Why Coaching?

The rapid pace of advancements in technology present ongoing challenges for educators. While teachers concentrate on pedagogical approaches, Digital Learning Coaches can support them by staying up-to-date on emerging technological trends, addressing student privacy concerns, and mastering new technology programs. By serving as a liaison between educators, curriculum departments and the IT departments, coaches help bridge the divide between these crucial areas.

Digital Learning Coaches help teachers incorporate technology into their instructional design strategies and maximize the effective uses (and investments) of technology, a crucial component in today's digital age. With a growing number of industries requiring an understanding and mastery of technology, it is essential for students to possess these skills after graduation. Kentucky legislation created a regulation for the Kentucky Academic Standards for Technology for students, providing a comprehensive roadmap for the effective use of technology in schools. These standards are aligned with the ISTE standards for students. Digital Learning Coaches assist with the implementation and integration of these standards.

Digital Learning Coaching can aid educators in ensuring that the technology they use is preparing students for the future. By fostering a culture of learning among adults, coaching leads to improved student achievement and job-embedded, real-time, and sustained professional development. Unlike traditional professional development, which is typically delivered to groups at the same pace, coaching can be personalized to meet individual teachers' technology integration goals, resulting in more effective professional development outcomes.

According to Joyce and Showers (2002), professional growth is more likely to result in practical application for classroom educators when it is accompanied by coaching. Digital Learning Coaches concentrate on enhancing the abilities of educators, leading to an increase in student performance.

As Jim Knight explains in his publication "Instructional Coaching: A Partnership Approach to Improving Instruction," substantial support for professional development can lead to a high rate of teacher engagement and implementation of programs aimed at enhancing student learning experiences. “The challenge for educational leaders, then, is to create and deploy professional development that makes it easier for teachers to implement change initiatives" (Knight). A Digital Learning Coach serves as an integral part of this process.

How can Digital Learning Coaches help district and school leaders?

• Support district initiatives

• Support the selection and use of high-quality instructional resources

• Support and assist implementing concepts on CSIPs and CDIPs

• Collaborate on the design and implementation of the district's Ed Tech Plan

• Identify classroom trends and provide suggestions and support in a non-evaluative method

• Bridge the gap between district/ school leaders and teachers

• Support and drive decision making based on implementation data (including programmatic/ process data, integrity/ fidelity data, and impact/ outcome data) 

• Build positive relationships with district and school leaders that enhance interpersonal skills and communication

How can Digital Learning Coaches help teachers?

• Provide short- and long-term coaching cycles to identify problems of practice, select a protocol or strategy, implement the protocol via personalized roll-outs, iterate, and reflect on the process

• Assist teachers with ongoing and continuous practices on specific goals in a non-evaluative setting

• Identify classroom trends and needs and provide suggestions and support to meet their learning goals

• Improve teaching practices, with an emphasis on those that are shown to be highly effective

• Improve learner outcomes by implementing highly effective strategies, systems and protocols

• Informal opportunities for teachers to observe exemplary teachers and receive actionable, content or learning-specific feedback from experts, during classroom instruction, with customized feedback sessions happening during planning periods or immediately following the lesson

• Develop teacher competencies on resource/tool selection,  collaboration, communication, creativity, critical thinking, digital citizenship, computational thinking, differentiating instruction for the learner, providing vibrant and deeper student learning experiences, and helping educators embrace a shift to student agency

• Bridge the gap between teachers and district/ school leaders

• Provide customized professional development experiences

• Assist teachers with disaggregating data and providing effective feedback that is specific, positive and timely 

• Drive decision making based on data collection for students

• Build positive relationships with teachers that enhance interpersonal skills and communication

How are Digital Learning Coaches linked to the Kentucky Department of Education's Master Plan?

• Collaborative Leadership - KETS Guiding Principle: Collaborative leadership creates a shared vision of digital teaching and learning, an environment of collaboration (where partners make stuff together), encourages embracing innovation and empowerment, and a culture of evidence-based systems and processes. (page 23)

• Robust Infrastructure and Ecosystem - KETS Guiding Principle: A robust infrastructure delivers the device, identity, network, leadership, and support needs of staff and students to create personalized learning environments using digital tools and resources. Continue to provide digital equity and foster a culture of digital connectedness for students and staff by ensuring easy access to a 1:1 device assignment, prioritizing mobile devices over traditional computer labs, and providing consistent Wi-Fi coverage throughout the schools. This approach emphasizes always-on, everywhere seamless digital opportunity and access, and includes an emphasis on empowering schools/districts to have a full understanding of digital access beyond the campus. (pages 23-24)

• Digital Learning, Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment - KETS Guiding Principle: A digital learning experience is fostered by a teacher or coach with the use of rich digital instructional materials that are vetted to the rigor of Kentucky Academic Standards (KAS). A robust digital environment provides the students with the opportunity to assess their own learning/progress toward mastery of content/skills or utilize instructional technology to provide timely feedback that moves learning forward. Digital curriculum and instruction can also provide students the opportunity to create digital products showcasing a deep understanding of core competencies of every subject, demonstrating mastery of KAS for Technology and utilizing digital collaboration tools that provide a realistic connection to postsecondary and career readiness. Continue to promote, for ALL students, the use of Kentucky-approved/adopted KAS for Technology, KAS for Computer Sciences, and KAS for Library Media Learning (all based on national and international learner standards). (page 28)

• Personalized Professional Learning - KETS Guiding Principle: Digital learning expands the access to quality strategies and experiences for educators beyond the traditional methods of professional development. A culture of digital collaboration, workflow and relationships allows educators to build skill sets and instructional best practices with colleagues globally. This approach of increased access and flexibility for professional learning ultimately leads to greater success for students. Continue to build a culture of digital collaboration and connected digital relationships that allow administrators to support and encourage the use of digital tools by staff for professional learning. Continue to promote and support the design and implementation of coaching models as a high-quality professional learning strategy (digital learning coach network). (page 29)