Instructional Coaching in Action: An Integrated Approach That Transforms Thinking, Practice, and Schools

Unlike "fix-it" strategies that targeted teachers are likely to resist, educator-centered instructional coaching—ECIC—offers respectful coaching for professionals within their schoolwide community. Evidence-based results across all content areas, authentic practices for data collection and analysis, along with nonevaluative, confidential collaboration offer a productive and promising path to teacher development. Coaches and teachers implement ECIC through a before-during-after—BDA—cycle that includes comprehensive planning between coach and teacher; classroom visitation and data collection; and debriefing and reflection.

Drawing on their extensive experience with ECIC, authors Ellen B. Eisenberg, Bruce P. Eisenberg, Elliott A. Medrich, and Ivan Charner offer this detailed guidance for coaches and school leaders on how you and your school can

• create the conditions for an effective ECIC program,
• get buy-in from teachers,
• clearly define the role of coach,
• roll out a coaching initiative, and
• ensure ongoing success with coaching.

Filled with authentic advice from coaches, Instructional Coaching in Action provides valuable insight and demonstrates how educator-centered instructional coaching can make a difference in teacher learning, instructional practice, and student outcomes.

Ellen B. Eisenberg is the Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Institute for Instructional Coaching (PIIC), a statewide resource for developing and supporting the delivery of consistent, high-quality professional development around instructional coaching and mentoring. Her work involves helping school districts plan an effective instructional coaching model built on PIIC's before-during-after (BDA) cycle of consultation and the four-quadrant framework of effective core coaching elements.

Bruce P. Eisenberg is the Associate Director of the Pennsylvania Institute for Instructional Coaching (PIIC). His career has spanned 47 years in public education—many of which were spent teaching mathematics in a public high school where he designed and implemented curriculum for academically, musically, and artistically talented students.

Elliott A. Medrich is a Research Consultant to the Pennsylvania Institute for Instructional Coaching. Throughout his career, he has focused on designing systems and surveys for student and school-level data collection and conducting program evaluations of education initiatives at the national, state, and local levels.

Ivan Charner is the Director of the FHI 360 National Institute for Work and Learning. A domestic education and workforce development specialist with experience in, among other things, the design, development, and management of education policy and professional development projects and programs at the state and local levels.