COACHING AND MENTORING POLICY
HILL WEST PRIMARY SCHOOL COACHING AND MENTORING POLICY
INTORDUCTION This policy has been adopted by the Governing Body of Hill West Primary school to enable staff to have one-to-one mentoring and/or coaching for their personal and professional development.
WHAT IS COACHING AND MENTORING? Coaching is a management method of planned interventions designed to improve the performance of an individual in performing a specific task, usually linked to the Professional Standards in the case of Teachers.
THE CASE FOR COACHING Teachers’ learning and development underpins school improvement and provides a vehicle for raising achievement and attainment. When teachers’ learning is based on their genuine assessment and understanding of pupils’ learning they can start to make adaptations to their practice which can lead to real differences in outcomes. The link between teachers’ learning and students’ learning acts as the main lever for the development of coaching in schools. Whatever the nature of the school there is a constant imperative to improve, both in terms of student attainment and wider outcomes (as exemplified by the framework for Every Child Matters). The majority of the school day, both for students and teachers, is spent in lessons. What goes on in lessons is exceptionally complicated, influenced not just by the quality of planning, but also the relationships, learning environment and motivations of all participants. Teachers are frequently set performance management targets that are embedded in this complexity, and while targets help to focus attention Coaching and Mentoring Policy November 2013
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they rarely act as the means for improving practice. The performance management cycle at Hill West is therefore underpinned by out CPD Policy of which Coaching and Mentoring is implicit. When it works well, coaching starts to tackle the complexity of teaching and learning, providing opportunities for the interrogation of teachers’ practice and its consequences. As it is an individualised professional development activity, coaching can be finely tuned to the concerns of specific teachers working to support their own students.
NCSL have set out six propositions about the importance of coaching and the role of school leaders: 1. Leaders have a moral responsibility to promote everyone’s learning - that of both adults and pupils. 2. Leaders have a moral imperative to develop the next generation of school leaders. 3. High-quality coaching in schools supports professional development, leadership sustainability and school improvement. 4. Leaders have a responsibility to provide the processes, structures and resources that support coaching. 5. Central to these propositions is the role of learning conversations, which make tacit knowledge explicit and engage staff in open and honest debate. 6. Leaders should model the dialogue and personal approaches that create a culture of high-quality coaching interactions across their school. Coaching practice in schools is built on four essential qualities: 1. a desire to make a difference to student learning 2. a commitment to professional learning 3. a belief in the abilities of colleagues 4. a commitment to developing emotional intelligence Coaching itself is grounded in five key skills: 1. establishing rapport and trust 2. listening for meaning 3. questioning for understanding Coaching and Mentoring Policy November 2013
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4. prompting action, reflection and learning 5. developing confidence and celebrating success
In order to further develop coaching skills at Hill West we are all committed to:
understanding our own learning needs reflecting on our own practice taking an ever-more active role in our own learning and the learning of others acting on what is learned to improve pupil learning
International research shows that collaborative continuing professional development (CPD) – such as coaching – offers significant benefits for both practitioners and pupils. Pupils benefit from learning outcomes including, enhanced motivation, improved organisation abilities and questioning skills and an increased choice of learning strategies - including collaboration. Practitioners develop self-confidence, an increased willingness and capacity to learn and change, enhanced knowledge and understanding, a wider repertoire of teaching and learning strategies and increased confidence in the power of teaching to make a difference.
Developing coaching abilities also provides useful life skills, which can be used in nonprofessional and domestic situations. The benefits of an effective coaching development strategy can also be felt at an organisational level with the collective rewards of individuals' development being manifested as enhanced organisational effectiveness. Better staff retention and loyalty, as well as reduced variation in attainment across year groups, are two examples of the immediate institutional benefits a mature coaching programme can instil within a school.
Mentoring is a management method which helps a member of staff make a significant transition in knowledge, skill or thinking. This involves matching an individual member of staff to learning colleague who acts as an adviser and guide on personal and professional development over a continuing and extended period of time.
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The mentor may be someone within the school sufficiently distanced from the individual’s work setting to enable detached and objective mentoring OR, someone within the Four Oaks Cluster of wider Education Authority. A mentor fulfils a variety of roles such as: • adviser • role model • facilitator • ideas person • confidante • motivator • critical friend Coaching and mentoring have much in common, both are one-to-one relationships which help people to improve their talents. Coaches can sometimes go beyond their formal role to providing guidance well outside the area of a specific task. The mentor may also increase their scope and focus on a particular skill that the other person needs to develop, although that still will almost always be behavioural and linked to longer term development needs. Proposals for both mentoring and coaching at Hill West are usually agreed as part of Performance Management Cycle although staff can request support via coaching and mentoring at any time.
