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Zoom Chat FE Sector Insights Group for Professional Development 040326

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Zoom Meeting Recording 04/03/26 Teacher-Led Professional Learning at Guernsey Institute

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Zoom Meeting Recording 04/03/26 Teacher-Led Professional Learning at Guernsey Institute

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To help us keep this website secure, please wait while we verify you’re not a robot! It will only take a few seconds…

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Presentation slides from Vanessa and Helen (Guernsey Institute)

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Presentation slides from Vanessa and Helen (Guernsey Institute)

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FE SECTOR INSIGHTS March 2026 Teacher-Led Professional Learning

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A strong coaching model is important to develop the skills.

Find low stakes communication to spread the messages.

Opening up peer observation opportunities

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The main thing is to find and protect time in the work schedule for the meetings to happen

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We discussed some of the barriers and issues around recording process and impact

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We feel that protected time is important for staff enagament

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Would like to embed coaching into our research process

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We discussed how to introduce this in our organisation as ours are bigger.

Took the lesson of focusing under the headings to gently lead in the strategic direction.

Like the idea of moving away from getting delivering the project to posters - we loved the corridor of posters.

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What do they have access to?

Provide structures for staff to follow? Coaching questions to support the development.

Potential to provide mini research/upskilling workshops. Could other staff support this, e.g. HE staff?

Help to refine the experiment? Which class, which topics? Suggested readings to help focus reading.

2 min reads and watches for schools.

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Number of practitioners versus staff cohort

How do we manage scale in bigger organisations? How can we utilise other staff to support this type of provision? Especially in forming the research stage.

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Research on teaching and learning: Links to explore

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Research on teaching and learning: Links to explore

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Blog: Creating Space for Learning Communities and Supported Experiments to flourish

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Blog: Creating Space for Learning Communities and Supported Experiments to flourish

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Evidence-Based Teaching Research and Practice Links

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Evidence-Based Teaching Research and Practice Links

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ONE THING YouTube clip on early stages of the project in Guernsey

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ONE THING YouTube clip on early stages of the project in Guernsey

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Culture Shift Through Professional Development with Martine Ellis and Joanne Miles (recorded conversation and resources)

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Culture Shift Through Professional Development with Martine Ellis and Joanne Miles (recorded conversation and resources)

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Zoom Chat Inclusive Coaching November 12th 2025

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Coaching Presentation FE Insights Group King Edward VI College (1)

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Identifying length of time with projects or OneThings - Potentially shortening timeframes to increase focus, engagement and motivation.

Also, psychologically focusing coaching sessions on what the individual is doing well and how this can help develop AFI's or less confident areas of practice.

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Asiyah

600 staff members - a challenge to coach all!

4 sites - huge!

4 induction coaching sessions offered alongside probation - but not compulsory - not everyone takes the offer.

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When there are not a large number of coaches but big staff bodies, this poses a real challenge to see as many students as possible

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1. Challenges with time

2. How can we support and bring value

3. 2 way process where they can also drop into teaching session of coachees

4. Giving ownership to staff to choose sessions and come up with CPD sessions they want to attend.

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Sometimes the culture of psychological safety needed for inclusive coaching to be as effective as possible is not yet in place - staff sometimes bring baggage from previous institutions, or from the current institution but before the culture began to change, or institutions where managers are not necessarily invested in psychological safety. This is a real challenge - culture shift takes time.

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Establishing buy-in if coaching has been previously used in a deficit capacity can be difficult.

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A short sharp focus on one area for coaching helps people to stay on track

Considering time of year for staff is useful to ensure buy-in

Making sure that the focus is challenging and that the chosen area of focus isn't a repeat

Karl - college has Tech Coaches - to support with AI use to prepare lesson materials

Getting rid of top down hierarchy

Work collaboratively together

Lesson visit - preferable language to lesson observation

Estelle - lesson visits are used to help to identify what is working well and what they might want to try. Ask if they want advice, rather than just give it.

Separate coaching from quality assurance

Wellbeing is an area of focus

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It is a challenge to coach staff when they are not in very often - perhaps a few hours a week, or just for a short period each year.

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1. Focus questionnaire can make it more structured.

2. Coaching booklet and reflection statement

3. Peer mentoring and coaching

4. Coach needs to have an understanding of the curriculum area as it can be empathetic.

5. Coaches and mentors can be facilitating peer coaching.

6. Gap analysis- looking from perspective of students to inform teaching practice and planning.

7. Support in lessons, acting as TA to support students, teams teaching opportunities.

8. Going on a learning walk together to have it as a starting point.

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It is challenging to change from a more deficit model or one where QA and coaching are very closely linked, managers want to know what is the impact of coaching - it is a challenge to move from this model to a more inclusive model

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Work on the culture shift from the deficit model - everybody gets coached, this process is separate from the QA process - people who might not otherwise volunteer for this or who are excellent practitioners and might get missed in a more deficit approach - everyone gets coached

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Allowing tutors to choose the approach(es) they want to use - a menu of activities to choose from, helping to generate buy in

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Additional information on the ONE THING professional development model mentioned in the presentation

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Additional information on the ONE THING professional development model mentioned in the presentation

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Coaching information for teachers - King Edward VI College

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Post-coaching reflections King Edward VI College

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Pre-coaching reflections King Edward VI College

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Additional Reading Links and Articles on Coaching

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Inclusive FE - The Education and Training Foundation

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#InclusiveFE means we work to ensure that our workforce and the curriculum reflect the learners and the communities, the FE sector serves.

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So how does this look in my practice as a future-pathways adviser? And how can we all ensure that our work is inclusive?

