Instructional Coaching Resources
Instructional coaching positions have been added to many school leadership teams as an effort to support teacher growth in order to enhance student learning. This professional development strategy facilitates change, improves teacher instruction, and helps to transform school culture. How coaches interact with school leadership and with teachers directly impacts their ability to increase student success rates.
Key Books:
Videos:
Questioning Skills in Coaching
Communication Skills for Coaches
Defining Instructional Coaching
Elements of the Principal/Coach Partnership: Presenting the Coach’s Role to the Staff
What are the dual roles of teaching that coaches must address in their work?
Types of Coaching
A Culture of Coaching
Coaching with a Focus on Student Behavior
Words of Coaches: What are important words for coaches to use?
Blogs and Podcasts:
Podcast: Broadening Coaching Opportunities to Increase Teacher Reflection
As John Dewey stated, “We do not learn from experience. We learn from reflecting on experience.” This is as true […]
Podcast: Supporting Educators and Students as Innovators
Chief Innovation Officer for the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), Tim Fish, explores how school leaders can support the […]
Podcast: Coaching and the Fear of Finding Out
The term Fear of Finding Out (FOFO) was initially used to describe the feelings of people who were afraid to […]
Podcast: Teacher Agency in Professional Development Grows Engagement
Elementary principal, Haley Beavert, created a program trading required mandatory faculty meetings for optional learning opportunities. She identifies the strategy […]
Podcast: What Are You Seeing Students Doing
“Are we giving students answers to questions they haven’t asked and solutions to problems they have never encountered?” Author and […]
Fear Of Finding Out
A long-time colleague of mine sent me a LinkedIn post from Joshua Freedman, the CEO of 6 Seconds, with a […]
Podcast: Empowering Teachers to Choose the What, Why, and How of Observations
What impact is created when teachers play a greater role in guiding the observations that school administrators conduct? Ty McGee, […]
Podcast: Peer Observation and Peer Coaching – Defining a Difference
Peer Observation and Peer Coaching – both build opportunities for teacher reflection, growth, and collective teacher efficacy. There is a […]
Broadening a Definition of Coaching
Michael Moody suggested that a strategy of broadening the definition of coaching could increase the effectiveness of instructional coaching. In […]
Podcast: Continuous Teacher Growth
Director of Learning at American Community School of Abu Dhabi, Dr. Jen Ricks, explores the changes in moving from a […]
Listening and Supporting During Change
I am working with a group of teacher leaders who are in the midst of a school year coming toward […]
Podcast: Traits of Effective Teams and Team Members
Just as instructional coaches need specific skills and mindsets to be an effective coach, teachers need specific skills and mindsets […]
Building Coachability
It’s rather clear to most people that in order to be an effective coach one needs an appropriate mindset for […]
Podcast: Coaching Generating Reflection Generating Growth
“If you don’t question what your experiences mean and think actively about them on an on-going basis, the evidence shows […]
Growth Mindset and Intellectual Risk-taking in Coaching
A Kappan article, Growth mindset and intellectual risk-taking: Disentangling conflated concepts by Shelby Clark and Madora Soutter caused me to […]
Podcast: Supporting Teacher Leaders
How do teacher leaders work to build a coaching culture in a school? They should be the most coached teachers […]
Podcast: Encouraging Teachers to Teach with Big Concepts
Using science teaching and learning as an example, Dr. Stephanie Sisk-Hilton illustrates the importance of exploring big concepts and connected […]
Podcast: Encouraging Teachers to Teach More by Micro-Managing Less
Miriam Plotinsky, the author of “Teach More Hover Less: How to Stop Micromanaging Your Secondary Classroom,” identifies that students need […]
Podcast: Responsibility for Improving Student Outcomes – From The Boardroom to the Classroom
AJ Crabill, the director of governance for the Council of Great City Schools and the conservator for Desoto ISD in […]
Podcast: Coaching the Process of Learning Rather Than the “Right” Answer or Performance
Dr. Maleka Donaldson shares how school leaders can either encourage or discourage teachers from taking new risks and learning from […]
Podcast: Students Leading Professional Development
Hear the experiences and insights that led to having a PD session for staff with the themes of equity and […]
Podcast: Increasing Teacher and Student Success With Goals
Cory Camp, the director of professional development for Sibme, joins Steve in exploring how instructional coaches can use goal setting […]
Coaching to Extend Professional Learning
In an earlier blog, I shared results from the Research Partnership for Professional Learning, Building Better Professional Learning: How to […]
