Rethinking How Leaders Support Teacher Growth

The useful part

If I couldn't complete a full coaching cycle, I assumed I wasn't really coaching. The more time I spend in schools, the more convinced I am that we have defined coaching too narrowly. We often picture coaching as a scheduled process that includes a pre-conference, classroom observation, reflection meeting, and follow-up.

How it works

• Those coaching cycles are incredibly valuable, and absolutely have a place in our work, especially with new teachers.
• Students are working in groups and using graphs to explain why global temperatures are rising.
• As the principal prepares to leave, she catches the teacher's eye, smiles, and says, "I really appreciated how you had students explain their thinking to one another.
• "What do you think helped students build on one another's ideas today?" The entire interaction takes less than a minute, yet it reinforces an effective instructional practice and invites the teacher to...
• I experienced something similar recently while working with a high school mathematics teacher.

What to take from it

It's much harder, but much more valuable, to notice the instructional decisions that produced that engagement. These classroom moments are significant because they provide the foundation for coaching conversations. During a classroom visit, I noticed that students were successfully solving problems, but very little mathematical thinking was being shared aloud.

Example or evidence

• They were building on each other's ideas and respectfully challenging one another's reasoning.
• The teacher mentioned that it was important to him that students have time to chunk and process the information, so he would set a timer to remind himself to pause every 7 minutes.
• These kinds of changes don't happen after one conversation or even a handful of coaching sessions.
• These decisions include a prompt that ensures students justify their thinking, a carefully designed sequence of questions that enable students to successfully access complex text, and how students are...

Details worth keeping

For years as a principal, I accepted that reality as a limitation. They are only one way to support teachers' professional growth. Every day, school leaders have opportunities to influence instruction.

Related coverage

• Edweek: Effective professional learning works best when tied to teacher needs, evaluation feedback, coaching, and ongoing teacher-leader support.
• Middleweb: As described by Chris Munro and John Campbell, growth talk aims to be transformational as school leaders use coaching conversations and a mindset grounded in trust to empower people, generate positive...
• Theeducatoronline: What does it take to grow high-quality teachers? MLC Perth's award-winning model offers a surprisingly simple, and rare, answer
• Edweek: Superintendents say a strong strategic vision and high-quality PD are key.
• Bd Journal: চটà§à¦Ÿà¦—à§à¦°à¦¾à¦®à§‡à¦° সাতকানিয়ায় টà§à¦°à§‡à¦¨à§‡à¦° ধাকà§à¦•à¦¾à§Ÿ দà§à¦‡ অটো রিকশা আরোহীর পà§à¦°à¦¾à¦£ গেছে।...