Educators' Most Hated Term
May 2, 2022
My wife strongly dislikes gyros—that Greek sandwich made of meat inside of pita bread. Almost 30 years ago she got sick a couple of hours after eating one.
The seasoned meat didn’t make her sick (as she has said). And the next one most likely won’t, either. However, the experience she had after eating that gyro has emblazoned a strong dislike for the food—and it has only been recently that she can stomach the thought of even trying one. She, quite literally, has a bad taste in her mouth for gyros.
What does this have to do with learning and leadership? Read on…
What's in a Name?
Terms move quickly. The meaning of those terms…not so much.
We see this a lot in political discourse. Someone on the right or left picks up a phrase or acronym and then uses it as a bludgeon to pound the other side. Yet, few really know what the term actually means. Still, it flies through social media and news outlets with nary a question of what the term is.
And so it is with PLCs: Professional Learning Communities.
The term moved like wildfire across the educational landscape over the last two decades.
Grade-level meeting: A PLC!
Department meeting: A PLC!
School Improvement meeting: A PLC!
Administrative team meeting: A PLC!
Everyone and their pet is in a PLC…or so we say.
Unfortunately, none of the above are PLCs…
The Most Hated Term
The result is three-fold: 1) We claim that all our work is a PLC, 2) This diluted definition means that the truly impactful (and difficult!) work of PLCs isn’t actually happening in many places, and, worst of all, 3) “PLC” has become the most hated professional learning term in education (see this video from Peter DeWitt highlighting a recent study with this finding).
And my work has unfortunately born this out. “PLCs,” to many, can be like a gyro to my wife: it’s toxic.
You and I both know that educators are good people, and they work really hard. We don’t have time to waste.
Grade-level meeting: A PLC!
Department meeting: A PLC!
School Improvement meeting: A PLC!
Administrative team meeting: A PLC!
Everyone and their pet is in a PLC…or so we say.
Unfortunately, none of the above are PLCs…
Yet we are proverbially thrown into groups, called PLCs, told to do “something” along the lines of what a collaborative team might do, complete tasks out of compliance, and never see any gains in either our performance or student learning.
No wonder the term is hated. For many, it’s like my wife’s gyro.
And it’s time to change that perception.
Decontamination
I was working with a school where the toxicity of the term (and work of teams) is palpable. The mere mention of the “P” in PLC created a PTSD-like response, with folks holding back tears at the thought of having to engage in the work. YIKES!
As part of our time together, we strove to decontaminate the term, thoughts, and feelings associated with it—to try to start fresh. From here we can then better understand and re-program our response to the term by actually understanding what it means to BE a PLC.
PLCs are not meetings.
They are not a time.
They are not a group of people.
PLC is a way of being, of responding, of thinking, of acting—as a school and district.
A PLC is WHO we are, not just WHAT we do. (For a collection of my own posts on the concept, check out this link.)
Next Steps
PLC is the most hated term in education because we don’t understand what it is. The term flew quickly without us truly knowing why we need it, what it is, and how to meaningfully engage in this work.
My hope is that we can decontaminate those negative perceptions that are based on superficial understandings and initiate meaningful and lasting change for ourselves and our students. In the case of the school I was referring to, those in attendance are now leading this work. And with enthusiasm!
Please reach out if you want to engage in effective practices, and not take 30 years to get there.
Questions for Reflection
- How do you and your colleagues perceive what it means to be a Professional Learning Community?
- What steps might you take to improve understanding of PLC concepts?
- What other terms are used in your organization, with less-than-ideal understanding, that may need clarification and/or decontamination?
Do you have a story you’d like to share?
Comment below
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