Podcast: Future Focused Leadership
How does being forward focused differ from future focused? What is the difference in plans for improvement and plans for […]
Podcast: We Are All Leaders
How would you describe a great leader? How would you describe a not so great leader? Heather Lyon, an author, […]
Podcast: Coaching From Strengths
One of the elements of a Positive Psychology framework to coaching is the use of a strengths- based approach. Explore […]
Podcast: Ongoing Coaching for Instructional Coaches, Teacher Leaders, & Administrators
When leaders leave workshops and return to the “real” world, they often are overwhelmed by tasks, making it difficult to […]
Psychological Underpinnings for Coaching Practices (Part 2)
In part 1 of this blog (here), I explored how the psychological theories or frameworks of person-centered, solution focused, and […]
Podcast: Supervision/Coaching Confusion
Some teacher leaders and administrators have job descriptions that include what I would call elements of coaching and elements of […]
Psychological Underpinnings for Coaching Practices (Part 1)
While reading a post, Coaching Cultures in Schools download by Chris Monroe, Margaret Barr, and Christian van Nieuwerburgh, I was […]
Podcast: Coaching and Program Fidelity
The implementation of new curriculums and/or instructional strategies should create an opportunity for increased team building across a school system. […]
Podcast: A Gratitude-Based Approach to Problem-Solving
What changes if we approach problem-solving with a focus on love instead of a focus on fear? Hear how students […]
Podcast: Psychological Theories and Principles Connected to Coaching
Explore how five different psychological theories or frameworks appear in a coach’s practice: person centered, solution focused, self-efficacy, self-determination, and […]
Podcast: Where Are They? How Did They Get There? Where Do They Want to Go?
These three questions can guide your coaching pre and post conferences. They help you understand what the teacher is thinking, […]
Fidelity – Trust the Program
I am currently supporting school leaders in a district that has implemented new curriculum programs for both ELA and Math. […]
Podcast – Strengthening Teacher Professional Learning: PLC’s and Coaching
A paper from the Research Partnership for Professional Learning identifies the “what and how” from studies exploring teacher learning impacting […]
Podcast: Collaboration to Support Multilingual Learners
Dr. Andrea Honigsfeld and Dr. Maria Dove, the co-editors of “Portraits of Collaboration: Educators Working Together to Support Multilingual Learners,” […]
Walkthrough Feedback in a Coaching Partnership
“Coaching is a relationship between two equals, one of whom is committed to making personal and professional improvements. These improvements […]
Podcast: Leading at All Levels Requires Focusing on the Environment
Just like classroom environment impacts student learning, school environment impacts staff learning and teaching. How does coaching assist teachers in […]
Podcast: PLCs That Empower Teachers
Most instructional coaches have a role in the work and learning of PLCs at their schools. Many coaches ponder the […]
Podcast: Building PLC (Team) Effectiveness
Two teachers with experience as members of a high functioning team share some of the processes that were implemented as […]
Listening and Questioning for Facilitating Reflection
School leaders and instructional coaches can support teacher reflection that promotes teacher learning. Listening and questioning are key facilitation skills […]
Podcast: Confidence and Humility – Support Continuous Growth
Our “coachability” increases as we develop confident humility. Coaching leaders should be models of confident humility – continuously presenting themselves […]
Podcast: Assessment in an Inquiry Focused Classroom
Trevor MacKenzie, the author of “Inquiry Mindset Assessment Edition,” describes the incongruity that can exist in some classrooms between co-designed […]
Podcast: Revisiting Curiosity in Coaching
“Making the first 2-3 minutes of a conversation curiosity-based will change your conversations.” -Michael Bungay Stainer. How does your natural […]
Leaders, Coaches, and Teachers Working the Improvement Plan
Most school administrators, instructional coaches, and teacher leaders have spent time in the previous weeks creating school improvement goals and […]
Podcast: The Value of a Constructivist Stance in School Leader
Jessica Vance, the author of “Leading with a Lens of Inquiry,” describes how instructional coaches and administrators can guide teacher […]
Podcast: Coaching the Curriculum of Classroom Management
Students are watching and interpreting each move and decision we make. So in effect, our classroom management approach is a […]
Podcast: Experiences Precede Buy-in
While buy-in is necessary for long term implementation of instructional practices that impact student learning, it occurs later in the […]
Podcast: Does Your Group Want to Be a Team?
