CoachingStrategy EmployedDatesCoaching Journal ExcerptsCitations

Interview and Discussion3/13/14Ive decided to work with a coworker whom I will refer to as Maxine. She and I are both American Government teachers and she mentioned to me that she was hoping to increase her comfort level when utilizing technology in her classes; particularly when she is model something for the whole class. Maxine is in her 10th year teaching and 1st year teaching high school. To begin my coaching of Maxine I sat down with her and asked her to answer the Adopter Survey created by my PLC group to determine her level of comfort when dealing technology in a professional rather than personal setting1.1. Knight 2007, pg 110.Knight explains that interviews are a more effective way building a relationship when first beginning to coach a teacher.

2. Knight 2007, pg 110.The text describes a group of researchers that asked teachers about their feelings on model lessons prior to modeling lesson. My survey for Maxine would serve as a similar baseline test for her and my interactions.

3. Knight 2007, pg 138. Knight cites an interview with a teacher regarding how his or her IC cannot possibility know their content. As a result the teacher doubted the IC ability to aptly model the lesson because of the difficulties of the content.

ReflectionMaxines results on the survey show that she is comfortable in using her personal technology (i.e. smart phone, personal computer, tablet, etc.) However, it also shows a clear lack of full utilization of those personal items as well as her professional technological tools for instruction2. After discussing her results with her, it was determined that Maxine is more than comfortable learning new technologies and software, but does not feel comfortable embarking upon that process alone. Being that she and I are course mates it will be easy for me to model lessons for her as I am familiar with the content. According to Knight often times instructional coaches lose the confidence of their cooperating teacher because they cannot aptly deliver the content when modeling a lesson3.

Collaborative Planning/Cognitive Coaching3/17/14Maxine and I sat down to plan a lesson that required the students to use collaborative online tools. In our initial meeting Maxine identified group work as an area she wanted her students to improve. I suggested several easy to use programs such as Social Bookmarking and Google Docs that could be extremely beneficial depending on the task the students would be performing1. In looking at our unit planners we decided perhaps the best unit in which to attempt such a project would be Unit 5. By then the students would have a pretty good grasp on processes within the legislation and executive branch as well be familiar with the Bill of Rights. Determining constitutionality would be a good way for students to showcase what theyve learned thus far and also introduce them to the terms and processes of the Judicial. I created a Google Doc that she and I could use to create the Directives and rubric for the project. Before long silence took over our meeting as we both began to identify and write the objectives for the project and create the degrees through which we would assess the students. Periodically she would stop me to ask me to clarify something that I had typed, or I would stop and ask her to read over the wording of something I have just written2.1. Knight 2007, pg 46. Knight suggests that rather than bombard a teacher with your own ideas it is better to tread lightly. He recommends that rather you make suggests and allow the teacher to decide if any of the suggestions have merit.

2. Knight 2007, pg 12. Knight Describes the beginning of cognitive coaching as a non-judgmental mediation of thinking. In order to insure that I was not being judgmental of anything she was coming up with I invited her to look over my work as I looked over hers.

3. Knight 2007, pg 32. Collaborative planning requires a partnership. Knight describe collaboration as people working together as partners.

ReflectionKnight mentions that effective instructional coaches should be able to model the practice they are implementing. Google Docs can be easy tools to use. In essence we would be using it as a collaborative word processor. By engaging Maxine in this collaborative tool I hope to model for there the appropriate way in which she instruct her students to use the tool while completing their project. As I asked her to read over the work that I had just typed. I wanted to quell any belief that because I was serving as the instructional coach her opinions or ideas didnt matter during this planning process. Collaborative planning requires that both parties be on equal footing3.

Tacit Knowledge

3/20/14After our previous meeting Maxine offered to take the lead and put the finishing touches on the directives and rubric. She handed me a hard copy and gave it a quick scan. I had no doubt that she was thorough. Today I was going to model Diigo for Maxine1. While sitting in her classroom I walked her through the setup processes such as creating an account and downloading the extensions for her browser as well as for Word. I gave her a quick summation of Social Bookmarking and how it could be helpful in getting students to share resources they find while completing group work. She mentioned that she had never used the program before. While I was excited that I was able to introduce her to it I was also worried that this could be her pronounce an element of worry2. Nevertheless, I assured her that the program was as easy to use as Google Docs. They were both based on the concept of cloud computing. I walked Maxine through the step of identify the resources and then caching them to my account. Then I asked her to do it. Lastly, we both tried it on our own then shared our resources using the group feature that wed be asking our students to utilize. As out allocated time began to run out, I asked her to find some more resources and share them with me. Also, I encouraged her to play around with the site to learn more about how it works.1. Knight 2007, pg 125 Before I began to model the practice for her class I first wanted to model it for her so that she had a level of familiarity going into the lesson.

2. Knight 2007, pg 7 Knight mentions in this section the importance of communication and feedback role in that communication. While Maxines feedback was not negative there were other connotations within it that led me to worry. Being able to catch such signal is described by knight as very important.

3. Knight 2007, pg 166 By doing this I was hoping to instill a sense of control for Maxine. Knight stresses the importance of empowering teachers so that they have more power and control over the lesson.

