Strengthening, supporting, and maintaining a collaborative environment in schools is critical for school improvement. As the school year ends and many of our instructional coaches are facing a transition, moving forward in their teaching experience and returning to the classroom provide opportunities to improve practice and redefine the title “coach.” Their role as a teacher leader will certainly change. What will not change, however, is the commitment and dedication to continue their work in school transformation and promote teacher professional development.

In our last newsletter, we mentioned Donald Schon's The Reflective Practitioner and the practitioner's capacity to reflect in action (while doing something) and on action (after you have done it).  Throughout the year, it is imperative that everyone -teachers, students, administrators, adn mentors - reflect on their practices to determine if their goals are being met.  This should not be the "autopsy" report but rather the ongoing diagnosis needed to inform instruction and improve practice; this is the formative assessment in which all classroom stakeholders need to engage.

“Students want to learn both content and appropriate behavior. And they can only do it in a safe, structured classroom.” (Rick Smith and Mary Lambert, Educational Leadership, September 2008.

Effective techniques for classroom management and classroom discipline are vital to success in any classroom. Students want to know that they are important to the classroom structure and that they are valuable contributors to the learning process. They need ownership and to be architects of their own learning. Teachers need to manage that process and create a safe environment where learning, collaboration and creativity thrive. At the same time, teachers must maintain a classroom environment where “no child is left behind” and must meet the individual needs of the students while establishing a mutually respectful and dignified atmosphere.

Time on Task... coaching or providing test-taking support?

Springtime always brings plenty of sunshine and a renewed spirit after the long, dreary, snowy winter.  Unfortunately, it also brings the time of year for test taking and the incredible stress it generates for students, teachers, parents, administrators and instructional coaches.  Everyone involved wants the testing process to be manageable without creating huge gaps in teaching and learning.  Parents want their children to score in the proficient and advanced categories, taught by teachers who want to work diligently on the curricular issues that are important to the content areas.  Administrators want their schools identified as highly performing so that their communities recognize that their districts have designed curriculum and instruction to meet or exceed the academic standards for proficiency.  And, of course, instructional coaches want to continue working with teachers in ways that influence instructional practices and improve student learning.