Karsyn Lemmons

This research paper was originally published on October 12, 2023

For the Conceptual Model of my selected community of practice, I have chosen to study a group of EXPO Elementary Teachers instructing at Title 1 schools in north Texas – specifically within the Denton Independent School District (Denton ISD). For background on the study I would first like to elaborate on two key terms I will be using throughout this paper. First is the word “EXPO” – a term used by Denton ISD as an abbreviation for the phrase “Exceptional Potential”. This is a way of describing high performing students aged 5-11. The second term is “Title 1”. Within the state of Texas, a school will achieve Title 1 status and receive government assistance if approximately 35% of students meet necessary factors demonstrating need, such as qualifying for free or reduced lunch programs. Title 1 schools are often schools located in disadvantaged communities where students may be facing additional struggles outside of school not faced by students from other communities.

During my research, I spoke directly with Renae Lemmons, an EXPO teacher at Ginnings Elementary in Denton ISD. Lemmons has been at Ginnings since 2012, and in her most recent five years she has served as the school’s only EXPO teacher. I mention Lemmons as much of the information I collected from my research came directly from her over the course of an interview. Ginnings Elementary is a Title 1 school with nearly 95% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch programs. Many students also benefit from community groups which supply students with resources they may struggle to obtain off campus– such Back Buddies, a Denton-wide charity that fills the backpacks of students in food-scarce households with enough food and water to last through the weekend. 

Purpose and Goals of the Community and the Individual – Practice Level 2

The Professional Learning Community (PLC) for Title 1 EXPO teachers in Denton ISD began approximately 20 years ago with the number of members dependent on the number of EXPO teachers currently employed in the area, yet membership has typically consisted of 12-14 instructors. The main purpose of the PLC is to bring together EXPO teachers from across Denton ISD who also instruct at Title 1 elementary schools to share current resources and practices they are using to meet the evolving needs of their student populations. While individual goals may range from finding ways to meet more specialized needs of individual students and classroom issues, all EXPO teachers are working to develop generalized strategies that address the needs of their students and positively impact their learning experience. These goals exist for the purpose of EXPO teachers being able to make a long-lasting and positive impact on the lives of their students.

For Denton ISD’s Title 1 EXPO teachers, they are also united in the common goal to assist in providing equity to the disadvantaged students they are serving. Throughout the years, the teachers within this PLC community have developed and refined what they call as a STEP program – a redesigned entry examination for the EXPO program, geared toward accommodating students from disadvantaged backgrounds who have not received equal access to resources that might assist them in performing at the same level as peers with access to similar enrichment opportunities. Throughout their implementation of the STEP program and using their PLC community to check in with other EXPO teachers on best practices, these EXPO teachers have been able to identify faults within previous standardized testing, address those issues, and redesign a test that presents a broader and more equitable measure for student success. This is a reflection of how shared domain and determination for similar goals (Practice Level 2) has been advanced throughout the organization.

Composition and Structure of the PLC Community

The 14 member group is composed of women aged approximately 30-60 from predominantly white American backgrounds. Education levels range from bachelor’s degrees to PhDs. All instructors are lifelong educators and have vast experience in K–5th public education instruction. While almost all women self-identify as white – aside from one teacher of Iranian descent – it is important to note that a large majority of the students in their classrooms come from disadvantaged Latin-American and African-American communities. It was upon this discovery of the vastly different backgrounds of teachers comparatively with those they instruct that I was curious to what degree this might impact student/teacher relationships. Would instruction shift if students could see themselves in their instructor or if their instructor was able to see themselves as one of their students? While this question is not directly related to communities of practice, I do think it has to do with the strength of communities and the degree to which a community can develop.

All members appear to be equal participants within the PLC group and one member does not seem to have higher ranking over another. All suggested book readings are voted and approved by the group as a whole and PLC members collaborate together to find solutions to any potential obstacles. As is natural during PLC meetings, some members speak up to share opinions and ideas more frequently than others but it does not appear as though certain individuals’ ideas and opinions are valued more highly than others. 

Level One Methods and Conventions in Relation to Level 2 Domain

Denton ISD invites all EXPO teachers to participate in EXPO PLCs, however, attendance is only encouraged, not mandatory. Additionally, Denton ISD provides grants and funding for EXPO teachers to purchase reading material and attend EXPO conferences across the state – such as the annual Texas Gifted and Talented Conference. When analyzing the Practice Level 1 of the PLC, there is a clear correlation between the conventions and methods displayed at this level and how they support the domain and goals associated with Practice Level 2. According to Wenger and St. Onge, Practice Level 1 concerns: how members communicate and interact, the community culture they establish, how the community learns, and the types of activities they support. The strength of this Level 1 proportionally contributes to the overall success of an organization’s

Level 2 achievements which Wenger and St. Onge identify as the communities goals and purpose as well as their domain – the specific interests/focuses of the community. 

