I’ve been facilitating a team of K-12 educators over the past several months in an exploration of teacher feedback and its impact on student learning because we all have too many examples of feedback not leading to learning. Initially we examined the need for effective feedback to be timely, specific, and aligned to learning goals. […]

A few years back, I wrote about the importance of developmental relationships as defined by Search Institute—“close connections through which young people discover who they are, cultivate the abilities to shape their own lives, and learn how to engage and contribute to the world around them.” Search Institute identifies these five elements that strengthen developmental […]

Across my blogs and podcasts, I consistently emphasize that educator growth is driven less by receiving advice and more by engaging in intentional reflection. Coaching conversations, peer observations, and PLC collaboration only become powerful when they help teachers analyze the impact of their decisions on student learning. I work to create conditions where teachers study […]

A post by Sarah Cottinghatt and Adam Kohlbeck from Cognitive Coaching, “AVOID the Vague Opener,” reinforced an ongoing recommendation I’ve made to instructional coaches to avoid opening a post conference conversation with ”How do you think that went?” This question might be translated in the coachee’s mind as, “Guess what the coach is thinking.” The […]

Paul Magnuson shares what his feedback to teachers sounds like after he quit trying to point out weaknesses and trying to show that he knew what those weaknesses are; after he quit sitting across from younger teachers telling them what to do. Hear what he can share by picturing himself standing side-by-side with teachers, staring […]

I recently read Jonathan Haidt’s, “The Happiness Hypothesis” and pondered several times how elements from his work apply to coaching teachers. When might increased teacher happiness lead to increased student learning? What role can coaching play in that connection? Haidt presents a metaphor that can be helpful in a coaching approach: the elephant and the […]