Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Coaching Styles



The DIRECT STYLE has advantages it is efficient but does little to develop the new educators self-evaluative skills. The direct style should be used if the issue is safety, specific site-based policies, and deadlines. Using the direct style coaches could make statements like:
• I know you feel that students should have the freedom to sit anywhere they wish but….
• This is the way we teach …… here is a sample you can follow.
• I am aware that you are trying to have your materials, chemicals, etc., as close at hand as possible. However, those chemicals are not stored properly. You must move them right away.

The INDIRECT STYLE uses questions to encourage new educators to recognize problems and develop solutions. This empowers the new educator to assume ownership and responsibility for needed change. Coaches make statements like:
• Am I correct in assuming that you have decided to group the students homogeneously next time? When you try this, how will you know if you are successful?
• How do you plan to put that unit together? What outcomes are you looking for?

In the beginning, when working with an educator new to the profession it is necessary to be direct. In most cases the teachers first day of work is only four or five days before the students first day of school. Therefore, new teachers have very little time for discovery method. However, as the year progresses it is important for the coach to recognize that the new teacher is a peer. The indirect style helps new educators develop a more reflective practice an important skill needed to meet the ever-changing needs of their students.

Source: Clinical Educator Training

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