Start with Vision: Why Learning Communities Need Purpose Before Structure

As school supplies replace outdoor furniture at Target, teachers and administrators are already thinking about the new school year. For some, the buzz comes from fresh notebooks, while others think about reorganizing spaces or reuniting with colleagues. In schools exploring (or already inhabiting) learning community models, there’s often a rush to adjust schedules, redesign classroom layouts, or assign co-teaching teams.

But before we rearrange the furniture or recreate the calendar, we need something far more important: a shared vision! In a learning community model, you need a vision that grounds you when the year gets messy. This vision needs to remind the community of teachers what kind of learners and humans they're trying to grow.

What Is a Learning Community, Really?

The term learning community is getting thrown around a lot more these days. In some schools, it refers to a team of teachers in a division or team working towards a shared goal. For some, it’s about open spaces- no walls, no doors, just open free-form movement. For others, it’s synonymous with co-teaching or interdisciplinary work. But at its heart, and where I've seen the most meaningful success, is in learning communities with a culture of interdependence, where students and teachers learn with and from each other through trust, shared purpose, and care.

It’s not a floor plan.

It’s not a schedule.

It’s a mindset—and a promise to show up differently.

Why Vision Comes First

When schools skip the vision (for any project or initiative), the structure buckles. Teams burn out. Teachers trudge on while mumbling, "One more thing." Students sense confusion. Parents push back. And innovation stalls.

But when schools begin with a shared vision—co-created by the people who live the learning day-to-day—everything else starts to align:

• The space becomes more than a layout—it becomes a tool.

• The schedule becomes a rhythm that serves a purpose.

• The teaching becomes more joyful, connected, and sustainable.

• The school becomes more harmonious-everyone working as an orchestra rather than single musicians.

  
  

Vision Thrives in a Culture of Interdependence

A vision without shared ownership is just a poster on the wall. To truly bring a learning community to life, schools must foster a culture of interdependence—where no one teaches or learns in isolation.

In an interdependent culture:

• Teachers share responsibility for all students, not just the ones on their roster.

• Students learn from multiple adults, benefiting from diverse styles, strengths, and relationships.

• Everyone contributes and everyone matters.

Interdependence invites, and requires, us to trust one another, lean into our collective wisdom, and move beyond the myth of the superhero teacher. It reminds us that our impact multiplies when we teach, reflect, and grow together.

Our students, not my students.

Together, not alone.

We before me.

So before you start color-coding the calendar or rolling out the rugs, pause and ask:

What kind of learners—and learning culture—are we building?

And then:

How will we hold that vision—together?

That’s how the school year becomes more than a series of tasks. It becomes a movement.

A promise.

A community!