Coaching: Approaches and Perspectives

"It is imperative that districts make meaningful choices about the coaching model they invest their money and time in implementing. Without a broad base of knowledge, it is unlikely that coaching can have the greatest impact upon the teachers and students who need it the most."
―Tiffany Wiencken, Instructional Coach Facilitator
Beaverton School District, OR

"A must-read for any administrator who employs coaches on their campus and for anyone who acts as a coach, teacher leader, facilitator, or mentor."
―Candace Bixler, Educational Specialist
Education Service Center, Region XIII, Austin, TX

Practical guidelines for selecting the right type of coaching for your teachers and students!

Coaching supports teacher development and puts teachers′ needs at the heart of professional learning by individualizing their learning and by positioning them as professionals. With many different models available, administrators may find it challenging to determine the kind of coaching that best fits the needs of schools, teachers, and students.

This fresh new resource brings together the voices of recognized experts in the field―including Joellen Killion, Cathy Toll, Jane Ellison, Randy Sprick, Jane Kise, Karla Reiss, Lucy West, and Jim Knight―to present unique approaches for coaching teachers and leaders. Comprehensive chapters review the roles of coaches in schools, examine the research base on coaching, and provide in-depth discussions of specific approaches to coaching, including:

• Literacy coaching
• Cognitive coaching
• Instructional coaching
• Content-focused coaching
• Classroom management coaching
• Leadership coaching

Coaching helps readers make more informed choices about a range of coaching approaches to best serve the unique needs of their teachers and schools.

Jim Knight is a research associate at the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning and the president of the Instructional Coaching Group. He has spent more than a decade studying instructional coaching and has written several books on the topic, including Instructional Coaching: A Partnership Approach to Improving Instruction published by Corwin and Learning Forward (2007). Knight co-authored Coaching Classroom Management. He also edited Coaching: Approaches and Perspectives.

Knight has authored articles on instructional coaching and school improvement in publications such as The Journal of Staff Development, Principal Leadership, The School Administrator, Kappan, and Teachers Teaching Teachers.

Several research projects directed by Knight include an IES-funded qualitative and quantitative assessment of coaching and Pathways to Success, a comprehensive, districtwide school reform project for the Topeka Public School District in Kansas. Knight also leads the coaching institutes and the Annual Instructional Coaching Conference offered by the University of Kansas.

Frequently asked to guide professional learning for instructional coaches, Knight has presented and consulted in more than 35 states, most Canadian provinces, and in Japan. He has a PhD in Education and has won several university teaching, innovation, and service awards. He also writes the popular radicallearners.com blog.

Now, Jim Knight is offering his expertise in an online professional development opportunity!