For example, I feel that my knowledge and understanding of the LGBTQI+ community is not as good as I would like it to be. And so I grabbed an opportunity to undertake diversity and inclusivity coaching run by a colleague. I have had one session (out of six) so far, and as a result will be reading the following books over the next few months: The Wake Up, by Michelle Mijung Kim; Diversify, by June Sarpong; Becoming a Totally Inclusive School, by Angeline Aow, Sadie Hollins and Stephen Whitehead. I have also signed up to attend the Pride conference held at a nearby international school.

I also feel that I should do a deep dive into which global universities are renowned for their inclusivity and diversity work , as well as which countries are more embracing of certain communities . Then I may be able to guide specific students better.

We may well be conscious of certain biases we have, and therefore can proactively ensure that these do not affect our work. But our unconscious biases, by definition, are the biases we are not aware of.

There are several ways to find out what they are - online questionnaires or training sessions, for example. Imperial College London have a section on their website specifically related to this area.

I had a eureka moment regarding an unconscious bias of my own during a workshop that our school ran for parents. Through their stories, the workshop participants reminded me that the culture we grow up in has a huge impact on what we believe success to be and how to get there.

If someone is brought up in a culture that believes they will only be successful if they get top grades and go to a top-10 university, it is hard to let go of that belief, and so it is passed down from generation to generation.

Working in an international community, I realised that I need to be more compassionate with families who only want to talk about the brand-named universities and how to get into them. I need to take a moment and consider the why. Perhaps this comes from a cultural belief grown over many generations, or perhaps not.

Either way, who am I to judge or disagree with other people's values? I just need to listen, guide and support to the best of my ability, in an empathic way.

This understanding of my unconscious bias (brought about, I believe, by my strong belief that grades do not define us) has made a huge impact on how I work with everyone in our community, and has been a big learning moment in my inclusivity practice.

Being inclusive in our work can be exhausting, especially if we have families who require a lot of understanding and support. There are many useful articles written by our counsellor colleagues, who provide advice as to how we can maintain boundaries and protect our own well-being in order to be able to provide the best support for all our students.

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How to be inclusive when counselling students

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Inclusivity. What, when we hear that word, do we think of? Do we immediately go in our mind to a specific set of people - defined perhaps by gender or by neurodiversity? I have spent a lot of time thinking upon this, and it is a discussion I have had with my diversity and inclusion coach.

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How can you create an inclusive coaching environment?

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Learn how to enhance your cross-cultural communication skills and foster a positive and supportive coaching relationship with diverse and multicultural clients.

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Cоасhіng іs а powerful tool fоr pеrsоnаl аnd prоfеssіоnаl growth. It involves а partnership between a соасh аnd а сlіеnt, whеrе thе соасh hеlps thе client identify thеіr gоаls, dеvеlоp strаtеgіеs, аnd overcome оbstасlеs tо achieve success. As coaches, it is оur rеspоnsіbіlіtу to create a sаfе and inclusive spасе fоr our сlіеnts to explore thеіr pоtеntіаl. In tоdау's dіvеrsе world, it іs crucial to incorporate dіvеrsіtу аnd іnсlusіоn into соасhіng sessions to еnsurе thаt wе are sеrvіng all clients equally.

Thе Impоrtаnсе оf Dіvеrsіtу аnd Inсlusіоn іn Cоасhіng

Dіvеrsіtу rеfеrs tо the dіffеrеnсеs аmоng individuals, including but not lіmіtеd tо rасе, еthnісіtу, gеndеr, sеxuаl orientation, аgе, rеlіgіоn, аnd аbіlіtу.

Inсlusіоn, оn thе other hand, is thе prасtісе оf creating аn еnvіrоnmеnt where everyone feels valued and rеspесtеd rеgаrdlеss оf thеіr differences. As coaches, wе must rесоgnіzе thаt еасh client іs unique аnd hаs thеіr оwn set of еxpеrіеnсеs аnd perspectives. By іnсоrpоrаtіng diversity аnd іnсlusіоn іntо our coaching sеssіоns, wе саn сrеаtе a mоrе mеаnіngful and іmpасtful соасhіng experience for оur сlіеnts.

Cоасhіng Tips for Inсоrpоrаtіng Diversity and Inсlusіоn

Hеrе are sоmе practical tips fоr coaches tо іnсоrpоrаtе diversity аnd іnсlusіоn іntо their соасhіng sеssіоns:

1.Educate Yourself

The fіrst stеp in incorporating diversity аnd іnсlusіоn into соасhіng sеssіоns іs to еduсаtе уоursеlf. Tаkе thе time to lеаrn аbоut dіffеrеnt сulturеs, іdеntіtіеs, аnd еxpеrіеnсеs.

Attеnd wоrkshоps оr sеmіnаrs on dіvеrsіtу and іnсlusіоn or rеаd books wrіttеn by аuthоrs frоm diverse backgrounds. This wіll help уоu gаіn a bеttеr undеrstаndіng оf уоur сlіеnts' perspectives аnd challenges.

2.Create an Inclusive Environment

As coaches, it is our responsibility tо сrеаtе а safe and inclusive spасе fоr оur сlіеnts. Thіs mеаns being аwаrе of our оwn biases аnd creating аn environment where еvеrуоnе fееls wеlсоmе and rеspесtеd. Usе іnсlusіvе lаnguаgе, аvоіd assumptions, and be оpеn tо lеаrnіng from уоur сlіеnts.

Thіs will help build trust аnd rapport wіth уоur сlіеnts, mаkіng thеm more comfortable tо shаrе their thоughts and feelings.

3.Ask Open-Ended Questions

Whеn wоrkіng with сlіеnts from dіvеrsе bасkgrоunds, it іs essential to аsk оpеn-еndеd questions that аllоw thеm tо shаrе thеіr experiences and pеrspесtіvеs. Avоіd asking сlоsеd-ended questions thаt mау lіmіt their responses. Thіs wіll help you gain a bеttеr understanding of your сlіеnts' goals, values, and challenges.

