Chaos Coordinator: October 2018

Students sit in classrooms every day trying to get the attention of their teacher. Some students misbehave, some speak out of turn, and some just sit in silence. Their end goal is attention from the teacher. Teachers that are 100% present in their classrooms and with their students see more success than teachers that are trying to get through the day. Teacher education programs do not prepare new teachers for the true meaning of a day in the classroom. Maneuvering lessons, classroom management, and the many levels and types of students in every classroom takes time and experience to master. The high turnover rate of new teachers demonstrates the difficult time they have finding their comfort zone.

Experienced teacher mentors and coaches can guide teachers in finding their way through rough waters to have long, happy, and fulfilling careers. When teachers begin a lesson they usually quiz their students to see what they already know about the skill being taught. A coach needs to do a similar evaluation of the teachers they are coaching. In the beginning of the coaching process, the teacher should complete a self-audit with the coaches’ help (Marzano, Simms, Roy, Heflebower, & Warrick, 2013). The teacher will complete a profile and then select a “growth goal” (Marzano et. al, p. 24, 2013). Once the profile is completed, the goals are documented, and the fun can begin.

The first hurdle for a teacher to accomplish their goal is to start on a path to the goal. Just like a teacher helps students reach their goals, a coach is there to help a teacher reach theirs. Once the coach knows what the teacher wants to improve they can get to work. The coach’s job is to explain the background of the goal element and help the teacher plan strategies to accomplish their goal (Marzano et. al, 2013). The coach will demonstrate the proper way to complete the strategy if needed and monitor the teacher’s progress. Now that the teacher is at the beginning stage of completing their goals, it is time to move to Development stage. In this stage the teacher will need to execute all elements of the strategy on their own. While the teacher is concentrating on the strategy the coach will monitor the students’ response to the teacher. The next step in this process is Applying. In this stage, the teacher does all steps on their own including monitoring the students.

When new teachers reach the Applying stage, they have successfully completed their goal. Even though there is a fourth level referred to as Innovating, reaching the level of Applying is considered as successfully reaching the goal. If necessary, the process starts again with a new goal. The coach will always be available for support and guidance during and after the process.

One of the most important parts of the teacher/coach relationship is the immediate feedback from the coach (Marzano et. al, 2013). Just like students, teachers improve more quickly when they receive immediate feedback about their performance and how to continually improve their skills. Please watch the videos below on innovative coaching. In addition, please review the table below on Marzano’s Growth Scale.