THE MENTORING PARTNERSHIP What can mentoring provide? Mentoring can improve workforce development by preparing the next generation of leaders. It also helps to attract and retain employees by offering opportunities to enhance skills and knowledge. Diversity issues can also be improved by reducing the barriers to equal opportunity.
Who is mentoring for?
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Any staff member interested in self-development and learning. Key skills and abilities for this role include the ability to: • be open-minded • take responsibility for own personal development • self-set and review clear objectives • invest in preparation time • carve out dedicated time • share thinking • review and reflect • share opinions • challenge own assumptions • be a good listener • make decisions to maximise the mentoring relationship • invest time and energy in the mentoring process Who are the mentors? At Hill West Mentors are experienced members of staff with appropriate best practice. Key skills and abilities for this role include: • proven track record in self development and development of others • excellent inter personal skills – listening, supporting, encouraging • motivation and commitment to being a mentor • ability to create a safe learning environment • willingness to learn and see things differently Ideally mentors at Hill West will have some mentoring training but this is not essential.
The benefits of a mentoring partnership The Mentee
• • • • •
To improve motivation To improve self confidence To provide career advice To develop greater understanding about management and change implementation and how decisions are made To provide support through the “tough times”
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• • • • • The Mentor
To provide protected time with a senior person focusing on individual needs In the case of external mentors, to provide exposure and insights to other organisations’ cultures To provide enhanced continuous development To provide constructive feedback To help with career planning
• Peer recognition • Increase skills in developing others • Opportunity for self-development • Opportunities to learn from others • Opportunity to recognise talent • Improved motivation and job satisfaction
The Organisation • Newly appointed people become effective more quickly • Contributes to the school’s key objectives and improvement plans • Increase workforce stability by providing internal career pathways • Increase communication through different cross slices of the organization
THE COACHING PARTNERSHIP What can coaching provide? Coaching can improve workforce performance by developing individuals with specific needs and goals. Coaching challenges the mind-set and helps individuals discover the questions and the answers for themselves by drawing on the individuals own abilities. Who is coaching for? Any member of staff who is experiencing a lack of progress with a specific goal. Key skills and abilities for this role include: • have a positive attitude Coaching and Mentoring Policy November 2013
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• able to be open-minded • able to take responsibility for own personal development • able to self-set and review clear objectives • able to invest in preparation time
Who are the coaches? At Hill West Coaches can be anyone who feels they have the experience and expertise to help people work to their optimal level. They equip the individual with the tools to be able to discover the answers for themselves. Key skills and abilities for this role include: • have a positive perspective to problem solving • proven track record in self development and development of others • excellent inter personal skills – listening, supporting, encouraging • motivation and commitment to being a coach • ability to create a safe learning environment • willingness to learn and see things differently Ideally coaches at Hill West will have some coaching training but this is not essential. The benefits of a coaching partnership The Coachee • Improved self confidence • Provide career advice • Improve motivation • Provide enhanced continuous personal and professional development • Provide protected time with an expert focusing on individual needs • Help with career planning • Provide objective, independent and constructive feedback • Advice on tackling new situations • Learn more about yourself and how you can work better • Improve creative thinking • Improve work-life balance • Develop better communication skills • Improve overall effectiveness Coaching and Mentoring Policy November 2013
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The Coach • Increase insights into yourself and others • Peer recognition • Increase skills in developing others • Opportunity for self-development • Opportunities to learn from others • Improved motivation and job satisfaction
The Organisation • To contribute to the School Improvement Plan and key targets for improvement • Support experienced people through a particular problem • Increase workforce stability by providing internal career pathways • Increased productivity and effectiveness • Improves working relationships and communication • Opportunity to improve organisational culture
OUR COMMITMENT TO COACHING AND MENTORING At Hill West we recognize that coaching and mentoring becomes more effective when we: 1. Develop a climate of collaboration in which professional learning can flourish and in which individuals feel comfortable to express their desire to change and improve. 2. Identify professional learning needs that really do need to be met in order to raise standards and attainment. 3. Develop processes and procedures to support the coaching and mentoring that are based upon best practice. 4. Redefine people’s work roles so that the coaching/mentoring function is integrated and receives sufficient time and priority. 5. Select coaches and mentors who possess personal and professional qualities of the highest order and provides ongoing training and development. 6. Ensure that the individuals involved appreciate the responsibility they have for each other’s professional development and places the control of this development with the individual. Coaching and Mentoring Policy November 2013
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7. Define the scope of the coaching relationship and where it fits within broader school development. 8. Evaluate the impact of the coaching and mentoring work at both individual and organizational level.
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