4.Be Mindful of Cultural Differences

As coaches, we must be mіndful оf cultural differences when wоrkіng with сlіеnts frоm dіvеrsе backgrounds. Dіffеrеnt сulturеs hаvе dіffеrеnt vаluеs, beliefs, and communication styles.

Be aware оf thеsе dіffеrеnсеs аnd аdаpt уоur coaching approach accordingly. Fоr example, sоmе сulturеs mау value dіrесt соmmunісаtіоn, while others mау prefer а more іndіrесt approach.

5.Encourage Self-Reflection

Inсоrpоrаtіng dіvеrsіtу аnd іnсlusіоn іntо coaching sеssіоns аlsо involves еnсоurаgіng sеlf-rеflесtіоn іn оur сlіеnts. Hеlp thеm explore thеіr own biases and аssumptіоns аnd how they may bе impacting their gоаls and decisions. Thіs will help them gаіn а better undеrstаndіng оf thеmsеlvеs аnd оthеrs, leading tо pеrsоnаl grоwth аnd dеvеlоpmеnt.

6.Celebrate Diversity

Lаstlу, it іs essential to celebrate dіvеrsіtу іn оur соасhіng sеssіоns.

Acknowledge and appreciate the unіquе experiences аnd perspectives of еасh сlіеnt. This wіll hеlp сrеаtе а sеnsе of bеlоngіng and inclusivity for аll сlіеnts.

Thе Bеnеfіts оf Incorporating Dіvеrsіtу аnd Inclusion іntо Cоасhіng Sessions

Inсоrpоrаtіng diversity and іnсlusіоn іntо соасhіng sеssіоns nоt оnlу bеnеfіts our сlіеnts but аlsо оursеlvеs аs coaches. Bу сrеаtіng an inclusive environment, we саn buіld stronger rеlаtіоnshіps wіth оur clients, lеаdіng to mоrе meaningful аnd іmpасtful соасhіng sеssіоns. It аlsо allows us to gain a better undеrstаndіng оf our сlіеnts' needs аnd challenges, making us mоrе effective coaches.

Conclusion

In tоdау's dіvеrsе world, it is crucial fоr coaches tо іnсоrpоrаtе diversity and іnсlusіоn into their соасhіng sеssіоns.

Bу еduсаtіng оursеlvеs, сrеаtіng аn inclusive еnvіrоnmеnt, asking оpеn-еndеd quеstіоns, bеіng mіndful of сulturаl differences, encouraging self-rеflесtіоn, аnd сеlеbrаtіng dіvеrsіtу, we саn сrеаtе a more mеаnіngful and іmpасtful соасhіng experience fоr our сlіеnts. Let us strіvе to bе inclusive coaches аnd сrеаtе a positive іmpасt оn thе lives of our clients.

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Incorporating Diversity and Inclusion into Coaching Sessions: Tips from an Expert

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Learn how to incorporate diversity and inclusion into your coaching sessions with these practical tips from an expert coach. Create a safe and inclusive space for all your clients to achieve personal and professional growth.

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Coaching and Inclusion - embracing all learners - Learning Cultures

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Coaching and inclusion really does create the goal to embrace all learners in the quest that all pupils achieve their full potential

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Co-teaching and Coaching Models: The Dynamic Duo of Inclusive Education

In the journey toward inclusive education, collaboration is key. That's why co-teaching and coaching models are such powerful tools for schools aiming to support all learners.

What Is Co-teaching? Co-teaching happens when two educators-usually a general education teacher and a specialist-work together in the same classroom. This collaboration allows them to meet the needs of all students, especially those who require extra support. By combining their expertise, co-teachers can offer differentiated instruction, provide small group work, and ensure that all students are engaged and learning at their own pace.

How Coaching Models Work: Coaching models, on the other hand, focus on professional development. A coach works with teachers to help them reflect on their teaching practices and develop new strategies for inclusive instruction. It's a supportive, non-evaluative process that encourages teachers to grow in their roles.

Why Co-teaching and Coaching Work Together: When combined, co-teaching and coaching create a powerful dynamic in the classroom. Teachers not only benefit from having a partner in the classroom but also gain ongoing support to refine their methods and address challenges as they arise.

Co-teaching and coaching models offer a comprehensive approach to inclusive education, ensuring that teachers have the support they need to meet the diverse needs of their students. By fostering collaboration and professional growth, schools can create inclusive environments where every learner can succeed.

Pathways to Inclusive Education

We are committed to partnering with mission-driven schools who are striving to meet the needs of all learners and are seeking to transform teaching and learning using contemporary and research-based best practice.

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Co-teaching and Coaching Models: The Dynamic Duo of Inclusive Education

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In the journey toward inclusive education, collaboration is key. That's why co-teaching and coaching models are such powerful tools for schools aiming to support all learners. What Is Co-teaching? Co-teaching happens when two educators-usually a general education teacher and a specialist-work together in the same classroom.

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Fostering Inclusivity Through A Coaching Culture - The Key To Engagement And Belonging

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Discover the powerful connection between inclusivity, engagement, and a coaching culture in our latest article. Learn why managers play a crucial role in creating a sense of belonging within their teams and how a coaching culture can foster inclusivity, trust, and productivity.

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7 Best Practices to Deliver Inclusive Coaching Experiences | Life Coach Magazine

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Since 2015, I’ve spearheaded several initiatives to promote diversity and inclusion in tech products and the workplace that were recognized with the UK 2020 Women in Tech Changemakers award. An inflection point in that trajectory was when, in June 2018, I launched my website focused on diversity and inclusion to…

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Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging (DEIB) in coaching

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In coaching, fostering an environment of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) is paramount. As coaches, our mission extends beyond supporting clients towards their goals; it encompasses creating a space where every individual feels seen, heard, and valued. This holistic approach not only enhances the coaching experience but also promotes profound personal and professional growth for both coach and coachee. Read on to discover key insights from Rebecca Daniel, one of our expert Coach Trainers, on how to integrate diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging into your coaching practice.

