PLC Norms

Video Transcription

In this tutorial, we'll discuss the importance and the development of PLC norms. After answering the question why establish norms, I'll walk you through a sample norms development process. And finally, I'll share some best practices that you can implement when you're working with norms. Let's get started.

Let's begin by considering why we might want to establish norms. When a PLC engages in this process of establishing norms and establishing a vision and mission and goals for the PLC as a team or as a community of practice, that helps the PLC to manifest the features that are critical for success. In fact, all highly effective site-based management teams engage in this cyclical process. It's important to revisit all of these elements frequently based upon student academic data and social-emotional data, like student behavior and information about school culture. And it's important also to incorporate feedback from teachers and parents and students alike as teams are going through this cyclical process.

So establishing norms is part of this process. And norms are just statements of common commitments to team behaviors. So sometimes they are referred to by that phrase, "common commitments." They establish the mutually agreed upon ways of working collaboratively that are going to then provide a foundation for all of the work that the PLC is going to do. So more specifically, norms outline the behaviors and the protocols and the expectations that team members collaboratively agree upon when they're engaging in their collaborative work.

The norms for a PLC must be established before any work begins on the mission and vision and goals for the team. Not only do the norms need to be agreed upon by all team members, but they also should be reviewed at the beginning of each meeting. This ensures that the group is setting the stage for a productive working environment.

So let's talk through the process of norms development, and then I'll model this process for you. To establish norms, first the team members need to consider both what behaviors are going to support productive collaboration and what types of behaviors might prevent productive collaboration. The team works to brainstorm ideas, and then they will agree on approximately five or six norms. These will be the behaviors that they are going to use as the foundation for the meeting expectations every single time they meet.

So let's take, for example, a group of middle school math teachers. These teachers first list behaviors that support collaboration-- for instance, active listening, supporting each other, accepting others' viewpoints, letting everyone speak, and being on time for meetings. Next, they list behaviors that prevent collaboration, behaviors like interrupting, judging, complaining, taking PLC issues out of the PLC, and using meeting time for other tasks, like grading papers.

So the team then takes these different behaviors and does some brainstorming on the ideas in order to form a list of five or six different norms that are going to guide their behaviors in their PLC meetings. First, they write, "We will arrive to the meeting on time and ready to focus." This norm incorporates a behavior that supports collaboration and also addresses a behavior that might prevent collaboration. It reminds the team members of the importance of being ready to focus on the meeting's agenda and the importance of not coming to the meeting planning to use the time to accomplish a different unrelated task.

Next, the team agrees that they are going to be active listeners as they allow everyone the chance to speak. Once again, this takes into account a behavior that supports collaboration and also addresses a potential problem that might prevent collaboration.

The team follows the same pattern again in the third norm-- we will accept others' viewpoints without judging. These norms are doing a great job of balancing the positive behaviors that the team wants to exhibit and also hopefully preventing some of the damaging behaviors that might prevent collaborative efforts in the context of their PLC meetings.

The fourth norm addresses one more of those potential problem areas-- we will keep PLC issues in the PLC. And finally, the last norm states that the team members will support each other as they work collaboratively to meet the goals of the PLC. Put together, these norms set the stage for highly effective PLC meetings that are likely to stay on task and to create a supportive environment where all of the PLC members feel comfortable participating and contributing to the PLC's efforts.

So finally, let's discuss some best practices that you may wish to keep in mind as you establish and implement your PLC's norms. First, when it comes to designing your norms, it's a best practice to stick to about five to seven norms. It's important to allow all of the team members to participate in the creation of the norms, and it's important that the team members agree to norms through a consensus. When it's time to apply your norms, make sure that you are reviewing the norms at the beginning of every single PLC meeting, even if this seems repetitive. Remember, the norms are meant to, again, set the stage for an effective PLC meeting.

It's important that you immediately address any violation of the norms and, as necessary, give team members reminders that norms were agreed upon by all members of the group. As you're addressing these violations and giving these reminders, stick to using the language of the norm as it is written.

Finally, it may be necessary at times to revise your norms. You can revisit your norms any time a new member is added to the team. And this may be a potential situation where you would want to revise one or more norms. It's also a best practice to reflect on the effectiveness of your norms twice every year and, at these points, to adjust any norms that you identify as ineffective or outdated.

So with an understanding of why we might want to develop norms in the first place, having seen a demonstration of what the norms development process might look like and now having a list of best practices to refer to when establishing and implementing your norms, here's a great chance for you to stop and reflect. Try your hand at listing some behaviors that support productive collaboration and some behaviors that might prevent productive collaboration, and then turn a few of these behaviors into possible norms.

To dive a little deeper and learn how to apply this information, be sure to check out the Additional Resources section associated with this video. This is where you'll find links targeted toward helping you discover more ways to apply this course material. Thanks for joining me. Have a great day.