Recently, Carter's Valley Elementary was honored to officially be designated a Promising Practices School by Solution Tree. With this recognition, CVES became the first Promising Practices school in Tennessee and one of just 9 schools across the state to be recognized for its sustained success in raising student achievement. The school’s successful implementation of the Professional Learning Communities at Work® process was a major contributing factor in the improved achievement of its students.
PLCs are schools and districts in which educators recognize the key to improved learning for students is ongoing, job-embedded learning for the adults who serve those students. The three big ideas of a PLC call upon educators to:
1. Focus on learning.
2. Build a collaborative culture.
3. Create a results orientation.
Promising Practices schools are recognized for building a strong foundation based on the PLC concepts, implementation of these concepts for at least two years, and clear evidence of improved student learning over that period. Once measurable results can be seen, the school must explain its practices, structures, and culture and submit its application for consideration by the PLC Review Committee.
Recognized Promising Practices schools are listed on AllThingsPLC.info/evidence, where they share implementation strategies, structures, and performance with other educators interested in improving their schools. Collaboration tools, articles, research, blog posts, and other related resources are also available on the site. The site was developed and is maintained by Solution Tree, a leading provider of educational strategies and tools that improve staff and student performance. For more than 20 years, Solution Tree resources have helped K–12 teachers and administrators create schools where all children succeed.