A Coaching Conversation That Changed the Work
Coaching questions can engage the intellectual curiosity of the teachers we are working with. That’s what happened when Andi was coaching a group of high-school English teachers. With the ACT test coming up for their juniors, test prep was on their minds. They had identified grammar and punctuation rules as an area of need based on previous assessment data and evidence from student work.
A conversation grew around Andi’s questions: “What is the overall goal you want to achieve regarding punctuation?” and “Why is it important for them to understand punctuation or at least how to use it?”
Liz responded, “They need to know how to be clear,” and Cherie followed up with, “Well, they need to know how to write when they go to college.”
Andi’s questions helped the teachers extend their focus from a narrow goal of doing well on the upcoming test to one with broader application.
As they planned a lesson with this purpose in mind, Andi again asked questions. When they shared concerns that students’ Native American cultural heritage meant that speaking out in class might press against cultural norms, Andi asked, “How else could students show they understand what you are teaching them, besides answering aloud?”
Through discussion, they planned an effective, interactive lesson where students worked collaboratively in small groups, moving from station to station to create sentences with varied structure and punctuation from strips with words and phrases.
Andi’s questions supported design of a lesson that was culturally appropriate, authentically purposeful, and highly engaging for students. Her questions challenged teachers to find a better way than the worksheets they had previously used for grammar instruction. The teachers were engaged and intrigued. They had energy for the task because they were curious. Andi’s questions encouraged them not only to think, but to rethink what they had done previously when teaching grammar. Her questions generated collective learning.
Why This Matters
This scenario isn’t powerful because Andi had the right answers. It’s powerful because she resisted the urge to provide them. Instead, she asked questions that:
·
Expanded
the teachers’ purpose beyond test preparation
·
Centered
students’ cultural context and ways of demonstrating understanding
·
Opened
space for creativity, movement, and collaboration
·
Invited
teachers to reconsider familiar practices
Teachers
give effort when coaches ask questions that incite their curiosity and
challenge them. Asking questions shifts the thinking to teachers, creating
energy and agency. Teachers are interested and immersed in the work.
Did you know My Coaches Couch is also a podcast? (with different content) Find it in your favorite podcast app or at MyCoachesCouch.podbean.com
No comments:
Post a Comment