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Includes content on Thinking Environment

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Includes content on Thinking Environment

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Interesting research report with case studies in FE  that involve CPD and practice sharing - Teacher Triangles are included here

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Interesting research report with case studies in FE  that involve CPD and practice sharing - Teacher Triangles are included here

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The role of leadership in prioritising and improving the quality of teaching and learning in further education

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Zoom Chat How do we encourage and enable effective sharing of TLA practice

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Staff being unable to share because of NDAs or copyright, that makes it more challenging and sharing has to be limited to generics. Creating a boundary and policy to make it clear that don't have to share.

Difficulty with sharing if staff are also selling their resources on TES for example.

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Middle managers to be on board with professional development. Allocating time and being receptive of it. Have a mix of people taking part in sharing practice- culture setting.

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We discussed festival of learning type activities with key note speakers, these have been successful but there is limited measure of impact.

One college is doing a kind of exhibition this year, showcasing the ideas as a display and staff can circulate to look at the ideas.

One person uses communities of practice effectively - they have difficulties with sharing because of copyright in that area, so they are trying to change culture. Staff have been on training and are then rolling this out, a coaching and mentoring model.

Every new member of staff gets a mentor or coach to help them to settle into the college.

One college has the departments determine their own 3 priorities, which they then develop through the year. Another college uses something similar and then gets the departments to mix and share their experiences.

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Logistically facilitating people to come together, Teacher triangulation, informal coffee morning where people can come together and share. Collaboration and learning from each other.

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Making time for everyone to share, e.g. in a team meeting. Giving everyone a voice. Creating time for people to ask questions or ask for supportive ideas.

Sharing time savers.

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Getting the right group of staff together. E.g. teachers delivering the same level. This is good as they often have the same issues. Grouping by curriculum, common things.

Using evidence-based support.

Reflect on practice in a positive environment. Tea and snacks! Creating a culture where people want to come back.

Team time and coaching, set aside time

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The Role of Lesson Plan Sharing and Collaboration in Teacher Development - LearningMole

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Lesson planning and collaboration are integral parts of teaching, fundamentally shaping the educational experience. As a teacher, sharing your lesson plans

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Sticky Learning: The Secret to PD That Stays Put!

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Sharing good practice: Strategies to encourage teacher collaboration

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Teachers using collaborative practices are more innovative, hold stronger self-efficacy beliefs, and have higher job satisfaction. More...

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Sharing good teaching practice - Teaching Expertise

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‘Sharing good practice’ is one of those phrases that has slipped into the everyday language of school leadership. We think that most schools, if asked, would say that they share good practice. Would any school say that it does not share practice, or indeed that it shares bad practice? On the other hand, there must …

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Posted on March 11th, 2024
In the second of three articles focusing on motivating teachers to remain in Further Education (FE) and the part an alternative approach to professional development could play, Education Consultant Dr Tricia Odell explores the practicalities of introducing a collaborative approach and the role that middle leaders can play in creating the conditions for this model.
In the first article in this series, it was suggested that a top-down model (where an expert leads a training session) may not lead to sustainable changes in teaching and learning, and that if we want teachers to stay in the profession and improve their practice, then leaders need to consider an alternative approach to professional learning. Here, we will explore the practicalities of introducing a collaborative approach and think about the role that middle leaders can play in creating the conditions for this model to take root.

How can a practitioner-led model of professional learning work in practice?

A collaborative approach involves a cycle of activity illustrated in the diagram below:

The five different stages are explained in more detail below:

1. To foster a sense of ownership from the outset, the teacher (rather than their manager) identifies areas of their practice that they would like to improve, perhaps using the Professional Standards for Teachers and Trainers as a starting point (ETF, 2022).

2. The teacher (mentee) is then matched with an experienced practitioner (mentor). At the first meeting they agree a mentoring contract that may include expectations of each other's roles, joint responsibilities and frequency of meetings. The mentor teases out the mentee's perceived strengths and chosen areas for development.

3. Mentors and mentees meet regularly, engaging in learning conversations during which the mentor encourages the mentee to critically reflect on their practice and to experiment with new ideas, supporting them to engage with relevant educational theory and research.

4. The mentee explores new pedagogical approaches by carrying out peer observations, maybe engaging in team teaching, experimenting with new strategies and then critically reflecting on these experiences with their mentor.

5. Teachers come together regularly in communities of practice to share learning.

Two key features of the collaborative professional learning model

If the practitioner is to be in the driving seat when it comes to their professional learning, then we will need to think differently about the role of mentoring and the use of observations.

Non-judgemental mentoring

Recent research suggests that a particular type of mentoring - 'judgementoring' - has come to dominate in educational settings (Hobson, 2021). This version of mentoring involves the mentor making judgements about a teacher's practice to ensure they meet a set of prescribed standards. Typically, the mentor will lead the discussion, focusing on aspects of practice that the mentor considers the teacher needs to change.

A recent ETF guide proposes a completely different approach to mentoring that is non-judgemental and collaborative (ETF, 2023). Rather than assessing performance, mentors support their mentees' development by using active listening and encouraging them to engage in critical reflection. The guidance includes reference to ONSIDE mentoring as a framework for supporting professional learning, as well as the wellbeing of teachers (Hobson, 2016).

The framework has six distinct elements as below:

A different approach to lesson observations

If a bottom-up approach to professional learning is to be implemented, then we must also think about observations of practice in another way. This necessitates a shift away from an evaluative approach towards a developmental model, where observations are seen as a starting point for professional discussion, rather than a means to form judgements (Wingrove et al, 2018).

