This #coachbetter episode is another in our series of coaching case studies, with one of Kim’s amazing clients, Melissa Car, Grade 1 classroom teacher at St. Mary’s International School in Japan. Melissa is a graduate of The Coach Certificate & Mentorship Program and when we recorded this episode she had just finished the program.

These case study episodes are designed to share the story of a coach, and the development of their coaching program and practice in their unique setting. 

In this conversation we talk about 

• How Melissa started her journey to instructional coaching
• Why she thinks coaching is right for her school, right now
• How her school leaders made the decision to implement a coaching program
• The vision for the coaching program at her school
• Her “aha moments” in The Coach
• The successes she’s already had with coaching – as a classroom teacher
• What schools and teachers should consider when begining an instructional coaching program

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Show Notes

Please tell us about your journey as an educator

After graduating university, moved to Japan, taught English for a while, but wanted to teach at an international school. Now in my 10th year at SMIS. First 5 years was KG (readiness), last 5 years, Gr 1, have been the language arts coordinator. Offer regular PD for my colleagues.

That’s where my interest was taking me for a while, I love working with my colleagues, and I find them coming to me. I’ve been interested in coaching for a while, but I didn’t know what it looked like. Last year my AP told me I should learn more.

I knew that I wanted to work more with my colleagues and have a bigger impact outside of my classroom without moving into an admin role. Through the course I learned more and more, and at the same time, my school was becoming more interested. While I was getting more serious about it, so was the school. In my individual learning journey the school joined me on that

You’re working towards building a coaching program at your school right now, how did this start?

I started The Coach back in October and about a month later, the leadership team invited me to present my learning so far, which was all really really new. I was able to talk to them about the definition of coaching I had learned, and through reading your book chapter, I was able to share a bigger vision of what coaching could bring, beyond student learning.

Leadership team was really open to listen and learning and talking about previous experiences. That was the beginning of leadership conversations (I wasn’t part of those conversations). A few months later they posted a position, I applied, and now I will be the instructional coach for the ES next year.

Working with my principal to develop a definition, using the systems and structures checklist, so next year we’ll have a sustainable coaching program.

When we talked about making professional development stick, but also valuing teachers professional goals and creating a sense of belonging. After the presentation they were so excited! Any way you can lift teacher morale in a school, valuing their professional goals is a big part of that.

This is a way that my thinking changed too – I would never feel comfortable being the expert in the room. I’m excited about connecting teachers, helping

Why do you think instructional coaching is right for your school right now?

My school is going through an accreditation process and that has led us to update our mission, vision, values. 

We have been talking about how instructional coaching can support learning from each other to make learning communities more fluid. We see how instructional coaching can connect teachers and build a community of learners. By growing our growth mindset as a school and as a faculty we can then model for our students.

We’re trying to connect ES, MS, HS, and when we’re looking at PD now, we’re looking across the school, and a coaching program can help that learning stick.

How did your school leaders develop an understanding about coaching?

They’ve just been really open, to listen and learn, some have worked as instructional coaches before. Some attended Kim’s workshops and Kim’s coming to our school. Learning as much

What is the goal for your program (as you are defining it now)

We decided to adopt Kim’s definition of coaching: confidential, non-evaluative, voluntary based on a structure of coaching cycles. Creating more fluid learning spaces where we learn from each other and connect with each other. My goal is to start small, make as many connections with teachers as I can, be as visible as I can, and have coaching cycles get started. Build momentum, build clarity around the thrive model. Building consistency so teachers feel comfortable.

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What’s YOUR level of coaching mastery?

All coaches go through various stages of coaching mastery. Once you identify where you’re at, you can begin to build the skills needed to move to the next stage.

This quiz is based on real-life case studies compiled from years of working with coaches inside The Coach Certificate & Mentorship Program!

When you receive your results, you’ll also get your matching case study from the STRIVE Case Studies to see where you fit in the stages of coaching mastery.

Ready to tackle your challenges and move on to the next level in YOUR coaching practice?

The STRIVE Model of Coaching Mastery quiz will help you identify your level of coaching mastery by matching you with case studies compiled from years of working with coaches inside The Coach Certificate & Mentorship Program so you can easily see where you fit!

You’ll go straight to the Quiz, and get the Case Study Document via email.

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Show Notes continued…

What were some aha moments in the Coach?

What helped me is that I didn’t have any context. Everything that I learned was just so exciting and new. After being in the classroom for so long, thinking about myself in a new role was really exciting. The best thing about the program was that I could not only work at my own pace, it was so flexible in the choices I had for my own learning.

In The Coach, we followed the Thrive Model. Since my school is in the clarity space, most of my focus was on that. Everything that I did was really practical for what I needed, and for what my school needed. Using the Thrive Model really gave me a path for thinking about where I am now and where I need to go now. All of the milestone artifacts were almost like a path to get me to where I am now.

Coming back to the Thrive model, my school is in the clarity space, most of my focus was on that, thinking about the context of my school, what should I create first. Everything that I did was really practical for what I needed, and for what my school needed. 

Thinking for me and for my school, using the thrive model really gave me a path for thinking about where I am now and where I need to go now. All of the milestone artifacts were almost like a path, there were always options depending on your experience or your school’s level, allowed me to see where I could go next. 

Seeing all the examples were really helpful so I could remind myself to look back when I was ready. Seeing all the artifacts that other members of the cohort were creating were also so helpful because they are all at different levels of experience. It really offered me a path of where I am now and where I can grow – for myself and for the school. Everything I created I’m using and my school is using them

How are you starting to have coaching conversations (and coaching success!) before you even have a coaching program?

