Written by: Diane Sweeney, author of Student-Centered Coaching: The Moves (Corwin, 2016) and Leading Student-Centered Coaching (Corwin, 2017) Each week we receive emails from districts that would like to implement Student-Centered Coaching. Many of these districts have coaches. Others are just getting started. The conversation often turns to resources that are available. Should they buy … Read more
Written by: Diane Sweeney, co-author of Student-Centered Coaching: The Moves (Corwin, 2016) After a recent presentation at a coaching conference, a young man pulled me aside and said, “This coaching stuff is harder than I expected. I’m thinking about going back to the classroom.” It felt like a confession, and I wasn’t sure what to … Read more
Student-Centered Coaching was developed by instructional coaches and for instructional coaches. It was the result of coaches asking themselves the question, “How can we make our coaching more about student learning?” Until then, it felt like coaching only focused on instruction and wasn’t necessarily ensuring that learning was taking place. Coaches felt like, while they … Read more
Guest post by Kristy Gaudio Anyone who has seen, or binge-watched, a home remodeling series can’t help but obsess over how easy they make it look. The interior decorator quickly transitions through the processes of viewing the room, sketching out a vision, and unveiling the mind blowing result to the homeowner in 30 minutes–minus commercials! … Read more
There’s no question that teachers are pressed for time. In fact, this is one of the most common reasons we hear for why teachers may not engage in coaching cycles. The perception is that coaching cycles will ‘take’ too much time and coaches feel as if they are up drumming business. The good news is … Read more
For many instructional coaches, the month of May can feel stressful. But for once the stress may not be from having too much to do, it could be from having too little to do. While teachers are busy organizing projects, field trips, and end-of-the-year celebrations, coaches may wonder how to purposefully fill these last few … Read more
Written by Diane Sweeney and Leanna Harris Excerpted from Student-Centered Coaching: The Moves (Corwin, 2017) Thinking aloud is a coaching move that increases the metacognition and reflection that occurs throughout a lesson. It most commonly occurs when a coach is co-teaching in a classroom. It sounds something like, ‘We just gave the kids a really tough question … Read more
Coaching is the ultimate form of personalized professional learning. There is no better way to help teachers refine their craft then to work with a coach. And better yet, what if coaching helps the students grow too? That’s what student-centered coaching is about, increasing student achievement and developing teacher capacity…all at the same time. I … Read more