In practice, this means that the teacher (mentee) chooses a specific aspect of the lesson/area of practice on which they would like the mentor to focus. After the observation, the mentee will be encouraged through the skilful use of questions to reflect critically and openly on their teaching. By fostering an atmosphere of trust, practitioners will be encouraged to take risks and will be more open to the idea of trying out new pedagogical strategies.

Matt O'Leary argues the case for an 'unseen observation' where the mentor (or 'collaborator') does not observe the practice at all, but engages in professional dialogue with the teacher during the planning stage and after the teacher has delivered the session. In this way, the 'collaborator' relies on the teacher's own reflections of the teaching session and so the roles of both teacher and 'collaborator' are changed, with the observation seen as means of supporting professional learning in a safe space, rather than a performance management tool (O'Leary, 2022).

What can middle leaders do to help create the conditions for the collaborative model to flourish?

We have seen how this bottom-up model has the potential to inspire and motivate teachers, and we have explored some of its key features.

Below are three top tips to help middle leaders create an environment in which collaborative learning can thrive:

1. Make sure teachers and their mentors are allocated with the time needed to establish and grow the mentoring relationship.

2. Provide spaces for practitioners to engage in professional learning activity, with time to embed the new practice.

3. Start building communities of practice, creating opportunities for teachers and their mentors to come together, to share creative thinking and learn from each other's experiences.

Lastly, middle leaders should resist the temptation to drive the professional learning activity and should be prepared to 'let go'. This will mean having the courage to place trust and responsibility for this activity firmly in the hands of practitioners.

In the final article in this series, we will look at some case studies of organisations where leaders have introduced a non-judgemental mentoring culture. We will explore some of the challenges and suggest how these can be addressed.
References
Education and Training Foundation (2023) Mentoring Framework: Guide for Mentors in Further Education. London: ETF. https://www.et-foundation.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Mentoring-Framework-Guide-for-Mentors.pdf

Education and Training Foundation (2022) The Professional Standards for Teachers and Trainers. London: ETF. https://www.et-foundation.co.uk/professional-standards/teachers/

Hobson, A J (2021). 'Bringing mentoring ONSIDE: averting judgementoring and enhancing the professional learning, development and well-being of teachers.' In: E.H. Reames and L.J. Searby (Eds.) The art and science of mentoring: a festschrift in honor of Dr. Frances Kochan, pp. 49-74. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

Hobson, A. (2016). Judgementoring and how to avert it: introducing ONSIDE Mentoring for beginning teachers. International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education, 5(2), 87-110.

O'Leary, M. (2022) Rethinking teachers' professional learning through unseen observation, Professional Development in Education, DOI: 10.1080/19415257.2022.2125551

Wingrove, D., Hammersley-Fletcher, L., Clarke, A., and Chester, A. (2018) Leading developmental peer observation of teaching in higher education: perspectives from Australia and England, British Journal of Educational Studies, 66 (3), pp. 365-381.

See also:

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Creating a collaborative professional learning environment - the practicalities - The Education and Training Foundation

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In the second of three articles focusing on motivating teachers to remain in Further Education and the part an alternative approach to professional development could play, Education Consultant Dr Tricia Odell explores the practicalities of introducing a collaborative approach.

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How do we motivate our teachers to stay in FE? Could an alternative approach to professional development be part of the solution? - The Education and Training Foundation

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In the first of three articles focusing on motivating teachers to remain in Further Education (FE) and the part an alternative approach to professional development could play, Education Consultant Dr Tricia Odell looks at the role of middle leaders in bringing about a cultural shift in professional learning.

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Learning Fairs for Sharing Practice and Fostering Reflections: Benefits, Models and Tips

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Learning Fairs for Sharing Practice and Fostering Reflections: Benefits, Models and Tips

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Classroom Practice Development - A Different Approach to CPD?

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Classroom Practice Development - A Different Approach to CPD?

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Sharing Practice to Reflecting on Practice: A Positive Move for CPD in FE?

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Sharing Practice to Reflecting on Practice: A Positive Move for CPD in FE?

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Thinking Cultures website and training opportunities. Based on Thinking Environment principles.

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Thinking Cultures website and training opportunities. Based on Thinking Environment principles.

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Changing the world, thought by thought...

We believe in a world where every individual's ability to think for themselves is encouraged and respected. Through our own learning and experience we know that when we embody this concept using Thinking Environment values and practice, things change for the better.

When you work in this way we know that you can become more self-aware and have better relationships. As leaders, educators, and change makers, the groups that you manage and the cultures that you create, can be healthier and more sustainable. You will definitely achieve greater focus, come to better decisions and have more successful outcomes. You can tap into the diversity and creativity of thought that brings innovation and really makes a difference. Above all, respect and trust are developed, helping you to get the best out of yourself and others.

Through our work with organisations, we have come to realise how powerful the Thinking Environment is as a lever for systems and culture change. It's an investment in people that keeps on giving in the form of trust, ideas, kindness, community and rest ... all of which lead to sustainable change.

Thinking Cultures is the place that we have created to bring people together to take part in an expert-led community dedicated to 'doing the work'... to do 'the work'! Through coaching, facilitating and teaching using the Thinking Environment approach we support your personal and professional growth.
We are aiming high, we want culture change,
but more than that, we are looking at
changing the world, thought by thought...

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Thinking Cultures is the place that we have created to bring people together to take part in an expert-led community dedicated to 'doing the work'... to do 'the work'! Through coaching, facilitating and teaching using the Thinking Environment approach we support your personal and professional growth.

