Each progression will spotlight the basketball court, the classroom, and a brief editorial by me. Enjoy!

As a basketball coach the preseason and tryouts lay the groundwork for the entire season. It’s at this time where the coaches assess individual strengths and weaknesses, as well as team strengths and weaknesses. After this assessment, the coaching staff comes together and develops plans for individual skill development, team building, and offensive and defensive strategy. The goal of this plan is to develop players and ultimately win as many games as possible. This plan is then shared with the team and each player individually, discussing what skills need to be developed and what their role on the team will be.

I think this is a missing component of instruction in many classrooms. Do we pre-assess and develop an instructional plan for each student and the class? Do we have candid conversations with our students about what skills need to be developed for the class to be successful and for individual success?

To be successful on the basketball court, skilled players matter, but being prepared and multifaceted allows for the coach to make adjustments when faced with adversity. Practice is the time to make sure your team is prepared to be successful in the next game and for the season in general. Practice is a mix of individual skill work, followed by team drill work. The next phase of practice usually involves some sort of controlled scrimmage that emphasizes an offensive or defensive strategy, directly impacted by the skill set of the team and it’s individual players. Depending on the success of the scrimmage, coaches may revisit skill/drill work to turn weaknesses into strengths. After practice, the team will then watch film, either together or individually, to get feedback from the scrimmage or the past game, and have further discussions on how the team, and it's players, can be successful.

As educators, do we teach a lesson the same way every year or do we change based on the needs of our class and students? Do we give a “controlled scrimmage” or formative assessment mid-lesson to see what skills or drills need to be revisited? Do we use digital tools to give and receive feedback from students outside of class? As a coach, the feedback loop is equally as important as skill/drill work. As an educator, is time for feedback given the same priority as the content?

Game day is stressful, it’s where the coach finds out if their practice plan leads their team and individuals to success. Before the game, the coach develops and shares a game plan that attempts to leverage the skills of individual players and the team. Once the game begins, the coaching staff is constantly looking at statistics and talking about what is and isn't’ working. While on the bench, during time-outs, and at halftime, players are given feedback and the game plan is adjusted for the team, and players, to be successful. While all of this is going on, the coach also needs to worry about substituting players into the game. The game plan or play calling is adjusted to the team that is on the floor, leveraging the skills that players have. Ultimately, putting a player in a position to be successful. There also comes a point in the game, were the players just need to play. This allows for the coach to see what situations players put themselves into and what success they have.

Why is it when a team loses, the coach and players get scrutinized...when a student fails a test, who gets scrutinized? Why don’t we allow for “in game adjustments” on an assessment? Do all kids get the same assessment, regardless of skill set and need?

The post game locker room talk! This is where the coach gives immediate feedback to what was successful in the game and to what needs improvement. Coaches then meet with individual players to talk about their play in the game. That night or in the near future, the coaching staff watches film and identifies what skill/drill work needs to be done by individuals and by the team in order to be successful in the future.

I think this is another step that many of us miss, me included, in instruction. We give a test and then move on. Do we talk with our class and individual students about what was difficult or easy on an assessment and why? Do we share/compare our results with our grade level or course alike teachers to develop and adjust future lessons?

The purpose of this blog is to generate thought around what we can and should do, not on what we don't do. Data and formative assessment tools are readily available for us to not only give real-time feedback to our students, but to adjust our instruction to their needs to be successful. As a coach, using data to adjust my strategy in order to win more games truly was the only way I was going to be successful...unless Giannis Antetokounmpo transferred to our school!

My hope is that as being responsive to data becomes easier in education, more of us will "Teach As A Coach" and our students will become CHAMPIONS!