Rehearsing Instruction in One-on-one Mathematics Coaching
Keywords:
mathematics coaching, instructional coaching, teacher professional development, teacher learning, rehearsalAbstract
While there is evidence that rehearsing instruction with groups of teachers can support their learning, whether this is the case in one-on-one coaching settings remains largely unexplored. In this exploratory self-study, I examined my coaching work with a cadre of mathematics teachers to determine whether and how rehearsing instruction in one-on-one coaching provides individual teachers with opportunities to learn. I found that rehearsing instruction during one-on-one planning conversations can give rise to teacher learning opportunities. Three features of the rehearsal activity appeared central to the learning opportunities: (a) framing the instructional situation so that the teacher understands the context for the rehearsal, (b) acting out a range of student solution strategies during the rehearsal, and (c) analysing and discussing specific instructional decisions the teacher made while rehearsing instruction. This work contributes to research on coaching by clarifying that rehearsals can be potentially productive one-on-one coaching activities and by highlighting what is involved in incorporating rehearsals into one-on-one coaching with mathematics teachers.
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