Coaching Strategies

EETT Administrator Coaching Strategies 2009-2010

Level of Technology Use

Coaching Strategies

Entry Level

Directive • Define Standards • Identify problems using data by identifying and illustrating gaps between expected standards and present results. Use relevant data to reduce teacher’s perception of personal attack • Prescribe actions • Communicate success criteria • Establish timelines and actions for improvement • Follow-up to ensure standards are being interpreted appropriately and performance targets are clear and student progress is occurring.

Learn the basics of using a new technology At this level, teachers are just beginning their use of technology, and are learning how it works. The use of technology has yet to appear in the classroom (unless such use is completely student driven), and, in any case, has not had an impact on classroom instructional practice.

Adoption

Use new technology to support traditional instruction. Focus in often on personal use or teaching basic Technology to students. Teachers at this stage have learned how to use productivity tools such as word processing, email, and electronic grades or lesson plan software. The results of this knowledge help them save time and enjoy some flexibility with worksheets, tests, communication, and grades. In the classroom, students are given limited access to simple technology tools for the purpose of helping traditional lesson objectives, but there is still not a lot of direct evidence of technology use in the classroom.

Direct Informational • Clarify Standards, curriculum, and policies • Shares best practices • Provide clear examples • Clarify success criteria • “Here’s what you should pay attention to…Here’s why that matters…here are some options” • Throughout the conversation invite the teacher to summarize and clarify understanding

Adaptation Integrate new technology into traditional classroom practice. Here teachers often focus on increased student productivity and engagement by using word processors, spreadsheets, and graphic tools. The main difference between Stage 3 and the previous stage is the level and frequency with which technology is used. For example, a PowerPoint presentation may be used with links to 1

EETT Administrator Coaching Strategies 2009-2010

websites, or Excel might be used to display and quickly modify charts and graphs. Students will use word processing from rough draft to final version, rather than just typing it up when it's finished. In each case, the technology is used to do something that could be done by paper and pencil or other so-called traditional instructional methods or tools, but with the increased efficiency and flexibility possible with technology tools. The decisions about what and how to teach have not changed because of the presence of these tools, and instruction is still teacher-directed. Appropriation Focus on cooperative, project-based, and interdisciplinary work- incorporating the technology as needed and as one of many tools. In Stage 4, technology tools are being selected for their unique capabilities rather than just supporting tasks that could be done by hand. But the main difference between Stage 3 and Stage 4 is classroom practice - the emphasis is shifting from the front of the room to the students, with the technology tools facilitating that change. As an example, an assignment involving a small group presentation might use PowerPoint with scanned drawings or electronically-constructed illustrations, or require research from books and periodicals as well as the Internet. That is, it would allow for a variety of roles and tasks for the students, only some of which imply a technology tool. The technology is being selected by the teacher to provide capabilities which, in many cases, are simply unavailable through nontechnology-based tools. Invention Discover new uses for technology tools, for example, developing spreadsheet macros for teaching algebra or designing projects that combine multiple technologies. The shift from teacher-centered instruction to student-centered instruction is now complete. The availability of technology tools is enhanced by the teacher's work of discovering and developing new tools (as reflected in Standard 10.12), and the

Collaborative • Co-generate ideas, use inclusive pronouns such as us, our, and we • Co-Analyze student data and identify problems • Co-create plans, suggest possible approaches and solutions • Co-develop success criteria • Develop shared definitions and common understandings • Purposefully create space to invite teacher contributions i.e. What interventions should be considered to help students who do not yet meet expectations?

•

Monitor for balance in idea production. Don’t allow personal enthusiasm or preferences to override the intention to co-create ideas and options. Do not do the bulk of the analysis and thinking.

Non-Directive • Support teacher thinking, problem solving and goal setting • Facilitate teacher idea production • Mediate teacher-problem framing and decision making • Enhance teacher capacities for reflection, planning and problem solving • Take care to ask before telling • Remain non-judgmental 2

EETT Administrator Coaching Strategies 2009-2010

selection and use of these tools is placed in the hands of students. Activities which might match this stage: •

•

•

•

•

Ask How and Why questions

Working in small groups or individually, students select a specific topic relevant to the class, and select a medium (video, PowerPoint, brochure, or even a nontechnology-using media such as a work of art) to display the research on that topic. Students select or construct images for a video on a subject of their choosing, using an assigned writing style. Students collaborate on a newspaper, electronically submitting articles on a variety of subjects for final assembly by a designated group. Students use e-communications (email, online forum) to discuss and exchange ideas on a subject, and write up what they've learned there in a format they choose.

References: Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT). (1986). Apple Computers. Brooks, S., & Barnett, H. (2002). Technology use lesson: observation tool. Retrieved August 31, 2009, from http://members.tripod.com/sjbrooks_young/techobstool.pdf. Glickman, C., & Gordon, S. Supervision of instruction: A development approach. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Learning Quest Inc. (2007). H.E.A.T. Observation Form. MiraVia LLC. A continuum for learning-focused interaction: coaching, collaborating, consulting & calibrating. 3

EETT Administrator Coaching Strategies 2009-2010

4