TOP 10 BELIEFS ABOUT COACHINGLauren Eudene

NUMBER 10Be responsive to teachers’ needs

Coaches should target their support to best help teachers in the specific areas they are struggling to teach. Coaches need to meet with the teachers and talk about their concerns and areas they would like to improve.

NUMBER 9Encourage teachers to help one

anotherUnfortunately, the coach cannot

always be there to help the teachers. However, teachers can be trained to help and provide support for each other. This might be in the form of giving others ideas or observing other teachers (as the observer and person observed).

NUMBER 8Model in a natural setting

Teachers will benefit from seeing coaches teaching in an actual classroom setting. This way, they can see the way in which the coaches handle different interactions with students, including those who are struggling with a particular topic.

NUMBER 7Coaching sessions should take place

both inside and outside of the classroomDifferent coaching settings provide

teachers with diverse experiences. They can gain different information and skills from seeing a coach work with students in their classrooms than having coaching sessions outside of the classroom. The location should depend on the purpose of the coaching session and the needs of the teacher.

NUMBER 6Come up with specific goals

The more specific teachers’ goals for improvement are, the more effectively coaches can help them. These goals should be established before coaching begins.

NUMBER 5Observe teachers before coaching

to understand the specific areas of difficultyCoaches can learn a lot about

teachers’ strengths and needs through observation. This background knowledge can help them as they work to provide teachers with individualized support.

NUMBER 4Coaches should occasionally have

teachers take on the role of studentTeachers can gain a new perspective

of teaching strategies by playing the role of student. They can directly experience the concept they will be teaching and learn through immersion.

NUMBER 3Teachers need to take ownership of

their new knowledgeCoaches can provide teachers with

ideas and strategies, but teachers need to embrace the new techniques in order to implement them correctly. They need to understand what they are doing and why in order to do it correctly.

NUMBER 2Teachers need to know how to

evaluate their own instructionWhile coaches can provide teachers

with feedback and suggestions about their teaching, it is important for teachers to be able to monitor their own instruction when the coach is not available to observe. This requires teachers to understand how to look for strengths and weaknesses in their instruction and know how to improve.

NUMBER 1Establish a supportive and trusting

relationship!Teachers and coaches need to feel

comfortable working with each other. Coaches need to be willing to give constructive feedback and teachers need to trust the feedback of the coaches. They also need to feel comfortable working with each other and approaching the other person with issues. This trust needs to go both ways.

IDEAS INSPIRED BY…

Casey, K. (2006). Literacy coaching: The essentials. Portsmouth, NH: Heinmann.

Peterson, D. S., Taylor, B. M., Burnham, B., & Schock, R. (2009). Reflective coaching conversations: A missing piece. The Reading Teacher, 62(6), 500-509.

Steckel, B. (2009). Fulfilling the promise of literacy coaches in urban schools: What does it take to make an impact?. The Reading Teacher, 63(1), 14-23.

Walpole, S. & Blamey, K. L. (2008). Elementaryliteracy coaches: The reality of dual roles.The Reading Teacher, 62(3), 222-231.