Forging the Trail to

High-Performing Learning Communities

Diane Long, Shelly Williamson, and Colleen Way

Editor's note: The following is excerpted from the 2003 annual report of the Regional Educational Laboratories (REL) Network. The report, with stories demonstrating the work of all 10 laboratories in the federal network, can be found as an Acrobat Reader file, atwww.relnetwork.org/2003ar/ REL_2003_Annual_Report2.pdf.

Almost 200 years ago, explorers William Clark and Meriwether Lewis battled bears, waterfalls, and mosquitoes on the powerful Missouri River near present-day Great Falls, Montana. Today, just miles from the "Mighty Mo," teachers at Whittier Elementary are facing their own daunting challenges. In this high-poverty, inner-city school, educators have discovered the value of some of the same qualities that helped Lewis and Clark: collaboration, commitment, and being open to new ideas.

Whittier is a pilot site that is part of a larger Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory research and development effort to help schools become high-performing learning communities (HPLC). As processes and resources are found to be effective, they are further developed for other schools to use in their school improvement initiatives.

Using scoring rubrics developed by NWREL—based on the work of Paul Berman—Whittier teachers were introduced to the dimensions of a high-performing learning community and the attributes staff members must develop to perform at the highest level. NWREL first collected baseline data in the 2001–2002 school year to determine where Whittier stood on its path to becoming an HPLC.

In spring 2003, NWREL's site assessment showed evidence of progress, with an improved rating along the dimensions of both "shared facilitative leadership" and "organization for learning." The school staff reports a strong sense of responsibility for ensuring academic success of every student and are continually seeking new ideas. The evidence of growth is strong with surveys, interviews, and focus groups all showing the same pattern of responses.

Historically, the problems at Whittier were obvious and loomed large. "We've had large turnover during the last three years," reports literacy teacher Colleen Way, "and last year 42 percent of the staff was new to the school or to their position." Besides assimilating new staff members, long-time teachers struggled with the problem of close personal relationships getting in the way of "business."

"The leadership team identified friendship as a barrier to their continuing growth," notes NWREL team member Beverly Flaten. "Once they acknowledged that, we started exploring the professional research on collegiality and how to handle conflict within a close relationship." Flaten—who describes her role as bridging the gap between research and practice—helped the team evaluate best practices and what matters most in improving school effectiveness.

Progress has been achieved through the staff's focus on student learning, shared facilitative leadership in identifying and dealing with problems, and willingness to find solutions. Principal Diane Long recognizes that accountability remains a big challenge, along with the need "to work smarter, not harder."

What sustains staff, Long believes, is "tremendous commitment and a belief that we can make a difference." Like the intrepid Lewis and Clark, the Whittier team keeps dodging the rapids and perseveres with a sense of mission.