The Willing ... and Able

For most of my career, I have been studying teacher growth. I have found, as I am sure many readers have found, that one-shot workshops and other quick-fix forms of professional development often have little impact on teaching and learning. For that reason, my colleagues and I have spent more than a decade studying instructional coaching.                                                                                             

Jim Knight

Coaching is all about relationships and understanding. The more I understand teachers, the better our relationship, and the more likely it will be that we can achieve our goal.

#techcoach #educoach #diglitcoach supporting Ts via @isteconnects https://t.co/F1gcA0zMPQ #asiaed pic.twitter.com/bCZvUuNWhH

— #asiaED Vip (@asiaEDchat) November 10, 2015

There is no manual for starting a coaching program or being new in the role (and if there is please send it to me), so, as a result, I spend a lot of time reading or interacting with other technology coaches online.

On coach I stalk follow is Kim Cofino, who has started coaching programs at several schools (so maybe she has a manual) and one thing she has suggested is to work with the willing in year one.

I really like this approach because teachers who are willing are more likely to be open to change allowing me to showcase interesting work teachers do so I can enrol more teachers.

I have taken this approach this year, but one thing I have noticed is that there are teachers who are willing, but not able. And there are those who are able, but not willing.