Peer Coaching For Educators

Peer Coaching in Higher Education describes a simple, five-step method for the improvement of teaching in colleges and universities. Professors and instructors in small groups, as departmental faculty, or as inter- and intra-departmental partners can increase faculty collegiality and improve their teaching techniques for increases in student learning. Gottesman explains the theory and practice of peer coaching, specifically describing its application among the faculty and students of five universities. She provides directions for a faculty conducting its own peer coaching seminar, including necessary hand-outs and examples. Actual peer coaching exchanges give faculty ideas about the extended applications of this process.

Teachers are better together! Nationally and internationally, educators are excited about Les Foltos’ techniques for effective peer coaching. The model for Peer Coaching outlined in his 2011 TED talk has been implemented in 40 countries and counting with powerful results. Now you have it in this concise guide to effective coaching! Train teachers to help each other refine their classroom strategies and tailor them to 21st Century needs. Foltos’ insights include How peer coaching that makes a difference involves much more than just one teacher offering another advice. How a coaching relationship is first built on trust, and then on the willingness to take risks. Why peer coaching should focus on adapting teaching methods to the technological future of education. For schools to effect the changes the future demands, teachers must learn how to collaborate effectively. With this book, Les Foltos shows the way. "Not only does Peer Coaching explain how to effectively support and leverage peer coaches, it specifically addresses how these coaches can be a critical element in supporting 21st century education and the ‘4 C’s’. It′s a great contribution to the 21st century PD literature." —Ken Kay, CEO of EdLeader21

This much-needed text provides a coherent and strategic approach to teacher development Teacher Development for Language Teachers examines ten different approaches for facilitating professional development in language teaching: self-monitoring, support groups, journal writing, classroom observation, teaching portfolios, analysis of critical incidents, case analysis, peer coaching, team teaching, and action research. The introductory chapter provides a conceptual framework. All chapters contain practical examples and reflection questions to help readers apply the approach in their own teaching context.

Can teachers, principals, and professors lead their students toward profound learning until they have been there themselves? Peer coaching offers a remarkable vehicle to join with students as learners and together build a community of learners, and this volume presents it all with clarity, economy, honesty, and conviction.

How can educators work together more effectively to improve professional practice in a way that enhances student performance? The answer, says author Pam Robbins, involves combining collaborative activities and peer coaching—teachers supporting teachers. This book describes how any school can implement these proven practices and experience positive changes in teaching, school culture, and learning. Robbins explains how to develop a collaborative, learning-focused culture and build trust among colleagues; offers strategies for participating in difficult conversations that yield useful feedback; clarifies how to develop, sustain, and evaluate peer coaching efforts; and showcases exemplary peer coaching practices used in real schools. She also includes coaching tools, scenarios, process guidelines, and reflection questions that make it easier to transfer these ideas into a school setting. Peer coaching offers a job-embedded learning strategy; it’s a valuable structure for supporting schoolwide and districtwide priorities such as analyzing data, improving instruction, integrating technology, and implementing standards. In short, it creates an effective way to support the growth of every teacher and enrich learning processes in any school. Pam Robbins is a former teacher, coach, director of professional development, and school leader. She consults with high-performing and low-performing districts and designs and conducts workshops on leadership, school culture, organizational change, mentoring, and peer coaching.

Preservice peer coaching is a collegial relationship between student teachers who provide reciprocal, in-class assistance to one another as they attempt to incorporate new teaching skills, strategies, and approaches into their teaching. The typical peer-coaching cycle includes a preview conference, during which the student teachers discuss the focus of the upcoming lesson; observation of the lesson by the student teacher coach; and a follow-up conference, during which the student teachers analyze the lesson. Peer coaching facilitates the recall of skills and strategies from methodology classes, fosters collegiality, and promotes reflection on teaching. Effective use of peer coaching requires training in interacting as both coach and recipient of coaching. Supervising teachers also need to be introduced to the goals, procedures, and benefits of peer coaching. Problems inherent in preservice peer coaching include increased time requirements involved in the coaching cycle, increased time involvement of university personnel, development of unhealthy competitiveness, and student teachers' lack of confidence in giving constructive feedback. (Contains 17 references.) (JDD)

In her new book, prominent professional developer Yvette Jackson focuses on students' strengths, rather than their weaknesses, To reinvigorate educators to inspire learning and high intellectual performance. Through the lens of educational psychology and historical reforms, Jackson responds To The faltering motivation and confidence of educators in terms of its effects on closing the achievement gap. The author seeks to "rekindle the belief in the vast capacity of underachieving urban students," and offers strategies to help educators inspire intellectual performance. Jackson proposes that a paradigm shift towards a focus on strengths will reinvigorate educators' passion for teaching and belief in their ability to raise the intellectual achievement of their students. Jackson addresses how educators can systematically support the development of motivation, reflective and cognitive skills, and high performance when standards and assessments are predisposed to non-conceptual methods. Furthermore, she examines challenges and offers strategies for dealing with cultural disconnects, The influence of new technologies, and language preferences of students.

This book expands on the framework established in the original volume of Quality Teaching in a Culture of Coaching. It provides many examples that can be incorporated into any educational environment. It outlines the why, who, what, and how of a sound coaching program. The new edition adds sections on the impact of learning styles on coaching, extends the connections between coaching, mentoring, and supervision, and includes instructional coaching. It contains updated examples of various coaching models in place, including international examples.