Coaching for Lasting Change
The Power of Self-Discovery
“Coaching is not a role – it is a set of skills every educator can use.”—Frederick Brown, Learning Forward President & CEOHave you ever noticed that when you give someone a nugget of wisdom, it doesn’t always have the impact you hope for?
And yet, when someone comes up with their own nugget of wisdom, it seems to be a more powerful epiphany for them, sometimes even leading to a change in behavior.
Sometimes, maddeningly, their epiphany is THE SAME brilliant idea you so kindly imparted on them a few weeks earlier.
The Leader’s Role in Creating Epiphanies
As leaders, we want to help our colleagues be their best…not just for themselves, but for the students they serve.
So how can we bring teachers to those epiphanies more often?
We need to recognize when we are in “coaching mode” and when we’re in “consulting mode.” Then, we need to actively seek opportunities to use “coaching mode.”
That’s what brings the epiphanies. And the epiphanies bring the long-lasting changes in teacher actions that drive instructional improvement and increase student achievement.
Why? Because in coaching mode, the leader shifts the cognitive lift to the teacher. More on that in a moment.
Coaching vs. Consulting: What’s the Difference?
How Often Do You Simply Tell?
Be honest: When a teacher comes to you with a challenge, how often do you simply tell them what to do?
Some examples: “How do I prep for this difficult parent conference?” If you suggest finding some positives about the student, having work samples ready, and reviewing the student’s testing data, then you’ve just consulted.
And sometimes consulting is the right move. If the person is very novice and simply needs to know what to do, consulting is appropriate. Or if that conference is in 15 minutes, and there’s no time for coaching, it’s ok to tell someone what they should do.
So, what’s the difference between coaching and consulting?
The Essence of Coaching
With coaching, you are supporting the coachee’s thinking and decision-making, helping them reflect, tap into their inner wisdom, and identify resources for help as they address the challenges of their work and work toward their goals. The coachee is in the driver’s seat, doing the cognitive heavy lifting. You are helping them figure out their path with tools such as strategic questioning and active listening. The result for the coachee is increased agency, efficacy, and confidence.
Does Coaching Take Too Much Time?
If that sounds like something that takes a long time, it is.
Do you - as a busy school leader - have time for coaching? Maybe not always. That’s ok.
Sometimes people are in need of consulting, which is when a leader shares advice, suggestions, and ideas using their own expertise and experience. In consulting, the cognitive lift remains with the leader, as they are doing most of the problem-solving. Consulting is quicker, and sometimes it is needed.
The Impact of Coaching on Educators and Students
The Drawbacks of Over-Consulting
The drawback of too much consulting is that the coachee or client can become too dependent on outside input and can be prone to second-guessing. Traits like agency, confidence, and efficacy remain nascent.
If you’re seeing a parallel to classroom instruction, ding-ding-ding, you win!
Empowered Teachers Lead to Empowered Students
Indeed, our most powerful teachers are those who ensure students are doing most of the cognitive work in the classroom. They design lessons to build student agency, efficacy, and confidence.
Some incredible research has found that when teachers in a school are empowered (through coaching and other means), student learning increases.
Empowerment begets empowerment. Agency begets agency.
A Call to Action: The Coach Approach
Finding Coaching Moments in Leadership
So if you as an administrator feel that with everything else on your plate, you might not have time to take on a “coach approach,” I understand.
My suggestion is to learn a few go-to coaching moves that you can pull out of your back pocket when the time is right.
The ability to discern the need and navigate between coaching and consulting to meet the needs of the teacher in front of you is a critical leadership skill.
Shifting the Culture of Your School
When leaders lean into coaching, we can shift the culture of our school toward one that sees every member - students and faculty alike - as learners and as people who hold value and expertise that enrich the fabric of the community.
Keep an eye out for those potential coaching moments… and let me know how it goes.
Want to Learn Coaching Strategies?
And did you just say you wanted to learn what those coaching moves were? Check out the webinar series coming up… You’ll love it.
