What Is It?
Professional learning communities are teams of educators systematically working together to improve teaching practice and student learning. Research suggests that such learning communities are characterized by:

• supportive and shared leadership
• shared values and vision
• collective responsibility for pupils learning
• the promotion of personal reflection and team collaboration
• supportive physical and personal conditions

Explore It
To learn more about professional learning communities, explore the following Web sites:

• Building Professional Learning Communities
• Professional Learning Communities
• Professional Learning Communities at Work
• Professional Learning Communities: What Are They and Why Are They Important?
• Schools as Learning Communities
• What is a Professional Learning Community?

Use It!
The sites below will help you create a professional learning community at your school:

• Creating a Professional Learning Community: Cottonwood Creek School
• Learning Communities: A New Definition of Professional Development
• Professional Learning Communities
• Transform Your Group into a Team

Learn More About It
To extend your understanding of professional learning communities, visit the following Web sites:

• Creating and Sustaining Professional Learning Communities (An Online Course)
• Improving Relationships within the Schoolhouse
• Peter Senge and the Learning Organization
• Professional Learning Communities
• Professional Learning Communities
• Professional Learning Communities: Communities of Continuous Inquiry and Improvement
• Professional Learning Communities Hold Promise for Schools
• Professional Learning Communities Writ Large