Coaching educational leadership : building leadership capacity through partnerships

215 Pages·2008·2.315 MB·English

by  Jan Robertson

Coaching Educational

Leadership

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Published in association with the British Educational Leadership,
Management and Administration Society.
This series of books published for BELMAS aims to be directly
relevant to the concerns and professional development needs of
emergent leaders and experienced leaders in schools.
Titles include:
Managing Special and Inclusive Education
By Steve Rayner (2007)
How Very Effective Primary Schools Work (2006)
By Chris James, Michael Connolly and Gerald Dunning

Educational Leadership: Personal Growth for Professional
Development (2004)
By Harry Tomlinson
Developing Educational Leadership: Using Evidence for Policy
and Practice (2003)
By Lesley Anderson and Nigel Bennett
Performance Management in Education: Improving Practice (2002)

By Jenny Reeves, Pauline Smith, Harry Tomlinson and Christine Ford
Strategic Management for School Development: Leading Your
School’s Improvement Strategy (2002)
By Brian Fidler
Subject Leadership and School Improvement (2000)
By Hugh Busher and Alma Harris with Christine Wise
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Coaching Educational
Leadership
Building Leadership Capacity
through Partnership
JAN ROBERTSON

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© Jan Robertson 2008
First published 2008
Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or
criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents
Act, 1988, this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any
form, or by any means, only with the prior permission in writing of the
publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction, in accordance
with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency.
Enquiries concerning reproduction outside those terms should be sent
to the publishers.
SAGE Publications Ltd
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London EC1Y 1SP
SAGE Publications Inc.
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Thousand Oaks, California 91320
SAGE Publications India Pvt Ltd
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SAGE Publications Asia-Pacifi c Pte Ltd
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Singapore 048763

Library of Congress Control Number: 2007939520
British Library Cataloguing in Publication data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978-1-84787-403-0
ISBN 978-1-84787-404-7 (pbk)

Typeset by C&M Digitals (P) Ltd., Chennai, India
Printed in Great Britain by The Cromwell Press Ltd, Trowbridge, Wiltshire
Printed on paper from sustainable resources
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To my daughter, my sister and my mother—my coaches,
my heroes, my friends.

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“An accessible read with insights for all leaders who want to continue to grow
professionally.”
Lorna M. Earl, PhD, Aporia Consulting
“This is a welcome and timely contribution for leaders every where.”
Louise Stoll, Visiting Professor, Institute of Education, University of London
“Your leadership [coaching] programme has fi rstly had me refl ect on my current
beliefs and practice, then challenge me through research and debate to develop
further as a leader … The whole process has got me away from an emphasis on
management and a far better appreciation of the potential growth infl uence I
can generate from being the school’s educational leader. Thank you.”
Garry De Thierry, Principal, Rotorua Intermediate School, New Zealand

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Contents
Foreword . ...................................................................................xi
Preface ..... ..................................................................................xv
Developing ideas .................................................................xvi
The structure of the book ...................................................xix
A little more explanation ....................................................xxi
PART ONE: THEORY
CHAPTER 1 Introduction
Chapter overview ...................................................................3
What is coaching and why coaching? ....................................4
The need for relevance and challenge ...................................6
The leadership development context today ..........................7
Key principles and ideas ........................................................8
The development of the coaching model ...........................10
Are the benefi ts ongoing? ....................................................16
Summary of main points .....................................................18
CHAPTER 2 The concept and role of educational leadership
Chapter overview .................................................................19
Developing educational leadership .....................................20
The qualities of the educational leader ...............................21
Coaching and the present-day reality of leadership ...........24

Summary of main points .....................................................28
CHAPTER 3 Learning for leadership
Chapter overview .................................................................29
The importance of lifelong learning ...................................30
Uncovering the educational platform .................................30
Experiential learning ............................................................32
Thinking about learning ......................................................34
Co-constructing knowledge ................................................36
Crossing borders ..................................................................37
Professional development considerations ..........................38
Summary of main points .....................................................40
vii
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CHAPTER 4 The value of shared learning:
Confi rmation from the research
Chapter overview .................................................................41
Educational leadership development and capability..........42
Critical refl ection on practice ..............................................46
Increased professional interactions .....................................48
A framework for research and development ......................53
Summary of main points .....................................................53
CHAPTER 5 Action research and coaching
Chapter overview .................................................................55
Action research defi ned .......................................................56
Theoretical constructs .........................................................56
Guiding principles ...............................................................57
Action research in action .....................................................60
Coaching action research .....................................................63
An action research case study: Coaching towards
a shared vision ..............................................................64
Summary of main points .....................................................70
PART TWO: PRACTICE
CHAPTER 6 Getting underway
Chapter overview .................................................................73
Developing the partnership .................................................74
The coaching sessions ..........................................................78
The developing relationship ................................................80

Case study: Snapshots of a developing relationship ...........84
Summary of main points .....................................................88
CHAPTER 7 Coaching the skills that build trust
and understanding
Chapter overview .................................................................89
Active listening .....................................................................90
Refl ective interviewing .........................................................99
Context interviewing .........................................................103
Summary of main points ...................................................107
viii COACHING EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP
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CHAPTER 8 Coaching the skills that move leaders forward
Chapter overview ...............................................................109
Self-assessment ...................................................................110
Goal setting and action planning ......................................112
Observing and describing leadership practice..................116
Giving evaluative feedback ................................................120
Understanding the change process arising out of
action research .............................................................123
Summary of main points ...................................................125
CHAPTER 9 Troubleshooting and monitoring the coaching
relationship
Chapter overview ...............................................................127
Diffi culties ..........................................................................128
Counter-measures: The art of critically refl ecting on
the coaching relationship ............................................133
Summary of main points ...................................................135
CHAPTER 10 Facilitating coaching
Chapter overview ...............................................................137
Facilitative roles within the context of coaching ..............138
The different roles ..............................................................139
Summary of main points ...................................................149
CHAPTER 11 Leaders coaching leaders
Chapter ov erview ...............................................................151
Three case studies ...............................................................152
Summary of main points ...................................................160
CHAPTER 12 Developing agency
Chapter overview ...............................................................161
From apolitical to political ................................................162
Case study: One principal’s stand .....................................165
Commentary ......................................................................168
Summary of main points ...................................................169
Contents ix
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