By Jim Streisel / Carmel (IN) High School

It’s an inevitable challenge we must all face: Once our data has confirmed that our instruction is solid for our first SMART goal, how do we move on to our next goal?

And we must move on. After all, that’s part of the PLC model.  If we’ve done PLCs correctly, we’ve identified an area of weakness in our instruction (based on state or national standards), we’ve collected baseline data, we’ve improved our instruction and we’ve collected subsequent data to indicate that our students now understand the standard for which we tested.

So now what?

It can be difficult moving on to another SMART goal – after all, you may have worked on the same goal for a number of years with the same people, tweaking your teaching and instruction until it was just right – but there are countless other standards that you still need to address. Plus, you may have other concerns; perhaps, for example, your core PLC group has slowly disbanded over the years due to retirement, different teaching roles, etc. It happens to the best of us. It’s time, then, to go back to the beginning.

PLCs are cyclical
For the PLC model to work correctly, you must start anew, this time with a new standard and a new SMART goal in mind. You may collaborate with the same group with whom you worked for your first SMART goal, or you may pick up with an entirely new group; both ideas have merit. You must go through the same routine – establishing norms and communication methods and, ultimately, your new goal. Hopefully, if you’ve done this process already, the second time around is easier, especially if you end up working with some of the same folks you worked with the first time.

Don’t stop addressing your first goal
And as for that first SMART goal, the one you spent years working on? Don’t forget about it. On the contrary, you should continue to include the new teaching styles you incorporated over the years. After all, those are now data-driven methods that prove your instruction helps kids learn. The only difference is that you no longer have to formally test for those results (unless you want to). The teaching remains the same, in other words, you’re just testing for something new.

Long-term results
The point in all of this is that over the years – over a career – you will address many standards. Over time, your instruction will continue to improve (as your data will support). Given enough time, you could feasibly test for every area your state or national standards require. You won’t get there all at once, of course, but continuing to use the PLC method will help you get closer to that goal. 

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