All LPS schools will provide time for teachers to meet together to have frequent, consistent, and data-driven conversations about student achievement. These meetings are called Professional Learning Communities (PLCs). There are 10 late-start days built into the school year calendar that allow time for PLCs to take place.

In PLC meetings, teachers answer four critical questions:

1. What is essential for students to learn?
2. How will we know when each student has learned it?
3. How will we respond when a student experiences difficulty in learning?
4. How will we respond when a student already knows it?

Through this kind of collaboration, instructional staff will be able to work together to continually improve their teaching to ensure high levels of learning for every student.

It’s important to remember that no instructional time is lost in this model; non-student time was restructured, and seven minutes were added to every school day. This makes the two-hour late start on the 10 PLC days possible.