Instructional Coaching
Transform teaching and learning in your school with one-to-one instructional coaching support
What is Instructional Coaching?
At Teach Learn Thrive, we believe the coaching process centers on building teachers’ capacity for self-directed learning and reflection. Only by empowering the coaching client to draw upon her own resources and wisdom can coaching be long-lasting and transformational.
This is what makes Teach Learn Thrive coaching special.
What is the approach to coaching at Teach Learn Thrive?
Sarah approaches instructional coaching as a partnership with the classroom teacher, rather than a top-down, compliance model. This teacher-coach relationship is built around a shared commitment to student learning.
Sarah believes teachers know what their students need and she seeks to empower them with resources to facilitate student learning. In this approach, Sarah listens to the teacher from a supportive, nonjudgmental stance, empowering the teacher to do the majority of the thinking and decision-making.
In practice, the coaching cycle is a series of meetings and classroom experiences between teacher and coach. Meetings include looking at data, examining instructional strategies, and reflecting on teaching.
Classroom experiences range from the coach modeling instruction to co-teaching to the coach observing the teacher (and vice versa).
The Impact Cycle for Instructional Coaching
Teach Learn Thrive’s coaching cycles are inspired by Jim Knight’s Impact Cycle (diagram at right).
Over 8-10 weeks, the coach and teacher engage weekly to move through the phases of the cycle:
Identify
Evaluate current reality; Set a goal for growth; Identify teaching strategies to implement
Learn
Study relevant teaching strategies; Understand what makes them work; Learn through co-teaching, a coach’s modeling, video, or classroom observation
Improve
Confirm direction; Review progress; Make adjustments; Plan next actions
No two coaching cycles are alike—
we pause, loop back, or take side trips as needed, so each teacher finds the growth and inspiration they need.
MEET YOUR COACH
Sarah Dugan, instructional coach & PD creator
Building on 25 years of education experience both as a classroom teacher and an instructional coach, I founded Teach Learn Thrive to help school leaders like you support their teaching faculty with effective and inspiring learning experiences.
After four years and professional growth for 450+ teachers and 100+ school and district leaders, Teach Learn Thrive has grown into a hub of teacher joy, where educators at all levels can connect with each other and rededicate themselves to their purpose through professional development, coaching, wellness programming, and more.
My mission is to reconnect educators to their purpose in this work and empower them so they can continue thriving and impacting students’ lives.
As a trained instructional coach who uses Cognitive Coaching™, Adaptive Schools, and other research-backed facilitation techniques, I am eager to help you realize your vision of a world where educators feel appreciated, understood, and cared for.
Learn more about instructional coaching for your school
You’ll hear back from me within two business days so we can set up a time to talk through your school’s coaching needs, explore any questions, and discuss next steps for bringing coaching to your school.
I look forward to hearing from you!
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