The word “team” is frequently used in schools to describe various groupings of people that are working under different understandings […]
Podcast: Can a Focus on Best Practice be a Problem?
Adam Grant, the author of “Think Again,” states that the term best practice can create an illusion that we have […]
Coaches: Remember the change sequence
I was recently at an instructional coaches’ conference where a presenter put the following on a power point and asked […]
Podcast: Healthy Relationships Between the Instructional Coach and the Principal
Lindsay Deacon, a co-author of “The Educoach Survival Guide,” explores the relationship elements of coaching. How do the coach and […]
Acknowledging Discomfort as an Element of Growth
I recently posted an earlier blog I had written about being comfortable with discomfort on LinkedIn using this lead-in statement: […]
Podcast: Focus Teaching and Coaching on People – Not Averages
As teachers assess students’ current levels of skills and knowledge, planning ahead with acceleration rather than remediation is critical. Understanding […]
It’s Time for the Coach/Principal Stage-Setting Conversation
Each summer I post a blog encouraging coaches to request a conversation with their principals. Scheduling time, especially uninterrupted, for […]
Podcast: Increasing Dialogue and Reflection in Coaching Conferences
Reflection is key to teachers ongoing growth and empowerment. Too often, “quick feedback” misses the mark because of insufficient dialogue […]
Coaching and Empathic Listening
The MindTools website defines empathic listening as “a structured listening and questioning technique that allows you to develop and enhance […]
Podcast: Redesigning Learning For Our Turbulent Times
Dr. Shira Leibowitz, author, university doctorial professor and pre-school/childcare founder, shares insights from her new book, “Havens of Hope: Ideas […]
Co-generative Dialogues
After reading a recent article, I was introduced to a term (new for me) that sparked my interest and sent […]
Podcast: Student Voices Increase Equity
The listening principal, Dr. Kambar Khoshaba, shares how student voices impacted leadership and staff as well as the students themselves, […]
Podcast – Instructional Coaching: Relationships, Data, Action
Natalie Ulloa, a secondary instructional coach with a background in instructional design and Steven Baule, a professor in the Leadership […]
Empower the Learner Profile
Kathleen McClaskey, CEO of Empower the Learner and co-author of “Make Learning Personal” and “How to Personalize Learning,” identifies the […]
Podcast: School as a Learning Organization for Students and Staff
Frances Valintine, the founder of The Mind Lab and The Tech Futures Lab and the author of “Future You,” explores […]
Peer, Coach, and Administrator Support for Change
“Accomplishing worthwhile things isn’t just a little harder than people think; it’s 10 or 20 times harder.” (Austin Kleon) I […]
Podcast: Gather Year End Data From Student Reflection
Past National Principal of the Year, Mark Wilson, identifies the value of gathering student thoughts, feelings, and insights to promote […]
Podcast: One School’s Experience With Hypothesis Focused Professional Growth Plans
Why might, “what’s your hypothesis?” be a better question to ask than, “what’s your goal?” A business article suggested […]
Podcast: Giving Two Glows and a Grow; Seldom Generates Real Growth
The practice of giving glows and grows, like the feedback sandwich, seldom generates growth and change. Frequently, some similar structure […]
Podcast: Building Connections – A Foundation for Trust
“Strengthening organizations one connection at a time,” is the recommendation from The Connection Coach, Tara Brown. Connecting to emotions and […]
Coaching and Deliberate Curiosity
Consider this research finding: 83% of executives say they encourage curiosity and only 52% of employees agree. Why is that […]
Podcast: ”I Don’t Know What I’d Ask a Coach to Focus On?”
