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The impact of Covid-19 will have a long-lasting effect on every facet of our society. Very few institutions were more disrupted than schools. The pandemic affected staffing, funding, morale, and the continuity of student learning. Participants explore the history of the field of education and examine why the tenants of the PLC at Work process were important before the global pandemic and why they are even more important after the pandemic. This is not the time to back away from the PLC at Work process; this is the time to reinforce its foundation.

Schools that truly want to “create lifelong learners” must understand the influence that their actions in the classroom have on realizing this mission. Creating lifelong learners depends on more than good intentions; it depends on intentional actions designed to encourage students to realize that they have the capacity to move their own learning forward regardless of life circumstances or experiences. While this truth is likely something that most teachers already believe, integrating practices that build student self-efficacy into daily instruction remains elusive in most classrooms. Creating lifelong learners happens only when teachers move from knowing about the importance of student self-efficacy to doing something about it.

As educators and leaders across the nation grapple with the challenge of changing policies, practices, and procedures to ensure high levels of learning for all students, the inability to effectively change the mindsets of colleagues, faculty, and staff is proving to be the biggest hurdle of all. Hence, in order for systems to change, outlooks will also need to change.