Coaching Attributes

This week, I reached out to teachers asking them the attributes they value in a coach. I wondered which characteristics draw them in and help them be better versions of themselves. I learned a lot from teachers’ responses! 

There were some characteristics that weren’t surprising, but having them come up again and again reinforced their importance: Someone who can see the humor in a situation. Someone who looks at mistakes as an opportunity to grow. Someone who is caring. Someone positive. Someone who is supportive and comfortable to be around. Someone who gives feedback in an encouraging way – who confronts when needed, but does it with grace.   

The idea of respect and trust came up over and over again. Someone who shows trust in me. Someone who values my input. Someone who respects me. Someone who works alongside me. Someone who recognizes and appreciates my contributions.

There were also some themes describing what not to be and do. Teachers don’t want a coach who is high-anxiety, someone who gets easily frustrated, or someone who is a natural complainer. They don’t want a coach who continually points out the negative.  

Some interesting ideas came up when I asked teachers about their own personalities and how that related to attributes they wanted in a coach. Teachers often valued attributes in their coaches that the viewed as positive in themselves. If they saw themselves as organized, they wanted a coach who was organized. If they saw themselves as flexible, they wanted a coach to have that characteristic. From these comments, I recognized that it could be helpful to listen to what a teacher perceives as her own strengths and mirror them.
 
Alternatively, sometimes teachers mentioned valuing someone who was different in ways that balanced personal attributes they wanted to adjust. For example, a teacher who described herself as shy wanted a coach who would pull her out of her shell. I found it interesting that a teacher who felt he was too strict with students wanted a coach who would help him “loosen up a bit.” From these comments, I recognize that it can be helpful for me to tune in to what a teacher perceives as a weakness and be a counter-balance, pulling him through the area of need with my own modeling.
 
Reflecting on the responses I got when I asked teachers about the attributes they value in a coach has given me a laundry list of things to self-assess for and work on. I think it’s a question I’ll ask regularly as part of my quest to become a better version of my coaching self!  

This week, you might want to take a look at:
 
Name your strength:
 
https://choiceliteracy.com/article/self-fulfilling-prophecies-recommending-yourself/
 
Using pop culture to teach writing (10 minute podcast episode!):
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpZSIPvkZsE
 
Have you used Kahoot?  This video (1 minute and 40 seconds!) describes how to use a blind Kahoot to introduce new material:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KwGE758uWuc
 
 
How to support those who mentor new teachers:
 
https://www.niet.org/newsroom/show/feature/support-teacher-mentors
 
 
Ideas for culturally-sensitive communication:
 
https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/publications/critical-practices-for-antibias-education/family-and-community-engagement
 
That’s it for this week.  Happy Coaching!
 
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