Cross-Disciplinary, Cross-Institutional Collaboration in Teacher Education by Unknown

Cross-Disciplinary, Cross-Institutional Collaboration in Teacher Education by Unknown

Author:Unknown
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9783030566746
Publisher: Springer International Publishing


Professional Learning Communities and Benefits for Introverts and Their Leadership Development

Individuals and organizations must find ways to develop leadership capacity through development of personal and professional strengths (Roupnel, Rinfre, & Grenier, 2019). A recognized method for developing such skills is through networking. Networking can be done by joining expertise-specific professional organizations, using social networking to find like-minded individuals, or joining a Professional Learning Community (PLC). PLCs can include mixed-gender networks, female-only networks, informal and formal networks, geographic networks, and discipline specific networks (Redmond et al., 2017). PLCs encompass the different social networking opportunities that introverts may need to help them develop leadership capacity.

A PLC is a group of individuals, often multidisciplinary, who come together to realize and cultivate professional growth (Wilson, 2016). Characteristics of a PLC include: a focus on learning, commitment to collegiality, and results (Battersby & Verdi, 2015). The primary goal of a PLC is to provide a collaborative professional culture that helps members become successful in their endeavors (Battersby & Verdi, 2015). Participation in a PLC can aid the introvert in development of the skills necessary to be a good leader.

One necessary characteristic of a PLC is that, in order to become a cohesive and valued source of information, members have to trust each other (Hands, Guzar, & Rodrigue, 2015). Members need to feel that they can easily share information in a non-evaluative environment. Because such groups use open dialogue and feedback to develop and improve leadership skills and abilities, without trust, open communication could not occur and the effectiveness of belonging to such a community would not be realized (Hands et al., 2015).

PLC participants cheer on the efforts of group members. This form of support is done by providing constructive criticism, feedback, acknowledgment of abilities, suggestions for additional resources, expression of pride in others’ accomplishments, and encouragement for future efforts. Because PLCs are multidisciplinary, these provisions of support allow for an environment of coaching to take place (Hands et al., 2015). All members of a PLC engage in various dimensional aspects of coaching through the diversity of its multidisciplinary membership and expertise of its members (Gutierez & Kim, 2018).

Progressive individuals seek out PLCs as a way to fill gaps in their own learning. Because continuing education is important in any profession, especially in education, involvement in a PLC allows members to share their strengths as well as their own shortcomings and seek out other members who can help them improve in areas needing enhancement. As a social community, PLC members network to learn from and with other members (Gutierez & Kim, 2018). A PLC assists in the development of skills and abilities not only through open dialogue and feedback, but also with reflection on practice, and development of new practices (Hands et al., 2015). Effective participation in a PLC provides benefits to the individual as well as the organization to which they belong (Battersby & Verdi, 2015). Involvement in a PLC can be extremely helpful in assisting women and those with introvert tendencies to take ownership of their own leadership progression (Redmond et al.



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