Reading Reflection Chapter 2

           In Chapter 2, we discuss creating a professional learning community. The focus of learning communities are that any business work team, that engages on ongoing collaborative  problem solving will expand their capacity to create the results they desire. The team learns new patterns of thinking, how to capitalize on the wisdom of the group, and how to continually learn together.

           Learning communities have many benefits. Some of the benefits include, less teacher isolation, more commitment to the mission, shared responsibility, more powerful learning, and an increased likelihood of fundamental, systematic change.

         Learning communities affect both teachers and students. Teachers need to find time to watch and reflect on each other's classroom interactions, learn how to give each other critical feedback, capitalize on the wisdom of the group,engage in new patterns of thinking, and learn how to continually learn together and from each other. For both teachers and students the learning is relevant and rigorous,  and the students learn to learn together.  Both develop skills and dispositions necessary outside of the classroom. These skills include: communication, problem solving, project management, motivation, and persistence. Both teachers and students build bonds when they succeed and do not succeed.   

Shared visions have many components. Some of these components are:

• having a clear sense of mission
• share a vision of the conditions they must create to achieve the mission
• work together in collaborative teams to determine the best practice to achieve the mission
• be goal and result orientated
• collaboration
• mutual values and beliefs
• commit to continuous improvement 

I believe that learning communities relate to my project because we all have to collaborate in order to create it. We are all going to be working together toward a common mission. Also if we were actually doing this project in a classroom as teachers we would need to collaborate with other teachers in order to get the project perfect.