Recommendations: The Power of Choice
Recently, I met with a teacher and reflected on a mostly-successful lesson. She felt, however, that there were things she could be doing to enhance student engagement. She sensed that her pacing was somehow off, but couldn’t quite figure out the culprit. After listening and prompting, I asked, “Can I offer a suggestion?” When teachers are coming up empty in their search for a more effective approach, coaches’ recommendations play a helpful role. Previous posts have discussed the importance of making recommendations that are specific in order to increase their effectiveness. Another way to get more uptake on your recommendations is to offer choice. Offering choice develops feelings of power and efficacy. These are important aspects to consider if our coaching seeks to gradually increase teachers’ responsibility. Being asked to make a decision rather than being told what to do is an encouraging approach that exhibits trust in the teacher’s ability. Another benefit of offering choice is t...