Coaches may use teachers’ performance data to understand professional needs (e.g., gaps in content knowledge, misunderstandings in content or instructional practices). Coaches can use content-focused language to increase teachers’ domain specific knowledge. Content-focused language is any reference to a learning domain, like language, literacy, or classroom management, OR specific areas within a learning domain like phonological awareness, room arrangement, or warm and responsive behaviors. The coach can include language from a variety of sources (e.g., trainings/workshops, courses, standards, learning guidelines) during conversations with teachers. Coaches can also connect content-focused language with the learning objectives of specific lessons activities. Teachers need to have domain specific knowledge to understand why and how specific activities support targeted skills. This can help teachers to better understand and respond to children’s learning needs.
Consider using the following competencies to help teachers increase domain-specific knowledge:
- Use content-focused language that refers to key learning objectives during feedback conversations (coach has to use domain specific language)
- Refer to behaviors or standards within observational/program assessment tools used to track practitioner’s performance in order to reinforce the connection between practitioner’s performance data and implementation
- Summarize events or interactions to allow ample time for discussion and back-and-forth conversation
- Respond sensitively to practitioner’s comments and questions
- Provide positive encouragement to motivate the practitioner to try new strategies and/or practices or persist when implementation challenges arise
- Use content-focused language that references key learning objectives during feedback conversations (coach has to use domain specific language)
Mentoring Prompts
- “Based on your performance data, I noticed there are a few areas that we can build on…”
- “The lesson objective should be aligned to content standards, so let’s look at the content standards for this domain.”
- “Another great thing to think about is when we structure the lesson and the pacing to meet the needs of children.”
- “Another good way for us to think about the flow of the lesson is to notice the sequence of the lesson and how we can scaffolded.”
- “In what ways are other disciplines integrated and supported?”
- “Are there any areas or domains you feel you are struggling with?”