Blocks of Focused Instructional Coaching

Photo by José Alejandro Cuffia on Unsplash

So, we had an idea, and innovation we called it…

We were changing. A colleague was retiring and we had an internal hire. We had successfully moved from the computer lab on to a cart with wheels and full of laptops years ago. The shift from the idea of an ‘IT Lesson’ to some sort of co-planned and potentially co-taught technology integrated lesson had happened. The results was that the use of technology was leading to added value in the classroom. Students were able to understand the role of technology in their learning and even recognise when it might not be the best choice. The 2 Technology Integration Coaches attended meetings and pitched ideas, planned lessons, and conducted PD.

We have a long history of coaching at ISB. We have had a culture of peer coaching and instructional coaches at times in the various curriculum areas. After many versions we current have a team of coaches that work directly with the team they are part of. The main objective is to organise coaching around the team’s goal for the year. Peer coaching has led to increased collegial connections in and around teams. Classroom doors remain mostly open throughout the day and adults coming in and out of the classroom to support and observe lessons is the fabric in which the school is run.

And now for our idea: directed instructional coaching. We will run blocks of instructional coaching around a theme defined by the needs of our school. In the previous two years we had tried to lift the entire school, teachers and students, evenly across the entire school year. If the unit had a good reason to use Padlet we would work with Padlet. If Book Creator was the answer the the questions being asked, we planned and co-taught lessons  with teachers and students in that grade for a few weeks/days. We are planning to run blocks of Instructional Coaching. This is the model widely recognised as the way by ISTE and much of the literature. Our innovation, we think, is to focus the block (the amount of time and cohort of teachers) around a theme. Essentially looking at strategic goals of the grade and school and plan the blocks accordingly.

At the moment the idea has been communicated. Feedback from teachers, school leaders and coaching experts has been received and considered. We have two blocks planned and ready: Digital Citizenship focusing mainly on Grade 5 teachers and students and Documenting for Learning focusing on classes from Grade 1 to Grade 5 and based on the recent book by Silvia Tolisano “A Guide to Documenting Learning: Making Thinking Visible, Meaningful, Shareable, and Amplified”. Teachers have been invited and we have kick off meetings planned for this week.

Now it’s time for the punch. What is the quote? “Everybody has plans till they get hit”

What is the worst that could happen?...