faulker008

Today’s post-holiday message is short and simple: We show we care by checking back. If a teacher has opened up and shared a frustration, we show we care about her well-being by checking back to see if the situation has changed. If we have planned a lesson together with a teacher, we show we care by checking back about how the lesson worked for students. If we have come up with an intervention plan for a hard-to-reach student, we show we care by checking back on how the plan is going. If we had a painful debrief session that revealed that few students achieved a lesson’s goal, we check back to praise potential solutions. And lest it appear that checking back only applies to negative situations: If we have recently discussed instructional improvements, interventions that are closing the gap, or higher student achievement, we check back for additional celebration! Checking back can be peeking your head in the door during passing period, tucking a note of encouragement in a teacher’s box, ...

Writing teacher Donald Graves suggests that teachers of writing “teach the writer, not the writing.” He is cautioning us that our focus in what we teach should be on something students will be able to transfer to the rest of their work. I’ve been thinking about how this tenet applies to coaching. In writing, it’s ineffective to talk about writer’s craft absent of student writing. For example, talking about sensory details without having students look at the details they’ve included in their own writing would be unlikely to improve their future prose. But it’s also ineffective to be so focused on the student’s current writing work that the learning doesn’t transcend beyond this particular piece. There’s a tension here between the specific and the generalizable, and it’s important to find the right balance. This same principle plays out in coaching. I initially cringed when I thought about coaching the teacher rather than the teaching . When coaching, we often deflect attention from the...

“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less.” ~C.S. Lewis What does humility have to do with coaching? To move forward in a coaching cycle, I have to shift the focus from me and what I know to the teacher and what she knows. It’s not hard to make a recommendation when a teacher asks for support. It’s much harder to hold my tongue and instead of sharing my wisdom, ask a question that allows a teacher to share hers. She doesn’t need to know how smart I am; she needs to know how smart she is. My questions can help her realize that she really does have the answers. If I ask, “What else have you been considering?” my question affirms the teacher as one who thoughtfully deliberates her decisions. If I ask, “What did you notice about students’ thinking?” my question recognizes her thoughtful observations. Questions like these that hold positive assumptions of teachers’ actions and abilities build teachers’ confidence and encourage ongoing use of the attributes ...

Good teaching requires an understanding of the kids, the content, and the pedagogy. As coaches, we often work with teachers who have a solid grasp on the first two elements – the kids and the content – but we are trying to support new thinking about the pedagogy.   Our focus on the pedagogy may begin with modelling a new approach or making recommendations about how that approach can be applied. Once the teacher has increased knowledge of the practice, how can we encourage thoughtful planning and insightful reflection around its use? The GIR model suggests that asking questions can support teachers’ internalization of these new practices. For example, if I’m working with a social studies teacher who wants to increase opportunities for academic writing in her next unit, I might ask probing questions such as the following to support her planning: ·          What important concepts are you hoping your students will take away from the unit? · ...