District 20 recently introduced a new concept called Professional Learning Community (PLC). According to the District 20 website, PLC was added to schools in District 20 to provide staff time to collaborate, align curriculum, develop assessments, and review student data. 

PLC offers teachers time to discuss SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound) goals, engage in concordance, be open and truthful about outcomes, and develop extensions, as well as develop intervention strategies. 

PLC presents students with a two-hour delay every other Wednesday. This started on September 14, 2022, and ends on April 19, 2022. This PLC alteration extended the normal school day schedule by five minutes. Teachers are still required to come to school on time, but students are to come in at 9:45 am. 

Although the extra five minutes might be dreaded by some students, senior Kiya Downs said, “The PLC is worth the extra five minutes of school. Duh! An extra five minutes is easy to adapt to and I would rather add five minutes to the end of the day and get more time to rest.”

Not only do students get additional hours of sleep, but they also have more time to themselves, whether it’s finishing school work, having a better tempo to get ready for school, or having time to eat a filling breakfast to energize themselves for the long day ahead of them.

“When I don’t have the motivation to finish my homework at night, I’m the type of person to say ‘I’ll wake up early in the morning and finish my assignment’ but never do, and now I can actually wake up at a tolerable time to complete my work,” senior Michael Pedigo from Discovery Canyon Campus admitted.

Hopefully, this advanced circumstance can help students complete their work and feel more animated throughout the school day. It’s a great opportunity to feel more rested and systemized.

“I wish we had a late start every week and on Mondays because Mondays are the worst days,” sophomore Emerson Ehlinger commented.  

Given these points, the PLC is a great new opportunity for the exact purpose of providing both students and teachers to enhance their learning environments.

To learn more about the PLC, check out the District 20 website!