4. Knight 2007, pg 131 strategy. A format of instruction where one sees a model then work as a group, and then practice independently to learn a new skill or strategy

ReflectionKnight describes the strategy of modeling that I chose to do as I do. You do. We do.4 Maxine knows that I know how to use this program, but she need to know that she could as well and with relative ease. It was not difficult her to accomplish and I think her being able to realize that did a lot for her confidence going forward.

Communication3/24/14I asked Maxine if she enjoyed using Diigo. She admitted that she did, but she was uncertain of how she would be able to articulate how to use it to others especially her students. I asked her what aspects she found most difficult and she mentioned the setup steps and how to go about creating the groups that are required in order to share information. I was a little alarmed, but I asked her to pull out her laptop and show me what she meant. I knew exactly what she was referring to, but I figured this would give her an opportunity to work through her issues. She would work up until she got to steps that she couldnt recall all the while narrating her every step. When she got stuck I would describe what she needed to do, but not actually show her. I could tell this frustrated her some, but I was sure the frustration would help her remember once she actually got it. After she finished narrating we were both confident that she understood the process and could explain them now.1. Knight 2007, pg 130 strategy. By having Maxine demonstrate the process to me I could use this opportunity to check for any errors in her instruction.

ReflectionKnight mentions that before a teacher learns a skill they need to see it demonstrated a few times1. While I believe this is true, I also think there is value in having them demonstrate it for you. There is a large percentage of teacher content that acquired because teachers have continually taught it over and over. I chose to apply this logic to Maxines circumstance.

Collaborative Planning3/31/14Maxine and I have laid the content groundwork for the project including revisiting the powers of the Executive and Legislative branches as well as the Bill of Rights. Students have been assigned their court cases and we even took time to model Diigo in our classes beforehand. I scheduled her and me on different days in the labs. With my class scheduled first. I asked her if she would mind observing my lesson during one of my periods and if could model the lesson for one of her classes the following day. She did not object to observing my class. After comparing schedules we determined which periods worked best for each other and concluding the meeting1. Knight 2007, pg 15 Knight says that an instructional coach must be able to unpack a teachers professional goals. If I had over looked the initial reason for Maxine working with me all our planning would have been for naught.

ReflectionMy hope is to use this as an opportunity to create and use an observation form. After reflecting on Maxines initial goals for working with me I realized that just modeling the lesson would only be halfhearted. She need practice assisting students as well before she was standing in front of her own. For that reason I invited her to come and observe my students1.

Modeling 4/2/14When she came into observe my students I hope that she took note of how I broke down each step of my instructions. Instead of giving the students a laundry list of things to do and then answer the same questions countless times, I instead chose to offer them the instructions in manageable pieces until they were ready for the next step. Many of my students probably could have handled an added step or two rather than having to wait, but I could not confidently say the same for Maxines students so I chose to show her how she might mostly likely want to break down the instructions1. As I gave the instructions I walked around the computer lab to monitor the students progress before I gave the next step. Once I finished giving all of the steps and felt comfortable turning the student lose their own, I did so. I invited Maxine to walk around and help me monitor the students progress and trouble shoot if necessary. My hope was to give her exposure in the experience she will have tomorrow when her students are in the lab. During my modeling of the lesson for her class I could tell that Maxine was much more comfortable having seen the lesson once already. As I got further into the lesson I noticed that she even went around assisting several students who got confused as I was instructing.1. Knight 2007, pg 192 Knight emphasizes an instructional coaches need to state and articulate clear and concise instructions. I emphasized this practice because of Maxines weary of full class demonstrations.

2. Knight 2007, pg 220 Maxine was beginning to participate without prompting. According to Knight she was beginning to not only buy in, but also exhibiting confidence in the practice.

ReflectionThere was a line in Knight that I recall he said that encouraging teachers to participate in the program should not be force, but should be done naturally2. I do not think that he was referring to instances such as the one in which Maxine came into my class to observe and ended up helping. However, I do think that there is only so much someone can learn as an observer in those circumstances. What I think is more beneficial is engaging them in roles they may not assume are theirs. I believe this increases confidence and ability.

Feedback 4/3/14After modeling the lesson and observing the lesson, Maxine and I sat down and gave feedback on one another. I began my feedback with complimenting her on how much her confidence had increased since the days we were planning this assignment. Additionally, her pace of delivery was suitable for her students level of familiarity of the software1. A major shortcoming that I shared with her was that she had several students who were off-task and as a result cause her to half to go back and repeat herself several times. I noticed that this occurrence caused her to become flustered. I asked her how often something like that happens and she replied by saying only when I am so concentrated on delivering instructions.1. Knight 2007, pg 192 Knight emphasizes an instructional coaches need to state and articulate clear and concise instructions. Being able to do so can maximize and prevent confusion

2. Knight 2007, pg 104 Knight explains that without proper classroom management best practices can not be properly and effectively implemented.

ReflectionAfter observing her classroom I noticed that classroom management2 may be a slight concern for Maxine particularly when her attention is diverted between her students and content that she feels weary about.

Reference:Knight, J. (2007).Instructional coaching: a partnership approach to improving instruction.Thousand Oaks, California: Corwin Press.