1. Send out a Doodle for easy scheduling.
2. Receive Doodle responses and confirm date/time that works for four educators in four different states in two time zones.
3. Wait a week or so.
4. Sign into Google and click on hangout.
5. Invite friends.
6. Wait for Jackie, who when she finally connects calls herself “the 90 year old collaborator” although she is the youngest of the group by close to a decade.
7. Catch up. Chat. Plan. Collaborate on this blog for a good three hours on a Saturday morning.
Erika, where are you?
We shared struggles and successes. We laughed. And we planned how we can write and share and learn and grow — a lot of it right here at Three Teachers Talk.
This, my friends, is the Modern Professional Learning Community.
Not long ago I read Live From Small Town America: Teachers Who Blog to Stay in Touch.
Well, I can tell you — it’s not just teachers in small towns.
Erika in NYC and me in Dallas both make the nation’s Top 10 for largest cities. (Of course, I am in a suburb north of Dallas but still..)
Educators are making connections all over the world. Blogging, Twitter chats, Facebook Groups, and more. And most of the educators who make these connections will tell you that the professional development they engage in online gives them more engagement, more information, more ideas, more solutions than most of what they receive on their home campuses.
If you are reading this blog, you already know this.
So, I am wondering: How do we get more of our colleagues to engage in online PD? How do we change the model of PD in our schools to reflect the kind of sharing and growth we experience online?
Maybe most importantly, how can we model the kind of collaborative work we do online for our own professional growth for our students, so they can do it, too? Is that even possible?
©Amy Rasmussen, 2011 – 2015
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Tagged: collaboration, Modern PLC
Three Teachers Talk 
[…] But it’s when we seek to learn from others that we achieve growth, whether through the modern PLC, self-selected learning, or just reading pedagogical texts. There are so many resources available […]
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[…] Saturday, as it will leave you energized, rejuvenated, and brimming with ideas. It’s the modern PLC at its best, and the perfect way to help you finish the school year […]
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I wish my PLC on campus was as awesome as my PLN on Twitter and online. Instead, we are placed in a common meeting area with all subjects. Data on the walls. Limited resources at our fingertips. We sign in on a sheet in a notebook and keep notes of our musings. A professional learning community works best when the stakeholders have buy in and the “organic-ness” of the moment creates a natural learning hum. I long for it!
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A,
I hope other virtual PLCs use your guide posted here to create/enhance their already existing community – wonderful ‘spending time’ with you ladies yesterday. As for where I might have been…photographing!
XOXOX
E
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Clearly we were slacking on the other end with taking pics of you 😦 Next time I’ll make sure to snap a shot of BK!
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Google Hangout was not my friend yesterday. I’m glad Shana and Erika could coach me through it…it’ll be better next time! I loved seeing you guys–left me in an amazing mood for this beautiful weekend (p.s. I didn’t even get to tell you that it was 66 here yesterday! Summer is on its way!
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