First year Instructional Coach

I have been teaching science for 24 years at Conant High School in D211. This year I was hired as one of our school’s instructional coaches. Before I started in my new role as instructional coach, I thought the role primarily helped struggling teachers or teachers who needed help in a specific area in their classrooms. After almost a year, I have learned that an instructional coach can not only help the teachers in need, but a coach can improve the skills of the most talented teachers in the building. Finding the right teachers, the ones that can act like multipliers, has a profound effect on the building’s view of instructional coaches. I have enjoyed my new role and I look forward to growing more in this position.

3 replies

April 17, 2023

Yes!!! I love that instructional coaching allows personalization for each teacher for us to meet them where they are and move them forward. What coaching strategy have you found to be the most helpful?

April 18, 2023

Congratulations on your new position and for sharing your perspectives on changing your environment through work with those teachers who spread innovation and provide recommendations to work with you. I look forward to hearing more stories of your success as you continue in this role!

May 08, 2023

I agree. I am in my 4th year as an Instructional Technology Coach (19 years as an English teacher), and I spend a lot of time with my rockstar teachers and trying to build upon their projects. My hope is that others will be inspired by their projects. I also circle back and try to help those who struggle with technology as well. I'll work with anyone, but I find that a lot of the teachers who struggle with tech rarely ask for help, so I try to make myself as available as possible. A lot of times, I will work on my projects near their rooms so they can grab me when they need me. In the beginning, I do think it's important to try and cultivate allies so that others can see the positive impact of technology.

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