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 Michael’s Video

Read Michael’s Reflection

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

My main goal was to really learn more about how to officially discuss coaching and get an awareness of the prevailing research about the coaching best practices and processes.

How did each milestone support you in reaching your goal?

Each of the milestones have been helpful. The first milestone–defining coaching (what it is and isn’t) via an infographic was helpful. The most important learning from that was the idea that coaching is non-evaluative. I hadn’t really thought about that before as much of what I saw as coaching was, in my mind, just that. However, that creates a tension that is counterproductive.

The second milestone, the coaching cycle infographic, really helped me to realize another key component to effective coaching programs–that they are about willingness to participate in a process and not simply for remediation. As this is the case, then building connections and advertising coaching services becomes quite essential (I was quite resistant at first to the idea of “marketing” coaching).

Finally, the last milestone I created was a feedback form for the coaching process. I didn’t really have an epiphany throughout this process, but did realize that I want to keep both numerical and qualitative data to track over time to evaluate my effectiveness as a coach in the future, if I move into this capacity.

Which milestone had the most impact on your professional growth this year & why?

I think the work that most impacted me in this program was not a milestone in itself, but was going through the coaching cycle. I realized that I have made a lot of strong professional connections at my school over the years (as I have been in multiple departments and have worked in various configurations of co-teaching, co-planning, interdisciplinary programs, etc. and have also led cross-disciplinary teams to support student wellness). This wide range of exposure to my colleagues gave me an advantage in getting people to want to work with me as I had already built trust with them. This made me ponder how it might be much more difficult to be a coach if one is joining a new community, and would necessitate more “marketing.”

Another key realization from the coaching cycle practice I had was that I am much more comfortable with supporting the thinking of others than I expected, and that this came naturally to me. Much like when I work with students on their writing (or anything), I never want to tell anyone the “answer” or my own thoughts. Instead, I want to help them develop their own thoughts and evaluate their own thinking. Only as a last resort might I provide possibilities. I think this process works quite well in coaching; so, being aware of coaching stances is extremely important.

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

Obviously, the above relates to a big surprise / shift in my thinking. I absolutely thought of of coaches uniquely in terms of the “expert” stance–that they were responsible for providing information, guidance, and expertise to the person with whom they are working–before taking this course. This shift in thinking for me is very eye-opening and makes the role of a coach both more exciting for me and more doable (who can be an excerpt on everything)?

What next for your professional learning?

I think my next steps in professional learning if I were to become a coach would be to continue to explore the nuances of the coaching stances. I would especially like to take a course on cognitive coaching, for example, as this seems to be a fruitful avenue to move forward with helping others to think about their thinking.

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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!