We want to give you a peek inside our Coach Certificate & Mentorship Program. Coaches taking part in this academic-year-long journey have graciously given us permission to post some of their learning and reflections from the private coursework they are undertaking during this program. Where possible, we have shared the course and the action task to give context for the guest post.

Watch Greg’s Video

Read Greg’s Reflection

What goals did you set for yourself at the beginning of the program?

At the start of the program, my colleagues and I were embarking on a new journey as coaches at our school with a new coaching model, so my primary goal in participating in the program was to connect with mentors and peers in the cohort to find out what systems and structures have been successful at other schools.

On a more personal level, my goals were to expand my range of coaching skills to match the shift in role description and to build our collective understanding of the new model.

How did each milestone support you in reaching your goal?

Each milestone was a practical document that our team could use right away. My first milestone, the EY-12 Learning Coach Job description, helped provide clarity about what is and isn’t part of our role, and created some guidelines for hiring future Learning Coaches. My second milestone helped define the systems and structures that our team would use for project management. The third milestone provided data to help us reflect on the success of our coaching model this year and plan ahead to next year.

What has been your biggest area of growth in the program?

My biggest area of growth in the program has been coaching outside my usual comfort zones of elementary and tech, and learning how to navigate the different coaching stances over the course of a cycle.

Where do you still have room to grow?

I still have lots of room to grow in the areas mentioned above. The culture of coaching at our school is still in its early stages, and it was challenging to market ourselves and get a significant number of coaching cycles going. I, along with my colleagues, have not done nearly as much coaching in the High School as in the Elementary and Middle Schools, so this is an area of growth for next year.

What surprises and/or challenges have you had along the way?

The main challenge we faced was the lack of clarity around our roles, as our new coaching model is in its first year. We also faced challenges building partnerships with administrators and getting looped into the school’s priorities and actions. We hope that our work in the course will set the stage for more meaningful connections to the “big picture” at our school next year.

How did the Coach support you in your learning journey?

The structure of the course and the practical nature of the milestones really helped our team as we grappled with starting up our coaching program. Our mentors were always happy to listen and help, and provided valuable advice throughout the process.

How has your learning inside the Coach impacted your coaching practice & program in your school setting?

As mentioned above, our work in the course has left us with a solid foundation of documentation, systems, and structures to further grow our coaching model next year.

What next for your professional learning?

My role is changing a little bit again next year, so the next stage of my professional learning will be to build connections between my coaching work and Design Thinking, which will be an enhanced focus at our school next year.

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Level Up Your Coaching with The Coach!

If you are ready to dive deep into your coaching practice, to help you #coachbetter and build a thriving coaching culture in your school, please join us for our next cohort of The Coach!

Wherever you are in building a coaching culture in your school, The Coach will give you the strategies, skills and tools you need to make coaching a success and will empower you to confidently apply instructional coaching strategies in any situation – from building a coaching program, to having coaching conversations, to being a leader in your school community. We facilitate only one cohort each academic year so we can offer individualized support for each participant.

Coaches of all levels are welcome: you’ll start the program with a self-assessment to determine exactly what the next steps are for you!