Once you have decided what you want to achieve from coaching at your school, you need to consider how you are going to do it. It is worth spending some time think- ing through some protocols, and getting them in place, before you start any coach- ing. This is particularly the case if you are planning some one-to-one coaching conversations. Consider the following questions:
• What are our principles of coaching? • What protocols will we work to?
• How will these protocols be established?
• What will a coaching relationship look like in our school?
As we discussed in Chapter 3, ground rules for coaching are important because they clarify the parameters within which you are working. There are broadly two ways of establishing these protocols – top down or bottom up. For the top-down approach, those setting up the coaching programme decide on a set of protocols and present them to the staff. They are told that this is the way the school thinks coaching should work and that these are the protocols that have been established. When we first started along the journey of coaching, this was the approach that we took. The protocol that we used is similar to Figure 8.5.
When entering into a coaching relationship, both the coach and the coachee should be asked to read and sign the document. Although this may seem rather formal, it sim- ply serves to outline what the process would involve and how it would work. It is important that everything is transparent and open and, by doing this, people feel comfortable enough to engage with the process. The other advantage of this approach is that it acts as a prompt, generating discussion on what coaching is all about. Similarly, it is important to explain that lesson observation, if part of the coaching process, should not be judgemental.
Dear ___________
We are currently in the process of setting up a teaching and learning coaching programme at ___________ School. The principles of this are very simple – good, effective and reflective classroom practitioners are trained in the skills of coaching to work alongside other colleagues, with a view to drawing out and developing good practice.
We very much appreciate the work that you do at __________ School and would like to ask you to consider being a part of the programme – as a coach. This would involve the following:
• attending a one-day training course on coaching skills
• developing these coaching skills further, by practising on each other in pairs, for the rest of this academic year – before going ‘live’
• attending a further one-day training course towards the end of the summer term to review progress and to plan for the year ahead
• starting to work with a colleague (who has volunteered for the programme) in a coaching pair from ____________.
The plan is to have ____ coaches trained and in place by _____________, with a view to training a further ____ by _______________. The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) recognises that coaching is an essential skill for potential school leaders, as well as one of the key criteria for passing through the performance thresholds. So from the point of view of your own professional development, being involved in this programme would be invaluable.
I would be really grateful if you would contact me before the end of this week so that we can make an appointment for early next half-term to discuss your involvement in this programme.
I look forward to chatting with you soon.
Regards
(Coaching Co-ordinator)
Figure 8.4 Sample coach invite letter
Photocopiable:
The Coaching Toolkit © Shaun Allison and Michael Harbour, 2009 (SAGE)
1 The objective of peer coaching is to improve the quality of teaching by developing and sharing good practice. It is a collaborative process.
2 Colleagues have been identified who are willing to share their practice and to support the development of teach- ing and classroom management skills in others. In the process, they too will develop their skills.
3 Teachers may volunteer to work in coaching partnerships.
4 No one will enter a coaching relationship without the agreement of both parties.
5 Coaches are willing to:
• offer coaching in lesson planning, classroom management and learning and teaching strategies • observe the teaching of others and be observed themselves
• give detailed, positive feedback about the lessons which they observe • demonstrate particular teaching skills and strategies
• work alongside colleagues in the classroom to an agreed plan • contribute to the school’s professional development programme.
6 Coaching partnerships will adhere to the following code of conduct:
• The focus of their work will be the sharing and development of good practice. • The desired outcomes of the coaching partnership will be mutually agreed. • Discussions will be confidential.
• The dates and times of any classroom visits will be negotiated.
• Verbal and written feedback as a result of a classroom visit will be given within five working days of the visit. • All conversations about the teaching will take place in private and in a relaxed but professional atmosphere. • Any lesson observation notes will remain the property of the teacher.
• It is recommended that the partners each keep a reflective log. In addition, each partnership will keep a brief, confidential written record of the work that is mutually agreed.
• The decision to commit to further action or to change practice is the prerogative of the individual. Signed:__________________________________________
__________________________________________ Date: _________________________________________
Figure 8.5 Protocol for peer coaching
Photocopiable:
The Coaching Toolkit © Shaun Allison and Michael Harbour, 2009 (SAGE)
The alternative approach to setting protocols is to do it from the bottom up, allow- ing the staff to decide what the protocols would be. This is an important process for the staff to go through, as it will achieve two objectives:
1 Demystifying coaching – by coming up with the protocols themselves, staff are able to work through some of the issues that they might otherwise have had with it. 2 Ownership – by coming up with the protocols themselves, the staff would be
clear that this is not something being done to them, but in fact is a process over which they have control.