Teachers,
just like their students, benefit from scaffolding while they are learning
something new. Whether that something new is the Common Core,
student-centered teaching, or Cognitively Guided Instruction in math, it’s
beneficial to have someone helping while teachers give new practices a
try. As a coach, you fill that role, helping
teachers plan for, deliver, and reflect on new instructional practices. Teachers benefit when they are supported in the process of changing their
practices. And students also benefit
from a coach’s participation because instruction becomes more effective and
targeted on meeting students’ needs. An
ESL coach, for example, makes instruction more accessible to second-language
learners by encouraging the use of appropriate learning strategies and
culturally-responsive practices.
As
a coach, you provide targeted guidance within the real work of teaching. Together, you and the teacher or small group
you are working with reflect on and dialogue about instruction that you, as a
coach, have participated in or observed.
Through these coaching conversations, you can encourage teachers to
analyze their instructional decisions, the thinking behind those decisions, and
the mindset behind their thinking. Coaching
encourages teachers to think about their own practice. Can you think of a coaching conversation that
you’ve guided recently that resulted in a teacher either becoming clearer about
what she planned to do or making a change to a lesson plan? That is the power of coaching at work!
Resources to Share:
Textual Evidence:
Sharing
videos is a great way to provide a model for instructional strategies. For teachers in any content area who want their
students to use textual evidence, you might consider sharing this short video:
https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/analyzing-text-writing
The
video also would be great to demonstrate how instructional support can be
differentiated.
CGI & the Common Core:
Check
out this blog post: Top 8 Reasons To Use Cognitively Guided
Instruction (CGI) to Address the Common Core.
http://michellef.essdack.org/?q=node/139
Finally, you’ll find loads of great
ideas to pass along to teachers on Choice Literacy’s Pinterest boards:
That’s
it for this week! Please comment to add
your own thoughts to the conversation!
Coaching can be a significant time commitment for both you and the employees you’re working with. Set up a realistic schedule for coaching sessions, but don’ engrave it in stone.
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