Instructional Coaches Make a Huge Impact

Featured / Lee Araoz / 10 Comments

Instructional coaches are the unsung heroes of the education profession. They nimbly navigate the line between administrator and teacher as they strive to make an impact across multiple grade levels and school sites. Instructional coaches have a unique vantage point – they see things happening at the ground level and are able to offer a perspective that few educators have.

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One of the biggest issues confronting schools today is how to provide continuous, high-quality professional development to teachers and staff. District budgets are not what they used to be and education leaders must come up with creative and cost-effective ways to continue to provide this level of training in their schools. One innovative way of doing this is to create the role of an instructional coach in their district by hiring a teacher leader from within. Many districts call these specialists TOSAs (Teachers On Special Assignment). Other districts call them coordinators, but they serve the same purpose: providing perpetual PD in a non-evaluative, non-judgemental environment. These “thought partners” work collaboratively with teachers by asking them what they need and showing them how it can be deployed.

My Instructional Coaches Quote

Instructional Coaches/TOSAs do many awesome things. These include, but are not limited to, the following:

  1. Provide job-embedded professional development.
  2. Model and demonstrate highly-effective best practices.
  3. Offer non-evaluative, objective feedback on a regular basis.
  4. Create an environment where student needs drive professional development.
  5. Offer guidance and feedback at the exact time teachers need it most – in the classroom.
  6. Inspire teachers to try new learning strategies and tools.
  7. Facilitate the transition from teacher-centered to learner-driven classrooms.
  8. Are site-based teacher leaders who support both students and their teachers.
  9. Collaborate with teachers in order to engage students in innovative ways.
  10. Help to close the digital use divide by ensuring that all students understand how to use technology to create content.

 

Click the image below to view my Instructional Coaches Smore digital flyer which includes links to a collection of resources I’ve curated. 

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Teach It

/ Lee Araoz / Leave a comment

“The person who learns the most in any classroom is the teacher.

If you really want to learn a topic, then “teach” it. Write a book. Teach a class. Build a product. Start a company.

The act of making something will force you to learn more deeply than reading ever will.”

~ James Clear

10 Strategies to Ensure Success in School, Work, and Life

/ Lee Araoz / 1 Comment
Screenshot 2019-02-19 08.10.09

Click the image above to view my presentation slides.

1. DON’T Accept the Default

  • Seek out an option that is BEST for YOU.
  • Make it your mission to fight: “We’ve always done it this way” thinking.
  • ALWAYS find a BETTER way!

2. Develop a GROWTH MINDSET

  • Remind yourself that failure is an important part of learning. FAIL FORWARD!
  • Understand the power of positive self-talk. Change your words; Change your mindset.
  • Look to examples of famous people who failed multiple times before achieving success.

3. Be so GOOD They Can’t Ignore You

  • Do MORE than the default – Arrive early and stay late!
  • PRACTICE what you don’t know. WORK on your weaknesses.
  • Be AVAILABLE at ALL times!
  • Volunteer for everything.
  • CRUSH the competition!

4. NEVER Stop Learning

  • Embark on self-directed, passion-based professional and personal development.
  • Listen to podcasts, view webinars, and READ whatever you can get your hands on.
  • Become an expert in your field at your own blistering speed. “The standard pace is for chumps.” Kimo Williams
  • Curate and share content with colleagues/friends.

5. CREATE as Much as you Consume

6. SHOW your WORK

  • Brag about your successes, your creations and your workplace on social media.
  • Don’t hold back because you worry that it’s not good enough or original enough. “To be original, you don’t have to be FIRST, you just have to be DIFFERENT and BETTER.” ~Adam Grant
  • Create a website, a digital newsletter or a YouTube channel to spread the word.
  • As a job-seeker in the new millennium, you are your own personal brand. Therefore, it’s in your best interest to promote yourself.

7. Establish a POSITIVE and PROFESSIONAL digital presence for yourself

  • Understand that your digital footprint (tattoo) is permanent and you have total control over the content you put out there. So keep it positive and appropriate!
  • THINK before you POST!
  • REMEMBER that employers will VET your social media accounts.

8. GET Connected

  • Discover the VIBRANT community of AMAZING professionals on Twitter. Follow hashtags! This has been a true GAME-CHANGER for me! I’ve learned more on Twitter in months than in years of traditional PD.
  • Grow your PLN (Personal/Professional Learning Network).
  • Go to meetups, conferences, and workshops (the topic matters less than the people you connect with).

9. Save EVERYTHING

  • Keep a journal and or blog about your successes and failures in school and the workplace.
  • Take pictures, make “Best of” slide shows, and share your work: product and process.
  • Keep a digital portfolio of everything you do with your students.
  • Digitize your resume using apps like Smore/Canva and continually update it.

10. EMBRACE CHANGE

  • and you will rarely be disappointed!

Authenticity Matters: 12 Ideas To Make Learning ‘Real-World’

/ Lee Araoz / 1 Comment

contributed by Shireen Jaffer

As educators, we have all had at least one student approach us with the question, “How will this help me in the real world?”

Every year, teachers are reminded of the academic requirements they must help their students fulfill. These requirements typically involve students taking many tests throughout the year. Accordingly, educators feel pressure to ensuring their curriculum leads to passing test scores.

This pressure can also leave teachers struggling to ensure their lesson plans allow students to apply their learning to their interests in the real world. To help you alleviate this struggle, here are 12 activities for your classroom that encourage interest exploration.

Click here to continue reading.