How does a coach respond when teachers suggest they don’t have an idea how a coaching observation could support them? […]
Podcast: Real Discussions
What are you finding when you observe discussions in classrooms? Are teachers hearing all students’ voices? Are students’ voices being […]
Podcast: Bringing Parents Into the Math Success Equation
When parents were interviewed about math instruction in school, the four most frequent words that arose were intimidated, frustrated, worried, […]
Coaching to Get Great at Something
I listened to a Ted Talk by Atul Gawande titled, Want to get great at something? Get a coach. There […]
Podcast: The Accountability Mindset
The greatest growth from coaching is likely to occur when the goals from coaching have been set by the coachee. […]
Podcast: Leading Like a Coach
School principal and author of “Leading Like a Coach,” Matt Renwick, promotes school leaders working with a community in which […]
Podcast: Focus On People Rather Than Subjects
What do we see and hear in a school when people are the focus rather than subjects? Why is now […]
Podcast: Engaging Teachers in Labsite Learning
Labsite Learning responds to teachers’ requests for professional learning that is collaborative, relevant to their specific students, allows for quick […]
Podcast: What Do Teachers Need Us To Learn?
Steve’s earlier podcast on the disappointing findings from research on data review meetings impacting teacher learning and change triggered this […]
Podcast: Do We Have Real Professional Learning Communities?
Jeff Utecht, from Shifting Schools invites Steve to a conversation around the purpose and practice of professional learning communities. As […]
Podcast: Promoting Staff Beliefs That All Students Can Learn in Rigorous Tasks
Instructional coaches and administrators need to build conversations with teachers around key standards. How is the teacher planning for instruction […]
Podcast: Jim Knight’s Definitive Guide to Instructional Coaching
Jim Knight joins Steve to highlight the seven factors for success in his most recent book on instructional coaching. Jim […]
Podcast: Building Collective Efficacy
“A culture of collective efficacy does not simply happen; it is built intentionally.” Sarah Sugarman, from Lead by Learning, identifies […]
Podcast: When is the Coach an Expert?
Instructional coaches should be continually engaged in developing a deep reservoir of knowledge and skills that can impact student and […]
Podcast: Guiding an After-Action-Review Process for Team Growth
How can the After-Action-Review process used by the military service assist instructional coaches and administrators in guiding teachers individually and […]
Podcast: Leadership That Communicates Every Teacher Matters
Teacher, Wayne Roland, shares with Steve his experiences teaching in a school where leadership communicated a strong message that every […]
Podcast: Supporting Teacher Leaders
Michael Iannini, the author of Hidden in Plain Sight: Realizing the Full Potential of Middle Leaders, highlights the important role […]
Coaching For Rethinking
Adam Grant’s book Think Again (The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know) provided me with lots of elements to […]
Podcast: Early Reading Classrooms – Coaching “Look For’s”
Dr. Heather Kenny, a past kindergarten teacher, reading interventionist, consultant and higher education teacher-educator, explores how school leaders and coaches […]
Podcast: Jim Knight Ponders With Steve About Reframing Mindsets Through Coaching (Part 2)
I had the pleasure to be a presenter at Jim Knight’s TLC21 Conference. Jim joined my session and shared his […]
Podcast: Jim Knight Ponders with Steve About Reframing Mindsets Through Coaching (Part 1)
I had the pleasure to be a presenter at Jim Knight’s TLC21 Conference. Jim joined my session and shared his […]
Podcast: Leaders’ Messages to Teachers in December and January
What are the messages you want to share with teachers as the winter break draws close and as teachers and […]
Podcast: Supporting Teachers’ PLC Practices
Experienced teacher, PLC teacher leader, and Instructional Coach, Darby Tobolka, joins Steve for a conversation about PLC design, purpose, and […]
Podcast: Stop Worrying About Getting Through Stuff
Jeff Utecht from Shifting Schools explores what student learning outcomes should be driving our teaching and learning plans. Can students […]
Podcast: Expanding Inclusive Learning Environments
Dr. Gretchen Stewart, a long time public school teacher, instructional coach and teacher educator, shares insights from her dissertation research […]
Podcast: Focusing When Things Are Changing
How can coaching assist educators in examining their empowerment to generate increased satisfaction and energy in teaching and learning? This […]
Podcast: Planning for Instructional Coaching Success
How are the expectations of an instructional coaching program shared with staff? This is an important question when implementing an […]
A Job Description for Instructional Coaches?
