When observing teachers planning lessons and teaching we saw that they invested large amounts of time in pondering many problems. By supporting teachers -through asking open-ended questions, we helped them focus on what was important to them, describing desirable solutions and choosing strategies that could move them ahead - we noticed they found their own solutions, this time and next time.
We use a website to connect teachers in coaching relationships with volunteer, certified coaches. After an orientation meeting, they can have up to four meetings online, via Zoom or similar, where the teacher can experience being coached, expressing their struggles and desires in a wide range of situations, not only from their work.
We ask for no payment. We do ask for feedback from the teacher. Here is one:
"A lot of people in life offer help and advice but very few people ask questions like a coach does. This is what a lot of us need sometimes. All in all, I highly recommend the profound help the C4E Coaching Programme offers educators at a crossroads. Coaching can resuscitate people's spirits and wake up self-awareness and nurture your self-esteem.
Coaching is really collaborative and allows one to deeply inquire and gain greater self-awareness and confidence in carrying out the path as an educator and facilitator of learning.
Deep down, I knew this would be worth it."
We have used our existing contacts on LinkedIn and Facebook to connect with teachers and coaches who we then invite to orientation meetings.
From 2019 to 2021 we have coached over 150 teachers, most of whom have given us feedback. All the feedback is posted on our website.
During 2021, we have been building a much larger website to replace the old hand-made website so that we can handle tens of thousands of coaching relationships in the next 3-5 years.
Go to www.coaching4educators.org and attend one of the "Listening from the Heart" onboarding webinars.
