Educational Coaching: a tool to learn and teach better

Coaching is a methodology that allows maximum personal and professional development of individuals and influences the transformation of these, causing changes in perspective, increasing motivation, commitment and responsibility, and of course, learning.

So, coaching promotes cognitive, emotional and behavioral changes that expand the person's capacity for action .

Educational coaching is not directive

Educational coaching is not based on directive instruction on the part of the coach, but helps to create the appropriate conditions to learn and grow

Possibly, one of the most notorious changes that coaching can bring in the classroom is that this methodology does not consist in teaching in a directive way, but it allows creating the propitious conditions to learn and grow. It is an experiential methodology, in which both teachers and students come to solutions through their own self-reflection. Coaching leaves behind the barriers that limiting beliefs can impose and the individuals who try it connect with the here and now in a way that becomes more decisive and creative.

Coaching focuses on a dialogue (called the Socratic method) between the actors that allows the development of specific skills. For teachers, it allows them to know their own mistakes in order to modify them, and also helps to create educational environments and strategies in the classroom that are more experiential and enriching for students, who also benefit from these productive sessions.

Teachers can have sessions with coaching professionals or learn different coaching strategies to better educate their students. But the relationship between the coach-teacher or student teacher, is not an expert relationship, that is, the coach is not above the coachee. But the relationship is on the same level, and the coach facilitates strategies for self-learning of oneself. The coach is a companion in this educational process.

How students benefit

One of the keys to educational coaching is that it is not intended to teach, but to seek to improve performance individually. It is common to observe in some classrooms that they are taught exactly the same to all students without taking into account their abilities and strengths, greatly limiting their potential and creativity.

Educational coaching affects the individuality of the people, the potential of each of your students. And, on many occasions, what is intended to teach should not limit the potential that students have for learning. Hence, educational coaching offers a different way of learning.

5 keys that teachers or educators should know

To increase the potential of the students, teachers or educators can know the five keys of educational coaching, because in this way students can benefit from this type of methodology. Coaching can be a great complement for teachers when teaching classes. But what are the principles of educational coaching?

1. Potential of the students: one of the keys of the educational coaching is not in instructing, but in finding and developing the true potential of each of your students.
2. Self-awareness: It is only possible to get the best out of the students when you become aware of your own limiting beliefs and adopt a non-directive attitude and open to change. In this learning relationship, there must be an environment that allows self-awareness, reflection, observation and interpretation of what is experienced to be enhanced. This applies to both you and your students
3. Empowerment: To empower students and make them more independent, it is necessary to educate them not from knowledge, but from the responsibility that this knowledge implies.
4. Feedback: Constant feedback is essential to maximize learning and benefit from sessions.
5. Skills development: In order to apply coaching in the classroom, it is necessary to develop different competences: active listening, emotional intelligence, patience, attention, compassion, etc.

You can know more about the coaching skills in this link

False myths of coaching

Unfortunately, this discipline that can be really useful, is tainted with a certain controversy. For example, its popularity has caused a lot of professional intrusion. In other words, many people claim to be "coach" when they are not. Some of them confuse this methodology with "charlatanism" or motivational talks, and others, with a simple course, think that they are already coaching professionals.

But coaching is a methodology that, when used well, provides many benefits for the coachees (the clients of the coaches), since they acquire greater self-knowledge, emotional intelligence, empowerment, better structure your goals and connect with your emotions more efficiently .

• Recommended article: "The 10 myths about Coaching"

The benefits of coaching

As much as some insist on qualifying coaching as a passing fad, the coachees that have been able to experience the coaching process know how beneficial this methodology is for their well-being and their learning. It is because of that coaching applies both aspects of personal, sports, work and educational life .

Whatever the type of coaching, this practice is closely related to change and learning, because it allows you to open your mind, experience and recognize emotions, analyze the present state to set goals and create a plan of action to achieve the objectives specifically, measurable, achievable, relevant and in a given time. The coach guides the coachee throughout the coaching process and helps the latter be able to develop their full potential .

In summary, coaching provides the following benefits:

• It allows to define the objectives
• Maximize creativity
• Enables greater mental flexibility and adaptability to change
• Empower people
• Improve interpersonal relationships
• Helps manage time and, therefore, reduces stress
• It helps us to be motivated
• Increase welfare
• Help maximize personal development to get further
• Improves self-knowledge, self-reflection and emotional intelligence

If you want to know more about the benefits that coaching can bring, visit our article: "The 10 benefits of Coaching (keys for your personal development)"

Bibliographic references:

• Burman, E. (1998). The deconstruction of evolutionary psychology. Madrid: Learning Viewer.
• Cristal, D. (1993). Pathology of language. Madrid: Cátedra Editions.
• García Galera, Mª del C. (2000). Television, violence and childhood. The impact of media. Barcelona: Gedisa.
• Kimmel, D.C. and Weiner, I.B. (1998). Adolescence: a transition of development. Barcelona: Ariel.

What is Teacher Coaching? (Early Math Collaborative) (April 2024).