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A Coaching Model Created by Grace Kong (Leadership and Executive Coach, CANADA) The Journey On the day you were born, life begins! A life which starts with a journey that takes you into a world filled with questions, unknowns, challenges, joy, memories and possibly much more. Continue…

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Reflection questions for the Coach / Mentor

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Reflection questions for the Coach / Mentor

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Building Your Reflection Practice: Self-Coaching Questions for Coaches | Institute of Coaching

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A prior Institute of Coaching Research Dose on Beautiful Coaching Questions (Cook & Moore, 2020) noted that “coaches collect great questions.” These questions are typically focused on expanding our clients’ capacity. On a recent Zoom huddle of IOC Fellows, however, we pivoted to questions that expand a coach’s capacity. In the moment, we generated and curated a diverse list of reflection questions that can deepen our awareness and effectiveness in ways that are important to us.

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Ten Components of the Thinking Environment

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Ten Components of the Thinking Environment

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Zoom recording of presentation and plenary discussions 13/03/25

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Zoom recording of presentation and plenary discussions 13/03/25

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OneDrive photos, enjoy, share & organize your photos

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Zoom Chat How do we support and enable high quality reflection with teachers 130325

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getting buy in by educating and explaining the process of coaching was a good idea.

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Giving coaches time and managing their caseloads.

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We talked about the importance of people trusting in the value of coaching. If we can give people access to high quality coaching, that energises them and helps them develop, we might be able to start building that trust. Teachers need to see the coach as someone on their side. Still wondering what the first steps are, in terms of culture and leadership.

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Learning together, both coach and coachee.

Close the loop- revisit and discuss.

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Case Study from Guernsey College on The One Thing project

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Case Study from Guernsey College on The One Thing project

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Case study recording on Thinking Environment in an FE College

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Case study recording on Thinking Environment in an FE College

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Streamline thinking. Focus on one thing rather than lots of things.

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Having enough time, choosing the right times.

Asking the right questions, adapted to the needs of the coachee and responding to emerging issues.

Using a model, e.g. GROW.

Targets/ actions.

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Time and space, regular time slots, regular coaching sessions.

Structure regarding the time is important.

Preparing self for coaching is important to be able to enable deeper reflection.

Unseen enables deeper reflection on both sides.

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This is a process we use at TGI Guernsey which works really well to support reflection.

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Cultivating a Reflective Teaching Culture in UK Schools

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IntroductionIn the fast-paced world of education, it is essential for teachers to adapt and grow continually to meet the diverse needs of their students. On

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Models of Reflective Practice – StudyPrism

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Reflective practice is a learning and development process that involves self-awareness and critical self-analysis. For an overview of reflective practice, see our comprehensive guide.

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LibGuides: Reflective Practice Toolkit: Models of reflection

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LibGuides: Reflective Practice Toolkit: Models of reflection

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Reflective Practice | Coach Advancement by Tracy Sinclair

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The term ’Reflective Practice” is being increasingly used in the context of coaching and is explicitly referenced in ICF Core Competency 2: Embodies a Coaching Mindset: “Develops an ongoing reflective practice to enhance one’s coaching”. Learning to reflect in order to improve one’s own practice is perceived as important across a range of professions, from teaching

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Submitted by Tracy Fuller May 12, 2021 - 2:37pm

A prior Institute of Coaching Research Dose on Beautiful Coaching Questions (Cook & Moore, 2020) noted that "coaches collect great questions."

These questions are typically focused on expanding our clients' capacity. On a recent Zoom huddle of IOC Fellows, however, we pivoted to questions that expand a coach's capacity.

In the moment, we generated and curated a diverse list of reflection questions that can deepen our awareness and effectiveness in ways that are important to us.

Establishing a practice of selecting, considering, and capturing our insights from reflection questions produces two powerful benefits:

1. Enabling us to continuously build our efficacy, coaching session after coaching session

2. While simultaneously strengthening our reflection-in-action skills.

Peter Jackson (2004), noted in his research on "Understanding the Experience of Experience: A Practical Model of Reflective Practice for Coaching," that,

"...structured reflection through the effect of rehearsal creates a more accessible habit or capability of reflection. This enables the individual to manage their immediate responses to events, not as a question of resolve, but because they become more able to reflect in the moment."

McKinsey (2020), also recently described several benefits at different stages of this simple but powerful practice.

"Reflection that promotes learning happens in three primary moments-before, during, and after a task.

Forecasting a cognitive task simply means looking ahead. In these moments, we are thinking ahead about how we might tackle a task, how we will approach a problem, or what we will say during a difficult conversation. We're reflecting on what's coming. This process of forecasting or planning primes us to learn.

When we reflect during an event, we can correct our course and make adjustments. We notice what is happening even as we are "in the arena" and can learn and experiment in the moment.

Finally, retrospective reflection lets us look at a past situation, consider how effective our actions were, and then project forward to how we would approach a similar event in the future."

You can use and adapt many different kinds of reflection questions:

There are broad yet beneficial questions:

What went especially well?

What didn't go as well as I'd like?

What would I do more of, less of, or differently moving forward?

What was missing?

Where could there have been a better balance? What am I noticing?

Questions based on the coach's experience:

What did the client - or this session - teach me?

Where did I do too much? Where could I have done more?

Where is my energy now? What does that tell me?

What was challenging for me?

Where did I find myself needing to self-manage?

Where did I feel constriction or judgement in myself and what brought that on?

Are there any past patterns I need to consider, for me? My client?

What assumptions did I make?

What is my gut telling me?

Questions based on different coaching skills:

What was the impact of my level of presence?

What was the impact of how I listened for potential?

How did I address inconsistencies when I sensed them?

How much did I talk vs. how much did I listen?

Did I coach the person or the problem?

How aware was I of body language and emotions? How effectively did I manage them?

How effectively did I use silence?

Where could I have encouraged more exploration?

How could I have helped the client be more courageous?

How could I have been better prepared for this session? What will I do differently as a result?

Questions based on the client's experience:

What worked particularly well for this client? How do I know this?