I have frequently struggled when reviewing the job descriptions for instructional coaches. Many are written at the district level while […]
Podcast: Coaching in Response to a Teacher’s Concern or Problem
It’s common for coaches to be pulled into quick problem solving when teachers share a problem or concern. There is […]
Other Resources:
Professional Development and Graduate Courses:
- Instructional Coaching Micro-Credential
- Instructional Coaching Online Graduate Class Through PLS Classes
Blog Archive:
- Coaching Questions: Going Slow to Go Fast
- Educator Learning for Student Learning: Coaching Impact
- Dialogue in Coaching Conferences
- Building a Coaching Culture
- PLCs and Coaching for Teacher and Student Learning
- Creating Trust for Coaching
- Instructional Coaching and School Improvement Plans
- Encouraging the Coaching Conversation
- Value from Coaching and Collaboration
- Coaching from Teachers’ Agendas
- A Culture of Coaching (Part 2)
- A Culture of Coaching (Part 1)
- Matching Coaching Actions to Teachers’ Developmental Stages
- Vulnerability and Team Building
- Facilitating Conversations: Empowering Teams
- Request Coaching on Your Words
- Promoting Coachability
- Coaches’ Listening Skills
- Coaching: Athletes, Students, Teachers
- Teaching & Coaching Student Effort
- Promoting Coachability
- The Work of Instructional Coaches
- Teaching and Coaching Student Effort
- Coaching Outstanding Teachers
- Defining Instructional Coaching: It Matters
- Guidelines for Administering Feedback for Students and Teachers
- Coaching Performance, Development, and Transformation
- Pre-Conferencing: A Critical Element of Effective Coaching
- Increasing Perseverance By Translating Goals Into Behaviors
- The Gift of Coaching
- The Coaching Balance
- Coaching Through Change
- Instructional Coaches Working with Individual Teachers
- Teaming or Franchising
- Instructional Coaches Working with PLCs and Teaching Teams
- Respecting Teachers’ Goals and Values
- Early Feedback
- Introducing Mentoring or Coaching
- Hypothesis and Evidence: Words to Use In Professional Growth Plans
- When Coaches Hear Resistance
- Coaching and Trust
- Guiding Instructional Coaching with a Principal Partnership
- Teacher Autonomy and Coaching
- A Mentoring and Coaching Culture
- Building Developmental Relationships
- Approaches to Difficult Conversations with Teachers for Instructional Coaches
- How is Distance Coaching Different from in the Classroom Coaching? (Part 2)
- How is Distance Coaching Different from in the Classroom Coaching? (Part 3)
- A Time to Be Really Listening
- Collaborating with Parents as Partners Supporting Learners
- Today’s Leadership Requirement: Leading Teams That Solve Challenges
- Collaborating with Parents as Partners Supporting Learners
- What is the Barkley Coaching Model?
- Coaching Classroom Management: Consistent and Flexible
- Relationships and Expectations: Keys to Increasing Student Success
- I Am Learning More About Personalization
- How Does Intellectual Humility Impact Educator Reflection?
- Purposeful School Leader Actions
- Three Elements for the Application of the Art and Craft of Coaching
- Guest Blog: Coaching with Humility by Sherry St. Clair
- Coaching with Structure: The TO GROWTH Model
- Learners Investing in Learning: The IKEA Effect