The Four Critical Questions
What's the first critical question of learning in a PLC?
What do we expect students to learn?
What is the first step in the teaching and assessing cycle?
Planning: unwrapping standards and building a unit plan
What does GVC stand for?
Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum
What does SVUSD believe about all students’ ability to learn?
ALL students can learn at high levels with time and support
What does “teaching with the end in mind” mean?
Starting with the summative assessment and planning backwards
What’s the second critical question in the PLC model?
How will we know if students have learned it?
When do teams pause instruction to check for understanding?
Mid-unit formative assessments
What is one trait of an essential skill that belongs in the GVC?
Endurance, leverage, or readiness for the next level
What kind of access does the district believe all students should have?
Equity and access to rigorous learning, interventions, enrichment, AP/Honors
What do educators create after identifying essential standards?
Unit plans and assessments
What’s the third critical question in a PLC?
What will we do if students haven’t learned it yet?
What do teams do after they assess students?
Reflect on data, plan interventions or extensions
What ensures every student receives access to the same core skills, regardless of teacher?
A Guaranteed and Viable Curriculum (GVC)
Who does the district believe is accountable for learning?
Adults/educators, not just students
What makes instruction in a PLC responsive to student needs?
Using real-time assessment data to differentiate
What’s the fourth critical question in a PLC?
How will we respond if students have already learned it?
What’s the biggest mindset shift in the PLC cycle?
Planning with the end in mind (starting with the summative assessment)
What do teams eliminate to allow mastery of essential content?
Non-essential content
What are educators expected to do with data in SVUSD?
Reflect on practice and adjust based on student needs
Why is alignment between assessments and essential standards important?
To ensure assessments accurately measure key learning goals
Name one tool or step a team uses to answer the first critical question.
Deconstruct standards, create essential learning targets, or build unit plans
What is the purpose of screening for prior knowledge?
To adjust instruction and meet students where they are
Name three tools used to guarantee a viable curriculum.
Essential standards, pacing guides, “I can” statements, SMART goals, etc.
How do these beliefs show up in everyday practice?
Collaboration, assessment, and intervention processes
What’s the role of common formative assessments in planning instruction?
They inform how to adjust instruction and target interventions or extensions