagues are “learning” from each other in a supportive “community”?

Or, does the term “PLC” bring to mind a logistical meeting about calendars and schedules? Or maybe a meeting filled with superficial chatter, tea and coffee time? Or, worse, do you simply picture teachers complaining about their students?

For too many of us, PLCs aren’t what we hope them to be.

PLCs, or department or grade level meetings, are supposed to be this special time where we as teachers have a chance to reflect on our craft in the supportive company of our closest colleagues. But it’s hard to keep conversations focused on what really matters (our teaching! and whether it’s helping our students learn!) when there are so many other things competing for our time.

Some teachers are setting amazing examples for us all with their PLC culture. Take the third grade team at General Stanford Elementary School in Newport News, Virginia. I met Karen Canfield, Keldie Chewning, and Tifani Wood because their PLC decided to use TeachFX to help fuel conversations about teaching and learning.

“We know that students who are highly engaged in the classroom achieve a higher level of success,” Karen explained, “so we use TeachFX to help us monitor and collect data” about student engagement.

“It has been a really eye-opening experience,” she continued. “TeachFX has really helped to give us a positive classroom environment and help our students be successful.”

In their PLC, the team is working on promoting more student-centered instruction. They use the TeachFX app to record their classes, and the app automatically provides data about student engagement, as well as teaching insights and tips. “What I like most about TeachFX is that you get a quick analysis,” Tifani commented. “And it’s very easy to read and understand.”

Their colleague Keldie stressed the collaboration TeachFX helps promote within their team: “We discuss with each other ‘what’s working in your classroom?’ versus what might be working in mine.” The TeachFX class reports provide a window into a fellow teacher’s classroom that teachers otherwise wouldn’t have.

The tool also helps teachers draw connections between high leverage teaching strategies — like open-ended questioning, or wait time — and improved learning outcomes for students. “The top thing I learned was the importance of extending my wait time,” Tifani reflected. “TeachFX showed me that I didn’t have enough wait time, and I was able to see my growth progress through different classes I did on TeachFX.”

TeachFX is helping PLCs across the country collect evidence of student engagement. The tool is helping teachers — who typically don’t have time to observe other teachers — get a vivid picture of their colleagues’ instructional practice. In short, it’s helping teachers learn from each other.

As Karen put it, “TeachFX has been a very helpful tool for helping us to grow as teachers.”