For the PLC specifically, all 14 members are encouraged to contribute their experiences and knowledge to the conversation. Not only are their contributions encouraged, member’s contributions are also valued. Members share their pieces one at a time while all other members actively listen then ask any follow up questions that may develop. The PLC community has established a culture of mutual respect and appreciation for its members and member’s importance does not depend on seniority or ranking. The community learns primarily through verbal discussion and the shared input of others within the community. Because of the strong community culture, mutual respect, and appreciation exhibited through their communication, the PLC community has been successful in the pursuit of their goals and purposes (Practice Level 2) – the goal of best serving students and providing them with opportunities they would not otherwise have.

The scale of the community allows for optimal knowledge sharing and keen focus on a specialized domain. Originally, PLC meetings were once composed of all EXPO teachers throughout Denton ISD’s 33 elementary schools. However, due to the brevity of the meeting (meetings only last approximately two hours) and the wide varieties of issues plaguing different types of schools, it was ultimately decided to split the groups – Title 1 elementary schools and non-Title 1 elementary schools. This decision allowed both groups to spend the allotted time to further narrow in on the specific challenges they identify within their class time instruction. 

The PLC can described as a ‘supported community’ – one that is suggested by management and members receive invitations to join. The program has incredibly limited access for growth as it is restricted only to teachers serving in an EXPO role within the district. Because of this limited scale and membership size yet high levels of participation from those within the community, strong ties are able to form amongst members. This is incredibly important because as we have discussed earlier during class lecture,  “the heart of a healthy Community of Practice is the knowledge of members and the knowledge the members create jointly.” In this mature and stable stage, members feel comfortable and are more willing to exchange ideas and knowledge with their colleagues. 

This specific PLC community has not experienced much fluctuation over time – the main contributing factor for the scale of the group increasing or decreasing in size is related to whether or not each individual school has an EXPO teacher on their campus. The only time membership truly experienced fluctuation was during the COVID-19 pandemic when meetings were virtual instead of in person. During this time, many EXPO teachers put their own classroom curriculum on hold and elected to assist with other grade level teachers who needed help leading virtual classrooms. In this ‘all hands on deck’ period of virtual education, studying and sharing strategies for higher level learning and critical thinking was paused and instead EXPO teachers pitched in to ensure all students had access to necessary tools for at home learning and worked to minimize learning loss. 

The PLC community is in a mature stage of its life. It was developed approximately two decades ago and while the membership ebbs and flows as EXPO teachers enter and exit the school district, much of the communities practices and methods have remained the same – meeting in-person relatively frequently throughout the school year to work as a team to uncover best practices for addressing that school year’s biggest concerns within the Denton ISD EXPO Program. 

PLC Community Engagement

PLC meetings are held bi-weekly and in-person at convenient locations to ensure accessibility for all attendees. During COVID-19, meetings were briefly held over Zoom to follow health protocols, however, once in-person meetings were deemed appropriate once again by Denton ISD, in-person discussions resumed. The idea of recording meetings for asynchronous participation has previously arisen, although lack of technological savvy and disinterest in exploring the idea has been reported as factors that have hindered further exploration of the subject. While there are not official subcommittees within the group, there are delegated times within each group meeting where the 14 members break out into small groups of three or four to discuss their findings from the previous week’s readings and share how they implemented new strategies within their classrooms based on the reading’s suggestions. When all members return to the main group, they have time to discuss any key standouts shared in the smaller groups. The PLC shares knowledge in a multitude of ways. Practice is accomplished through problem solving, requests for information, the seeking of experience, and various other ways. 

It is also possible to look at the PLC for EXPO elementary school teachers as a subcommittee in and of itself – a subcommittee of instructors within Denton ISD. All 14 teachers come together from their individual elementary schools bi-weekly to discuss theories and practices, then return to their campuses where they exercise what they have most recently learned. And though they are each the sole EXPO teachers on their campus, they maintain continuous relationships and conversations with the other teachers across the district on a need basis.

The PLC community does not fit into the 1-9-90 model. The core membership qualities such as organizing events, facilitating activities, supporting membership, and nourishing the community are spread evenly among the 14 core contributors. After that, it may be a bit difficult to identify the differences between any acting or periphery members. They might be identified as other school faculty and staff, students in the classroom, or even parents of those students. All members just mentioned may participate in events, occasionally contribute ideas or potentially offer support – all to varying degrees based on their own motivations.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the PLC for Title 1 EXPO teachers within Denton ISD seems to be a deeply valued community amongst its members. Shared practice, shared experience, and a sense of partnership all appear to be prized assets within the community. As relationships within the community strengthen and knowledge flow continues to occur, it would appear that this community of practice is on track to continue achieving its goals of making meaningful impacts in the lives of its students with each coming school year.

Bibliography

Saint-Onge, H., & Wallace, D. (2003). Leveraging communities of Practice for Strategic Advantage. Butterworth-Heinemann.

Wenger, E., McDermott, R. A., & Snyder, W. (2002). Cultivating communities of practice a guide to managing knowledge. Harvard Business Review Press.