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As a profession, teachers are not skilled in publicly examining either
their own work or that of their student's. Indeed, the culture of schools offers few opportunities
and fewer incentives for professional collaboration. Professional collaboration through the
Critical Friends Group (CFG'S) is the product of simple idea: providing deliberate time and
structure
to promote adult professional growth that is directly linked to student learning. A CFG consists of
eight to twelve teachers and administrators who agree to work together regularly to define and
produce improved learning achievement. As a group, the members establish and publicly state
student learning goals, help each other think about better teaching practices, look closely at
curriculum
and student work, and identify school culture issues that affect student achievement. Each CFG
chooses a coach who helps the group build the sense of trust that must exist if they are to work
together in direct, honest, and productive way. The coach also helps the members learn and master
techniques that sharpen individual reflection, promote creativity, and encourage candid, usable
peer feedback. Coaches (who are selected by their CFG, either from the school staff or from the
ranks of trusted outsiders) attend a summer institute and may choose to participate in follow-up
sessions at which they learn and develop the skills and processes needed to guide the group's work.
Coaches facilitate the regular CFG meetings and offer training and guidance in developing the member's
ability to work collaboratively. CFG members commit themselves to at least on two-hour
meeting each month, during the school day. They also agree to observe each other at least monthly
and to provide feedback on one another's practice. Often a CFG's first task is to tackle the
traditional obstacles blocking genuine collaboration in schools. The group must figure out how to
breach those barriers of history and habit or run the risk of becoming merely a pleasant but unproductive
gab session. School change is complicated and challenging, especially for the educator who works
with students every day. CFG's support teachers and principals who are pursuing significant change, and
it does so in new, exciting, and productive ways. Creating "learning communities" is a
simple idea, but that doesn't mean they are easy to create or to manage. They require significant commitment on
the part of teachers, coaches, and administrators. Thoughtful critique of teaching and learning may
provoke important changes in teaching and leadership, but it is difficult to ask hard questions, open
classrooms to scrutiny, and examine, with colleagues, the nuances of one's own practice. It
takes time to learn these unfamiliar skills of "straight talk". The support for
establishing CFG's at GTCHS includes the Annenberg Institute of School Reform, Coalition of Essential Schools,
and National School Reform Faculty. For more information about the CFG's, please visit the web site
for the Coalition of Essential Schools: www.essentialschools.org.
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