COLLABORATIVE LEARNING TEAMS

PLEASE CHOOSE WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING PROTOCOLS YOU WOULD LIKE TO USE DURING YOUR SCHOOL VISIT

(SUCCESS ANALYSIS PROTOCOL OR COACHING LAB PROTOCOL)

Success Analysis Protocol

Adapted from the National School Reform Faculty (NSRF)

Purpose: Participants work to understand why something is successful and create cases of professional practice that demonstrate successful decision making or problem solving. They collectively gain an understanding of reasons for success in order to apply these strategies to future work (approximately 2 hours).

Preparation: Each Collaborative Learning Team will select one TLC to host the visit. The hosting coach will share an example of their work in partnership with a teacher or teachers from their school.

Process:

*Note:

  • Participating teacher(s) are dismissed after Step 2.

Step 1: Hosting Coach and Teacher(s)Share the‘Case’Verbally and/or in Writing (20 minutes)

Hosting coachshares a ‘case’ by reflecting on something that has being going well. Sharing the case is done in partnership with the teachers who were involved. Be specific about all of the facts and reflective about what might have contributed to the success. Prompts include:

  • What was the focus of the coaching work?
  • What data (or student evidence) shows the impact of the collaboration?
  • How did the coaching work focus on student learning and instructional practice?
  • How was the coaching organized, and what were the benefits of organizing in this way?
  • What did the teacher(s) feel were the most positive features of the coaching? Why?
  • Is there anything that the coach or teacher(s) would adapt or change in the future?

Step 2: Clarifying Questions (10 minutes)

Participants ask the coach and teacher(s) clarifying questions about their work together. Clarifying questions are to help gain more understanding about the case and can only be answered in facts. Please avoid probing questions or suggestions.
Break (10 minutes)

Step 3: Probing Questions (10 minutes)

Participants move the discussion beyond a ‘show and tell’ by asking probing questions about the coaching practice. Probing questions get at the decision-making that underlies the coach’s decision-making. It also allows the group to transfer what was discussed to other contexts and scenarios.
Steps 4: Analysis and Discussion of Coaching Practice (20 minutes)

Hosting coach listens and responds as the group shares their insights about why the case was successful.

  • Discuss what the hosting coach did to make the situation successful.
  • Discuss how the hosting coach approached the case in a way that is different than typical practice.
  • Discuss how the coach’s professional goals impacted the coaching work.

Step 5: Reflection (25 minutes)

The group synthesizes the conversation into a set of factors that contributed to the success of the coaching.

Step 6: Debrief the Process (15 minutes)

The group reflects on the utility of the protocol. The goal is to determine how the protocol added value to the team’s learning, or how it might be adjusted in the future.

PROTOCOL FOR A COACHING LAB (WITHOUT A LESSON)

*Note: Participating teacher(s) only participate in step 2. The hosting coach may choose to videotape a coaching conversation to be used during step 2, instead of observing in real time.

Step 1:
Prebrief
(20 minutes) / The hosting coach provides background about the coaching work that is currently taking place with the teacher or team of teachers. The focus for the coaching cycle, tools, logs, and artifacts are shared with the group.
Step 2:
Observation
(30-40 minutes) / The group observes the teacher(s) and coach as they engage in a coaching conversation. While observing, participants take notes that are specific to the coaching focus.
Break
(10 minutes)
Step 3:
Debrief the Coaching
(35 minutes) / The group debriefs the coaching in the following rounds:
Round 1: Coaching Moves
  • Each group member takes a turn describing what s/he saw during the observation using objective language, such as: “I saw,” “I heard,” “I noticed”
Round 2: Implications, Questions, and New Thinking
  • Each group member shares new thinking and implications that surfaced as a result of the observation.
Round 3: Next Steps
  • Each group member states a next step in his or her own work.

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