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| 1A.1 Getting Started 1A.2 Getting Acquainted 1A.3 Sharing Perspectives 1A.4 Maintaining Community |
 Step One - All Files   1R.1 Best Practice Teacher Standard
1R.2 INTASC Teacher Standard
1R.3 Instructional Strategies that Increase Student Learning
1R.4 National Staff Development Council Standards for Staff Development
1R.5 Thirteen Principles of Best Practice
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1A.1
Getting Started:
Why Create a Learning Community?
Teachers may come together to create a learning community for many reasons. Principals or site councils may form learning communities to initiate curriculum reform or improve instructional practices. The district or the state may require professional development plans that include collegial interaction. Or, teachers may decide to support each other in continued learning because they are committed to improving classroom practice. Whatever the reason, worthwhile learning communities must involve more than dull meetings where teachers re-hash what they already know.
To be successful, learning communities must engage teachers' hearts and minds. The activities must remind us why we became educators in the first place—because we enjoy learning, because school was where we experienced success, and because we are committed to educating others.
What are the two most important reasons to form
a learning community?
How do we create a learning community?