What's animating this coaching process for this client at a deeper level?

What new possibilities is the client recognizing?

What did the client most want to or need to achieve today?

What am I noticing is really important to this client?

What were the emotions of the client? How engaged were they feeling?

How aware is the client of potential stumbling blocks? How does this impact their progress?

Where did the client seem most alive?

Some that focus on the conversation itself:

What was most fun about this conversation?

What came up during the session that I/we didn't expect?

Where did we spend time on things that weren't essential?

Where was the deepest reflection in the conversation? Where could there have been more?

What percentage of this conversation was focused on support, what percentage on stretch?

What was intriguing about this conversation?

What new connections showed up during the session?

What metaphor would crystallize the session?

As well as some focusing on the partnership within the coaching conversation:

What forms of intelligence did we tap into?

What were we really talking about?

What was left unsaid?

What's disconnected that needs connecting?

What could we have done differently to produce a better outcome?

Are we focusing more on the negative/challenges or the positive/possibilities?

What kinds of outcomes are we most often creating? What can we learn from this?

How has our partnership evolved since the previous session?

What am I noticing is evolving over the course of our work?

What could we be ready to celebrate?

Take-Aways for Coaches

Many coaches have seen how their hard-working clients instinctively respond to complexity and change by taking action - without stepping back soon enough or often enough to gain greater clarity or insight. This can be a missed opportunity for coaches as well.

Establishing a self-coaching practice of choosing timely reflection questions and considering them after our coaching sessions can accelerate our own skill development.

This practice is an opportunity to exercise our growth mindsets and ongoing curiosity about how to become a better coach.

Our reflection questions may change, depending on our client's or our own interests and needs. Documenting our responses can help us notice patterns and develop deeper insights over time.

References:

Christensen, L., Gittleson, J., & Smith, M. (2021). The most fundamental skill: Intentional learning and the career advantage. McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/the-most-fundamental-skill-intentional-learning-and-the-career-advantage#.
Cook, A. & Moore, M. (2020). Beautiful Coaching Questions. Institute of Coaching. https://instituteofcoaching.org/resources/beautiful-coaching-questions.
Hay, J. (2015). Reflective practice and supervision for coaches. https://instituteofcoaching.org/resources/reflective-practice-and-supervision-coaches.
Jackson, P. (2015). Understanding the experience of experience: a practical model of reflective practice for Coaching. Institute of Coaching. https://instituteofcoaching.org/resources/understanding-experience-experience-practical-model-reflective-practice-coaching.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Building Your Reflection Practice: Self-Coaching Questions for Coaches

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A prior Institute of Coaching Research Dose on Beautiful Coaching Questions (Cook & Moore, 2020) noted that "coaches collect great questions." These questions are typically focused on expanding our clients' capacity. On a recent Zoom huddle of IOC Fellows, however, we pivoted to questions that expand a coach's capacity.

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Reflective Practice for Coaches: Enhancing Professional Development — CoachingSaga

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This compelling article focuses on the pivotal role of reflective practice in the evolving landscape of coaching. The piece underscores the necessity for ongoing professional development in the face of coaching’s substantial growth over the past decade. Highlighting the concept of reflective practic

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Experiential learning, the process of learning by doing, is an effective way of improving your working methods in all roles, but particularly in the education sector. In teaching, this notion is often referred to as reflective practice. Being able to continually review past lessons and improve them is beneficial not only for your own professional growth but also for your students.

In this article, we will outline what reflective practice is exactly, and why it's so important in teaching. Furthermore, we'll provide concrete examples of reflective practice in teaching along with advice on how to incorporate this technique into your role.

What is Reflective Practice?

Reflective practice is where you aim to continually improve your teaching by repeatedly reflecting on your methods, in order to ensure you're providing the best learning experience for your students.

Teaching is an extremely busy profession in which the work never really stops, and as such it can be easy to fall into the habit of reusing past lesson plans or resources time and time again to make life easier. Whilst this is completely understandable, it's not the most effective way of teaching.

Reflective practice ensures you're always evaluating past decisions in the classroom and making tweaks to improve your delivery and content, as well as tailoring your teaching to your current students as every cohort has different needs. It's an essential aspect of ongoing professional development and part of being an effective teacher.

Learn more about effective teaching and its importance in our article on What is Effective Teaching?

Importance of Reflective Practice in Teaching

As we've touched upon, reflective practice is a crucial part of being an effective teacher and ensuring you're always developing professionally to benefit both yourself and your learners. This is just touching the surface of the importance of reflective practice, however. Below are a range of other benefits reflective practice could bring to your career and your student's educational experience.

Benefits of Reflective Practice for Teachers
Increases Your Confidence as a Teacher
By reflecting on your teaching practices, you will gain a better understanding of how your students learn and what are the best ways to teach them. The more you hone your practices, the more skilled you will become at delivering lessons that suit your current cohort of learners, finding new solutions to previous problems, and becoming a more flexible teacher. Thus, you will naturally develop confidence and be assured that you're providing your students with the best education they could receive from you.
Encourages Innovation
Reflective practice enables you to experiment with new ideas and find the methods that work best for your class. By varying your approaches to teaching, students will get a richer learning experience and thus will likely become more imaginative and adaptable thinkers themselves.

Boosts Classroom Relationships
In continuously reflecting on your teaching practices, you create an environment that centres on the learner and can thus provide better support for them. Focusing on your learners as individuals and identifying their various learning styles and needs will help them to feel better understood and cared for within the classroom, tightening the bond between teacher and student and increasing mutual respect. Furthermore, reflective practice helps to create more of a partnership between teachers and their colleagues and students as you work with them to hone your teaching methods.
Enhances Problem Solving
Teaching always comes with its challenges, so knowing how to overcome these and solve problems effectively is of the utmost importance. Reflective practice can help you to improve your skills in problem solving by learning from previous experiences, or those of a colleague. By drawing on your knowledge from past situations, you will become more resourceful in knowing how to devise the right strategies to overcome any issues effectively.

