From Memphis to Manchester, the stories of these schools demonstrate how
impactful teachers can be when provided with high-quality coaching and
support as well opportunities to collaborate with one another around instructional improvement.
Going from Good to Great Using Weekly Coaching Cycles. At Freedom Preparatory
Academy (FPA), a public charter middle school serving nearly 300 students in
grades 6-10 in Memphis, teachers receive individualized support through a
weekly coaching cycle. After soliciting feedback from teachers at the end of
the 2013-14 school year, school leadership at FPA recognized that teachers
wanted more support and coaching. In response, the school created two instructional coach positions, one focused on supporting English language arts
and social studies teachers and one focused on supporting STEM teachers.
The individuals appointed to these positions are expert educators and their
primary charge is to coach and support teachers on a weekly basis.
PRIORITIES
IN ACTION:
FOCUSING ON
INSTRUCTION TO
ELEVATE STUDENT
LEARNING
FPA’s weekly coaching cycle begins with an instructional coach observing a
teacher’s classroom. Following the observation, the teacher and coach meet
for 45 minutes to debrief. The first 15 minutes of the meeting are spent discussing “glows,” or areas of strength, and “grows,” or areas of opportunity.
From this conversation, the teacher and coach identify one area of opportunity that the teacher will work on over the coming week and work together to
identify strategies, resources, and tools to help the teacher in his or her area of
need. The following week, the instructional coach observes the class again to
see how the teacher is progressing on the area of need. The weekly coaching
cycle continues throughout the year and provides teachers with opportunities
to work on achievable, concrete areas of instructional practice, allowing them
to continuously improve in their instruction throughout the school year.
Leveraging Teacher Talent through TAP. At Westwood Elementary, a PK-5
school serving over 530 students in Middle Tennessee, school leaders leverage teacher talent through the System for Teacher and Student Advancement
(TAP). This structure provides opportunities for highly effective educators to
serve as a full-time master teacher or remain in the classroom as a mentor
teacher. Master teachers do not have assigned students. Instead, they spend
their time modeling lessons for teachers, providing