Instructional Coaches and the Instructional Leadership Team: A Guide for School-Building Improvement / Edition 1

by Dean T. Spaulding, Gail M. Smith

Overview

Supercharge school improvement with instructional coaches!

How can coaches seamlessly integrate themselves into the fabric of a school and help teachers improve their practice from day one? This unique companion provides an inside look at the day-to-day work of an instructional coach and offers field-tested activities, materials, and data collection forms for coaches and instructional leadership teams. The authors address common challenges, including:

• Observing classrooms and providing formative feedback
• Reaching out to the hesitant or resistant teacher
• Adapting data and analysis into usable information for the team
• Recruiting, training, and supporting new instructional coaches

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781452226385
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	08/08/2012
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Dr. Dean T. Spaulding is currently an assistant professor at the College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York, where he teaches educational research and program evaluation. Dr. Spaulding is the former chair of the Teaching Evaluation SIG for the American Evaluation Association. He also has been a professional evaluator/researcher for fifteen years and has in-depth experience serving as an evaluator on multiple state and federally funded projects. More specifically, he has conducted evaluation for programs focusing on K-12 settings, the use of technology in the classroom, as well as working in the area of teaching and learning with at-risk youth populations. At the government/state agency level, Dr. Spaulding has conducted research and provided programmatic feedback for New York State Department of Education, New York Sate Department of Public Health, and the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH). Dr. Spaulding also is one of the authors of Methods in Educational Research: From Theory to Practice, 2006, Jossey-Bass Wiley, San Francisco, and the author of Program Evaluation in Practice: Core Concepts and Examples for discussion and Analysis (2008), Jossey-Bass Wiley, and Action Research for School Leaders (2012). Dr. Spaulding is also a consultant at Z Score Inc. [e-mail]

Gail Smith, a native of Brooklyn New York, received her BA and MS at State University College at Oneonta, NY. She received her masters’ in education administration at the University at Albany, State University of New York. Her thirty-six year career at an upstate New York urban school district included positions as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, assistant superintendent and deputy superintendent of schools. In 1988, Gail was one of five finalists for New York State Teacher of the Year. After retiring, Ms. Smith worked for two years as an administrator at two different schools on Native American reservations in Arizona and New Mexico. She returned to her home district in July 2008 to work as a consultant and mentor for their Instructional Leadership/Instructional Coaches project. She also is the proud mother of three children.

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
1. I'm So Glad You're Here! The First Day as an Instructional Coach
What Is an Instructional Coach (IC)?
The Instructional Coach - The Early Explorer
Step One: Establish an Instructional Leadership Team (ILT)
Step Two: Establish a Job Description for the IC
Step Three: Establish the Role and Responsibilities for the IC
Step Four: Develop an Action Plan for the IC
Summary
2. The Instructional Coach and the Instructional Leadership Team: A Unique Approach
The Priorities of a School Leader
Priority Two and Strong Instructional Leadership (SIL)
The Instructional Leadership Team (ILT)
An Equal and Shared Voice
Basic Steps for the ILT
Summary
3. Refocus and Start Again! The Instructional Leadership Team Supporting the Instructional Coach
How the IC Carries Out the ILT's Plan
Selection and Implementation of a New Curriculum
IC Providing Professional Development (PD) and Technical Assistance
Feedback for the ILT
Professional Development for the IC
Using Data to Support the ILT and IC
The "Why Is That?" Analysis Technique
Ways the Principal Can Support the IC
How to Work With the Principal
Dos and Don'ts for the Principal/IC Meeting
Summary
4. The Day-to-Day Work of the Instructional Coach
Getting Started
Basic Ways to Work With Teachers
Working With Teachers in Their Classrooms
Summary
5. An Idea for the Day: Strategies and Ideas to Encourage Engagement Between Teachers and the ILT
Summary
6. Assessing Individual and Group Strengths: Strategies for Working With the Resistant Teacher
Who Is the Resistant Teacher?
The IC and Private Investigator
Search and Rescue: Thirteen Strategies for Mining for Gold
Summary
7. Changing Teacher Practices Through Classroom Field-Testing - The ILT's Role
Classroom Field-Testing: A Possible Open Door?
Professional Development Activity
How The Instructional Leadership Team Can Support Action Research
Presenting Classroom Field-Testing Projects
Summary
8. The ILT's Role in Changing Teacher Practices Buildingwide
Professional Development and Changing Teacher Practices
The Role of the IC in Changing Teacher Practices: A Buildingwide Effort
Steps in Establishing a Large-Scale Evidence-Based Framework
The Power of Evidence-Based Classroom Studies
Summary
9. A New Coach in Town! The ILT's Role in Training New Instructional Coaches
What Has Happened Here?
What Should Everyone Do?
The Game Plan: Get Started Right Away!
Player/Coach: Mentor Coaching 101
What's in It for Me? Benefits of the New Mentor Coach Role
Advice From The Field: Tips From Current Instructional Coaches
Everyone Wins: Coaching the Coach Sharpens Everyone's Game
10. Toolbox for the Instructional Coach: Examples of Surveys, Protocols, and Tools
Parent Survey
Teacher Survey
Workshop Training Teacher Survey
Professional Development Planning Sheet
IC Planning Sheet #1
IC Planning Sheet #2
IC Planning Sheet #3
IC Planning Sheet #4
IC Planning Sheet #5
IC Planning Sheet #6
Needs Assessment Survey
Promising Practices Building Survey
References
Index

Editorial Reviews

This book provides the essential guide for campuses implementing the instructional coaching model to maintain the focus and integrity of their program.

Cathy Patterson

This book would have made my life SO much easier the last four years that I have spent as an Instructional Coach. I would highly recommend it to new or experienced instructional coaches alike!

Kathy Ferrell

This is a wonderful resource. Even schools without Instructional Coaches will benefit from the strategies and suggestions included in this book. It’s an excellent book even for those who shy away from data analysis!

Ann Dargon

Instructional Coaches and the Instructional Leadership Team provides a plethora of information to help the first year coach to develop his or her skill set.

Tanna H. Nicely

This is a wonderful resource. Even schools without Instructional Coaches will benefit from the strategies and suggestions included in this book. It's an excellent book even for those who shy away from data analysis!--Ann Dargon, Assistant Superintendent of Schools

Instructional Coaches and the Instructional Leadership Team provides a plethora of information to help the first year coach to develop his or her skill set.--Tanna H. Nicely, Assistant Principal

This book provides the essential guide for campuses implementing the instructional coaching model to maintain the focus and integrity of their program.--Cathy Patterson, Teacher

This book would have made my life SO much easier the last four years that I have spent as an Instructional Coach. I would highly recommend it to new or experienced instructional coaches alike!--Kathy Ferrell, Instructional Coach

From the Publisher