Benefits of Reflective Teaching for Students
Improves Student Performance
Reflecting on your teaching practices is bound to improve the quality of your lessons over time and this will in turn impact the performance of your learners. Better teaching from you will result in them achieving higher academic results, benefiting both parties.
Increases Engagement in the Classroom
The range and variety of your teaching methods should increase with reflective practice as you experiment with which teaching methods are most effective and inspiring in your classroom. For students, this variation is likely to boost their engagement in your lessons as new ways of learning are often going to be considered more interesting and worthy of attention.

Creates a Safe and Respectful Learning Environment
Reflective teaching allows you to critically evaluate your classroom management and improve your handling of challenging behaviour. For example, you may assess your current rules and procedures to create a more positive and inclusive classroom environment overall with less disruptions. This will help to create a more productive and respectful learning experience for all students.
Fosters a Growth Mindset
As you reflect on your teaching practices and seek continual improvement, you're modelling and promoting a growth mindset for your students which will encourage them to seek their own development. Children learn by example, and thus witnessing you demonstrating reflective practice will motivate them to embrace effort, resilience and perseverance too.

Examples of Reflective Practice in Teaching

To break the idea of reflective practice down into more actionable compartments, there are four core forms of reflective practice that you can use in your teaching:

Individual Reflection

This is the most common type of reflective practice, involving thinking about your own practices and what has worked well or what could be improved. What are your strengths and weaknesses in teaching, and what can you do to better support your current students?

Students Reflections

Ultimately, it's your learner's opinions of your teaching that matters most as they're the ones at whom your lessons are aimed and for whom their quality matters most. Thus, an important aspect of reflective practice is to ask your students questions about your teaching to see what they believe does or doesn't work and what they'd like more or less of.

Inviting, engaging with and acting upon the thoughts and opinions of your learners is known as encouraging pupil voice, and this can have a myriad of benefits for an educational establishment. Learn more about pupil voice and its benefits in our article on 5 Ways to Maximise Pupil Voice.

Colleague's Reflections

One great thing about teaching is that you work as part of a team of educators, so you always have people to bounce ideas off of. You can use this to your advantage as part of reflective practice by asking your colleague's professional opinions of your teaching methods, and to compare methods and come up with the best learning solutions together.

Perhaps create a feedback form that your colleagues can fill in to provide their opinions on your teaching and offer suggestions. This could be anonymous to promote complete honesty. You can find a free template to help gather such constructive criticism in our article on A Guide to 360 Degree Feedback.

Theoretical Reflections

There are always new ideas and schools of thought being developed within the education sector and many of these are based around improving teaching practices. Engaging critically in some of these new theories could provide some inspiration and give you a new outlook on how to approach future lessons.

By using a mixture of these four methods over time, you'll achieve a broad and insightful view of your current teaching practises to help you reflect on these and move forward with implementing improvements.

How to Do Reflective Practice

Being a reflective practitioner should be an ongoing goal rather than a one-time event. Thus, it's wise to incorporate reflection into your everyday teaching practice so that it eventually becomes second nature. Here are some tips on how to get the most out of reflective practice and ensure you're continuously reaping its benefits.

Choose the Right Time

To effectively reflect on a lesson or classroom event, you need to ensure you can remember all the details of what's occurred without your judgement being clouded by your initial feelings towards it.

For example, immediately after you've finished teaching you may have a gut reaction of joy or deflation depending on how you think it went. It's best to let these initial emotions pass before you reflect, so that you can think logically through the positives and negatives of the lesson and make an unbiased judgement. Having said that, you don't want to wait too long as you may begin to forget the details of what has occurred.

Hold Yourself Accountable

Having the intention to reflect on your practices is not enough. Rather, you must ensure you're taking action to achieve an assessment of your methods. One way to hold yourself accountable is to incorporate reflective practice into your CPD hours and write down exactly how you intend to complete the activity.

A Personal Development Plan (PDP) is a great way to break down your goals (e.g. reflective practice) into actionable steps with a deadline. You can find an example PDP plan for teachers, including an editable template in our article titled Professional Development Plan for Teachers.

Be Honest With Yourself

Sometimes it can be easy to make excuses for our decisions or behaviour in order to justify them to ourselves, however this will prevent you from effectively reflecting on your practice. Being honest with what your weaknesses are and what you should have done differently is a key aspect of reflective practice and this is what will allow you to identify and implement improvements that ultimately make you a better teacher. It's okay to make mistakes as long as you learn from them, which effective reflective practice will help you achieve.

Having said this, make sure you acknowledge the positives in your teaching too and reflect on your strengths in addition to your weaknesses.

Communicate Frequently and Effectively

Reflective practice, although its title may sound solitary, is a group activity. As mentioned, two of the four principle methods of reflection involve gathering the opinions of your students and colleagues. To do this, you must be able to communicate often with them and ensure this communication is constructive and productive. Only by achieving this will you learn what you need to know to implement improvements in your teaching methods.

Learn more about how to improve your communication as a teacher in our article on Effective Communication in the Classroom: Skills for Teachers.
Reflective practice is a vital part of the teaching profession, as it is key to developing your abilities and ensuring you're educating learners to the best of your abilities. There are four main methods of reflecting on your practice, and these should be incorporated into your role habitually to ensure you're able to make continuous progress rather than a one-time improvement. Becoming a reflective practitioner will bring numerous and significant benefits to both you and your students.
Further Resources:

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What's the Importance of Reflective Practice in Teaching?

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Reflective practice is a crucial part of being an effective teacher. Find advice on how to incorporate this technique into your role here.