RSA 1: Evaluating School-Based Management: A Tool for Team Self-Review

http://cucproxy.cuchicago.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,cpid&custid=s8419239&db=tfh&AN=16188117&site=ehost-live

Collaboration in teams is obviously one of the most important aspects of a highly functioning PLC.  DuFour, DuFour, Eaker, and Many (2010) discuss several ways that teams can be structured, as well as strategies to enhance the effectiveness of those teams by clarifying expectations, goals, operating norms, etc.  It is no secret that collaborating as a team on something that can be highly personal, such as teaching, can be a challenge, and that poorly-functioning teams can bring the PLC process to a screeching halt.

One aspect of working as a team that is not addressed by DuFour et al. is how to assess the functioning of the team itself, not just the goals and values that a team produces and shares.  Turnbull (2005) proposes a self-reflection checklist that can be used by team members “to evaluate the degree to which their values align with those of the school community as a whole and as a result increase the transparency of team decision-making and improve team accountability” (p. 74).  Her “values inquiry checklist” can be used as a tool for teams to evaluate their similarities and differences, allowing them to identify both areas of great importance to the team and areas of concern regarding team dynamics that must be addressed.   As a diagnostic tool, a checklist (modified for the specific mission of the group) can be administered on a regular basis to quantify how the team changes over time and to determine if the team is functioning efficiently and with purpose.

The use of a modified version of Turnbull’s checklist to evaluate the recommendations of DuFour et al. regarding team collaboration may help to diagnose problems and streamline the PLC process.  Such a checklist provides a “semi-quantitative” assessment approach that complements the team building processes and techniques advocated by DuFour et al.  It only seems appropriate that, in a PLC process guided by student data, there should also be some data that correspond to a team’s ability to collaborate.

DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., & Many, T.  (2010).  Learning by doing: A handbook for

professional learning communities at work (2nd ed.).  Bloomington, IN: Solution Tree Press.

Turnbull, B.  (2005).  Evaluating school-based management: A tool for team self-review. 

International Journal of Leadership in Education, 8(1). 73-79.