Instructional Leadership Routines Resources
Improving Teaching Practice with Instructional Coaching
Summary
This brief is one in a series from EdResearch for Recovery Design Principles aimed at providing K-12 education decision-makers and advocates with an evidence base to ground discussions about how to best serve students and support teachers by improving practice with instructional coaching.
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District and building leaders might choose to read and utilize this eight-page brief in order to reflect on current and/or future coaching opportunities. Evidence strongly suggests that a well-designed instructional coaching program improves teacher practice and student outcomes.
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Booker, L. N., & Russell, J. L. (2022). Improving Teaching Practice with Instructional Coaching. EdResearch for Recovery Design Principles Series. EdResearch for Recovery Project.
GROW Coaching Template
Summary
The GROW Model is a coaching framework that might be used in conversations, meetings and everyday leadership situations with the goal of developing an individual’s potential and identifying possibilities. Two premises of the model are that everyone has the potential to develop and improve themselves, and using questions rather than instructions helps to foster ownership and change.
The GROW Coaching template is a tool that might be used by leaders in conjunction with coaching skills and behaviors. The GROW coaching template is a way of structuring an effective coaching conversation.
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You are ready to coach and you aren’t sure how to structure your sessions. The GROW Coaching template might be just what you need. Consider reading the MindTools Article found in Supporting Resources to get an overview of the GROW process. The Coaching and GROW model video, also found in Supporting Resources, makes connections between using coaching skills along with using the GROW Coaching template. This template might be used for problem solving, goal setting and performance improvement at all levels of the educational system.
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Heath, M. (2013, July 31). Coaching and the grow model. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNLRo3jWPcg
The GROW Model of Coaching and Mentoring. MindTools. (n.d.). https://www.mindtools.com/an0fzpz/the-grow-model-of-coaching-and-mentoring
Whitmore, J. (2009). Coaching for performance: GROWing Human Potential and Purpose-The Principles and Practice of Coaching and Leadership. Nicholas Brealey Publishing.
PLC Meeting Feedback Tool
Summary
The PLC Data Meeting Monitoring Feedback Tool, allows leaders observing the PLC teaming process to provide efficient and actionable feedback to participants. This tool outlines the key observable behaviors and processes that should take place during a PLC data meeting.
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The tool might be used by instructional leaders during collaborative team meetings in order to provide actionable feedback. In addition, the tool might be used as a guide for those engaging in collaborative teams. Team members read through the tool content to ensure the team meets the criteria for effective collaboration.
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Adapted from: DuFour, R., DuFour, R., Eaker, R., Many, T. W., & Mattos, M. (2016). Learning by Doing: A Handbook for Professional Learning Communities at Work™.
“What to Look For” Observation Guides
Summary
This resource from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education provides “What to Look For” Observation Guides for English Language Arts & Literacy, Mathematics, and Science & Technology/Engineering classrooms. This resource also contains Foundational Skills What to Look Fors.
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District and building leaders might choose to use these “What to Look For” observation guides as they conduct their classroom observations. Although the guide is based upon the Massachusetts Education Evaluation Framework, leaders in other states might find it helpful to use these guides as they observe what the teacher is doing and what the students are doing during classroom observations. It is important to ensure that your state grade level/content area standards are represented and that your specific teacher evaluation tool categories are aligned.
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Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. (2021, April 30). “What to Look For” Observation Guides. https://www.doe.mass.edu/frameworks/observation/
Teaching Dimensions Observation Protocol (TDOP)
2.1 Users Guide
Summary
The Teaching Dimensions Observation Protocol (TDOP) is a descriptive classroom observation protocol that provides robust and nuanced depictions of instructional behavior. Classrooms and lecture halls are complex learning environments, and descriptions of what actually happens during a class period can provide valuable insights into the nature of these environments for a variety of purposes including institutional assessment, professional development, and research/program evaluation. This protocol is designed to provide descriptions of teaching practice rather than an evaluative judgment of the quality of teaching.
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The Teaching Dimensions Observation Protocol is a customizable observation protocol that can be used to produce robust and nuanced depictions of the dynamics that unfold among teachers, students, and technologies in the classroom. Instructional leaders might want to use the data produced with this protocol for a variety of purposes including:
~To document the types of teaching practices being used in your department or organization, especially those known as “active learning” techniques
~To support professional development by providing an objective source of formative feedback for peer mentoring or self-evaluation
~To evaluate the effects of instructional interventions by conducting per- and post- observations of instruction, and
~To carefully specify the different teaching practices that distinguish between control and experimental conditions in research studies.
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The TDOP is available to use free of charge. Users will need to register to create an account for access.
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Hora, M., & Ferrare, J. (2014). The teaching dimensions observation protocol (TDOP) 2.0. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin-Madison. Wisconsin Center for Education Research.
7 Principles of Active Observation
Summary
Rutherford Learning Group, Inc. is a research and professional development consultancy focused on high performance teaching and effective leadership. The ten-minute podcast, notes on 7 Principles of Active Observation, and notes on Become a Keen Observer of Classroom Environments support district and building leaders as they seek to improve their observation practices.
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This resource is about refining the art of observation. How might observers improve their observation skills? Leaders might individually reflect on their approach to observation. District and leadership teams might choose to listen to the podcast while reviewing both sets of notes. How is the information provided similar and different from current observational practices. Teams might then identify an area of growth for improvement.
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Rutherford Learning Group. https://rutherfordlg.com/