Philippa Cordingley from the Centre for the Use of Research Evidence in Education (CUREE) discusses the findings from research on why coaching works.Here you can find out more about coaching and how it can help your languages teaching and learning.
Research indicates coaching is very effective in leading to sustained change in classroom practice.
In clip 1 Philippa Cordingley from the Centre for the Use of Research Evidence in Education (CUREE) discusses the findings from research on why coaching works.
She focuses on the roles of specialist and co-coaches, which she refers to here as 'peer coaches'.
Clip 1 prompt text
What are the implications of what Philippa says for developing coaching in modern languages?
Clip 1 reveal text
Philippa emphasises the links between specialist and co-coaching. The implication for modern languages is that departments should plan to use both, employing specialist and co-coaching in explicit and coherent ways.
She underlines that coaching enables teachers to expand their repertoire and so more closely tailor their teaching to learners' needs.
To hear a deputy headteacher explain the value of coaching select clip 2 .
Clip 2 has no prompt or reveal text.
Select the Resources button below for the latest research on coaching and professional learning.
Mentoring and coaching (specialist coaching and co-coaching) are distinctive processes which are outlined in the CUREE National Framework. They also have much in common. Activities overlap, depending on context and purpose.
Mentoring is a structured process for supporting professional learners through significant career transitions.
Specialist coaching is a structured process for enabling the development of a specific aspect of a professional learner's practice.
Co-coaching is a structured, sustained process between two or more professional learners to enable them to embed new knowledge and skills from specialist sources in day-to-day practice.
Select this comparison activity to consider them further.
Clip 3 illustrates coaching in action. The coachee has been observed and videoed teaching a Year 8 German class. The coach is an assistant headteacher.
Clip 3 prompt text
What features do you identify in the dialogue?
How would you define coaching?
Clip 3 reveal text
Coaching is a professional learning conversation to develop practice. In this example the coach guides the session to support the coachee in being reflective and analytical about her practice. Coach and coachee are at ease and the discussion is underpinned by a warm personal relationship.
To access the CUREE Framework for Mentoring and Coaching select the following resource – 
CUREE Framework for Mentoring and Coaching (PDF, 294kb).
Coaching is a three-part process:
For best impact, what do you think coaching needs?
Suggestions:
For examples of languages teachers talking about how coaching has worked for them select clip 4 and clip 5 .
Clips 4 and 5 have no prompt or reveal text.
Coaching develops pedagogy. In other words, it's about what a teacher needs to know and the range of skills that a teacher needs to use in order to teach well.
To hear a senior leader discuss the focus of work in coaching, view clip 6 .
Clip 6 has no prompt or reveal text.
Teachers' professional knowledge can be considered as four interrelated elements: subject knowledge; teaching repetoire; teaching models; conditions for learning.
For a more detailed description of the skills and strategies in each of the four elements select the following resource – MFL: Pedagogical content knowledge (PDF, 168kb).
To view two teachers talking about how they've used coaching in modern languages select clip 7 .
Clip 7 has no prompt or reveal text.
For possible strategies and models for using coaching in modern languages select the following resource – Coaching in Modern Languages departments (PDF, 19kb).
Video brings the classroom into the professional dialogue about teaching and learning. This e-learning module makes extensive use of video to offer you a unique opportunity to experience the coaching process in modern languages in a practical way. The clips are not models to be copied, but examples to help you to try things out for yourself.
Highlighted text gives explanations and video clips have prompt/reveal responses. Interactive tasks check knowledge and help you build the guidance and practice into your own collaborative professional learning in modern languages.
Using a personal or school-based learning log, or an online e-portfolio (accessible at teachernet.gov.uk), will help you record your progress.
Background research and templates to inform and support coaching for languages teaching can be accessed via the Resources button on most screens.
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