Coaching Heavy or Light?Naomi Sordello

Key Messages

Creating a Culture of Trust

Productive Conflict

Critical reflection

Teachers need to learn all the time, and they need to be able to articulate both what they do and why they do it.

(Hill and Crévola,1999)

Research suggests coaching has the most profound and sustained impact on teaching practice.

Why Coaching?

TRAINING STEPS Knowledge Mastery Skill Acquisition Classroom Application

Theory (Lecture)+

Middle/high Low Very low10%

Demonstration+

High Low/middle Very low10%

Practice+

High High Very low10%

Feedback and Coaching

High High High 80%

Research by Bruce Joyce and Beverly Showers.

ARE YOU COACHINGHEAVYOR LIGHT?

B y J o e l l e n K i l l i o n

Final word Discussion Protocol

1. Sit in a circle 2. First person read out chosen passage3. In less than 3 mins describe WHY it was significant to you4. Each person then responds to reader’s choice for 1 minute each5. Then reader has ‘final word’ (1 minute) to respond to what has been said6. Next person begins same process, reading their chosen passage etc.

• Head What are the stated facts ?

• Heart What was your reaction?

• Bin What would you disregard?

• Bag What will you take away?

Cognitive DissonanceIt is human nature to strive to reduce dissonance

between what we do and what we believe, with behaviour shaping our thoughts far more

powerfully than the other way around. When what we do conflicts with our values, in other words, it is our values that tend to give way.

Leslie CannoldThe Age 11.1.08

Cognitive Dissonance

Releasing the Tension of Cognitive Dissonance• Justify our behaviour by changing the

conflicting cognitionKim Craig Night after shopping all day at IKEA:

‘You know, I’ve bought so many bargains today, I think I’ve actually made money’

• Justify our behaviour by adding new cognitions

‘And I've been trying to run up your credit card bill to earn you enough Fly-Buys to get you a free mystery flight for your honeymoon’

• Change our behaviour

Engaging people’s moral purpose

Breakthrough: Using Change KnowledgePeople begin to change their behaviours before they

change their beliefs. New positive experiences are the motivator, especially when they relate to fulfilling moral purpose. (Fullan, Hill and Crévola, 2006)

Moral purpose

Challenging Conversations

Share a recent challenging conversation with a person next to you, then reflect:

• Why was it challenging?• How did it make you feel?• What was the outcome?• What might be some of the barriers for an ‘effective’

coaching conversation?

Beliefs and Goals

Knowledge and Skills

Knowledge & Skills vs Beliefs & Goals

A teacher uses the same bingo game at the beginning of every maths lesson and has explained that she does this because it settles the students after play time. The game can sometimes last for up to half an hour.

What question might you ask in order to engage this teacher in examining their beliefs?

A mentor knows most of the answers but a coach knows the right

questions

Beliefs and Goals

http://highlandsmathsproject.pbworks.com/

In organisations, real power is generated through relationships. The patterns of relationships, and the capacities to form them are more important than tasks, functions, roles and positions.

- Margaret Wheatley

EFFECTIVENESS

EFFORT

HERO’S JOURNEY

Lens for Critical Reflection

Key MessagesCreating a Culture of Trust Coaching is a trusting relationship which must

be balanced with appropriate challenge

Productive ConflictCognitive dissonance is uncomfortable but

necessary to move forward if the primary goal of coaching is to improve student performance

Critical reflection An important process for both the coachee and

the coach

The Challenges

• The Math Coach Field Guide – Charting your courseFelix/Snowdy 2006 Math Solution Publications

 • Differentiated Coaching – A Framework for Helping Teachers

Change Kise 2006 Corwin Press

• Coaching and Reflecting Pocketbook Hook, McPhail &Vass 2006 Teacher’s Pocketbooks

Three Great Reads…

National Staff Development Council

www.nsdc.org

"The important thing is never to stop questioning."

Albert Einstein