Evidence-based and engaging, with key takeaways for practitioners in every chapter, this book addresses the existing knowledge gap about how school leaders can effectively develop, support, and sustain networks within and across schools. It is crucial reading for school leaders, system leaders and education researchers working close-to-practice.

Chapter 1. The current context for Professional Learning Networks Chapter 2. The labyrinth Chapter 3. Connecting PLN learning with what happens in schools Chapter 4. How can we learn from PLNs in Germany and England? Chapter 5. Research Learning Networks in England: what do teachers and school leaders say? Chapter 6. Research Learning Networks in England: exploring social networks, cultures of trust and innovation  Chapter 7. Pess Networks in Germany: hearing the voices of teachers and school leaders Chapter 8. Pess Networks in Germany: examining the use and value of networked learning Chapter 9. Conquering the labyrinth: lessons learned from cases in England and Germany

It will come as little surprise to anyone who has ever worked in a school or who has read anything about teacher CPD, that providing opportunities for teachers to collaborate and undertake professional learning together can lead to increased teacher job satisfaction, more effective teaching practice, and improved pupil outcomes. But the key word here is CAN - we also know that many forms of professional learning, including collaborative professional learning, fail to have a meaningful or long-term impact on teaching and learning. The devil is in the detail, in the implementation - and that is where this latest book from Chris Brown is so powerful. It offers key insight into the role of school leadership in harnessing the power of professional learning networks, and through a combination of theory and case studies of two Professional Learning Network (PLN) approaches, helps us begin to understand how such principles might work in practice. Picking up on often-neglected elements of the process - including how the learning from PLNs is shared and mobilised through the wider school - it highlights the conditions for success in collaborative professional learning (and the inhibitors of it!), providing a detailed view of not just the potential benefits of developing and engaging in PLNs, but the substantial challenges for school leaders in doing so effectively.