• Defining coaching agreements before beginning a coaching cycle
• Clarity before classroom visits

Not afraid to try new things and make mistakes. Approached one of my friends, told her I was doing a course and asked if she’d be willing to help me by having a coaching cycle with me. I knew I wanted to start with partnership agreements. I wanted to document all of our conversations. I wanted to work on my listening. 

I think I’m a good listener, but when you’re actually in it and you have to turn off your brain, it’s really hard. Rather than giving my advice right off the bat, I had to learn how to listen and respond AFTER listening. Each coaching conversation was an opportunity to practice. I set a goal for myself every conversation, watched them back and reflected on them. I know what I need to work on each time.

As part of the course, I created a video reflection and documented each step along the way. We had pre-meetings, classroom visit, post-observation meetings, and that video showed all of the steps I took along the way.

After revisiting my partner’s goal, we set up some agreements on how the observation would go. I asked my partner what she wanted me to observe, how she wanted me to enter the room, whether she wanted to introduce me to the students (her students already knew me but I wanted to know how she wanted to introduce what we were doing and why I was there), and whether or not it was ok for me to interact with her students. This conversation was really helpful! We both went into the observation knowing our roles and my coaching partner was able to set her own intentions. I would definitely make this an ongoing practice.

Next, my coaching partner invited me to her classroom for an observation. She asked me to focus on her talking time and efficiency in the mini-lesson. The observation went smoothly because we set up our agreements prior to the classroom visit. I took notes in order to gather some data on the areas that my partner wanted to think more about. 

What do you wish you knew before you started?

I can’t think of anything because the experience was so positive. One thing I’m glad about is because I kept an open mind and kept asking questions, and those questions allowed me to ask more, and keep learning. Practice of constantly being curious. Definitely didn’t try to be perfect, just tried to learn. There were definitely moments when I felt nervous but I just embraced that and went with it. Every time I heard a new protocol I got nervous, and I let myself embrace being nervous. That’s what we ask of our students all the time

After using a protocol, I would think “that was a great way to have a conversation”. And then, how can I try that in my own school? How might I lead a conversation using that protocol? 

As educators we need to embrace being nervous because that’s what we ask of our students all the time. So if we  as educators don’t feel that, then how can we expect our students to feel that and be comfortable with it too?

What are some key things for other schools or educators to consider if they are embarking on a similar process?

Take a course. 

The Coach helped me build my understanding and communicate that to leaders. It also connected me to resources that I could use and share with the leadership team as well as preparing me to talk to my colleagues. Having the knowledge and foundation is really helpful.

Even if you’ve already established a program or if you are thinking about establishing a program, having that knowledge and foundation is really helpful. 

Using a model like the Thrive Model that you can then use to implement step by step AND evaluate the program along the way is really helpful.

I could have tried to create a community of learners at my school but I certainly wouldn’t have had all the tools that I feel I have now had I not participated in the course. Building that knowledge base is really key.

What advice would you share for other classroom teachers looking to move into a coaching role? 

If classroom teachers are looking to move into a coaching role, becoming comfortable with being vulnerable, making mistakes, and building your own growth mindset is huge. Thinking about interpersonal skills and how you can connect with others. I’m going to see myself as a learner first. Being really curious and trying to learn

Being a really good teacher doesn’t necessarily mean that you would be a really good coach. You need to look at your interpersonal skills and how you can connect with others. Being able to be vulnerable, reflect on your own practice and see yourself as a lifelong learner, that’s really huge. Be really curious and, and try to learn as much as you can.

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Ready to Learn More about Instructional Coaching for Yourself and Your School?

If you’re ready to dig deeper into how instructional coaching can be successful for individual teachers and a school – or if you’re new to instructional coaching and you’re curious about getting started, join us for one of our courses for coaches!

To learn more about these options, we have three FREE workshops to share with you today.

For New or Aspiring Coaches

If you’re just getting started as a coach, and you want to be successful in your early years, watch our New to Coaching Workshop, which highlights the key mindset and skill set shifts you’ll need when moving from the classroom to a coaching role. The workshop will also tell you all about our online course, Getting Started as a Coach. This course is specifically designed for classroom teachers who are moving into a coaching role so you’re prepared for the transition. It’s focused on exactly the skillset & mindset shifts you need to so you can be successful in your first years as an instructional coach. 

For Experienced Coaches

If you’re already a coach & you want to think about being more intentional & strategic in your practice, watch our workshop on the Thrive Model for Coaching Success which will help you evaluate your program and your practice to see where you may have room to grow. You’ll walk away with a clear picture of exactly what you need to focus on to build a thriving coaching culture – and help you decide if our year-long mentorship and certification program, The Coach, is right for you, right now. This program is designed for current coaches who are focused on building a coaching culture through intentional and strategic coaching work at all levels – with teachers and school leaders.

For Coaches Ready to Lead

For experienced coaches ready to look at the bigger picture of the school to see what might be supporting or hindering the sustainability of the coaching program, and you want to make sure your school has all of the systems and structures in place, watch our workshop: Scaling Your Impact as an Instructional Coach. You’ll get a bird’s eye view of what’s needed to make coaching sustainable for you as an individual coach and for your school. When you’re ready to put that learning into action, join us in our online course for coaches ready to lead: Coaches as Leaders and put it all into practice – with support from Kim and our global cohort! This course is designed for experienced coaches, ready to lead.

You can find all the workshops on our coachbetter website at coachbetter.tv/workshops

Wherever you are in your coaching journey, we can support you!

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