The Pride
PHS Staff Bulletin September 23 - 28
Our Mission:
Chapter 1: Research and Theory
Benefits of the PLC Process
"Research on the topic of collaboration from fields such as cognition and expertise supports the most general and fundamental assumption of PLCs--that working together produces better results than working alone. Some theories of cognition posit that thinking and reasoning are most effective when distributed across a system or group, rather than confined to an individual (Putnam & Borko, 2000). Consider the example of a U.S. Navy ship (Hutchins, 1990, 1991): numerous crew members perform specific tasks, ultimately working together to complete work too complex for one person to do alone.
Collaboration also plays an important role in reflective practice. Reflective practice is an important pathway to expertise in education and other disciplines. It is also difficult to engage in reflective practice alone. Indeed, Schon (1983) state, 'The teacher's isolation in her classroom works against reflection-in-action. She needs to communicate her private puzzles and insights, to test them against the views of her peers' (p. 333). Collaborative problem solving is, in general, superior to problem solving in isolation simply because a group provides more perspectives on an issue. Interactions with others 'expand[s] and test[s] the new concepts as part of the learning experience' (Morrissey, 2000, p. 4). A similar dynamic applies to growth and learning about oneself. Even extremely self-aware and critical people have blind spots, but input and feedback from others can help identify and improve them (Brookfield, 1995)."
--excerpt from Collaborative Teams that Transform Schools,
Marzano, Heflebower, Hoegh, Warrick, and Grift
Weekly Calendar
Collaborative Team Spotlight--English I, Mrs. Black and Mrs. Novosad
The set up: A parent contacted me with a concern and some confusion about our grading practices. The parent's student is in Mrs. Novosad's class and the parent was ultimately concerned that grading may not be fair if both teachers were not implementing grading practices uniformly. I talked with the parent, but as I almost always do, asked her to email Mrs. Novosad and suggested she include Mrs. Black in the correspondence as well. As might be expected, the parent was nervous about my suggestion, but trusted us enough to meet with both teachers to discuss her concerns.
The result: "I’m so glad you had me go talk to them. Wow, those ladies (Ms. Novosad, Mrs. Black, and Mrs. Minniear) are fantastic and on top of it! What fabulously organized, awesome, and understanding teachers and specialist you have right there. They GET it!
Not only do I now have a much better understanding about this whole concern I had (and that I really don’t have to worry about 2 different teachers, because of their effort in collaborating with each other), but I also got to see what a great assignment that first major grade was and the assignments built on to it and how it all works together. That particular assignment can carry over to all classes and into college…developing good study skills! I’m seriously super excited! They made my day." --An appreciative parent
Congratulations and thank you, Mrs. Black & Mrs. Novosad!
Incredible Instructional Practice Seen Across Campus...
Mrs. Roberson, 100% Engaged
Mrs. Schmidt's Journalism
Coach Bird's Classroom
Coach Salinas' Classroom
Mrs. Pippen-Geometry
Mrs. Sims' Classroom
2019 Homecoming King & Queen
Are you overtly teaching this?
Happy Birthday to You!
No birthdays to report this week.
Contact Us
Email: tmguajardo@pisd.us
Website: http://hs.pisd.us/
Location: 900 Eagle Pride, Pleasanton, TX, United States
Phone: 830-569-1250