Following on from our Battered, Bruised and Inadequate email we want to share a coaching tool which will help you to get the most from a feedback session – whether you’re giving or receiving the feedback. This tool offers questions to support and challenge thinking so that feedback is effective and achieves positive results WITHOUT causing major feelings of inadequacy. It encourages us to examine positive and negative aspects of feedback and link back to what we know about ourselves and what we don’t know and could do with exploring more fully.

 

 

 

	Expected	Unexpected
Positive	We often know what we do well because we receive regular positive feedback about these things. Instead of simply hearingthis praise and doing nothing with it – ask yourself these questions:   How can I celebrate this? How can I use this to further improve my practice? How can I use this to help others?	Receiving positive feedback that we don’t expect is like a surprise birthday present. After the initial joy, it’s important to examine it further by asking yourself these questions:   What am I most pleased about to hear this? How will I celebrate this? How can I build on this?
Negative	We’re often aware of some of the areas that need improvement. To apply this expected feedback and make a positive change, ask these questions:   What actions have I already taken to address this concern? How successful were those actions? What else do I need to do? If I don’t make the necessary changes, how will this impact my practice/ placement/ results?	This feedback is the most difficult to hear and understand. It can also be the source of much self-discovery, if we’re open to it. This unexpected feedback often comes from areas that we don’t want to acknowledge and can cause strong emotions. When we learn to deal with it we can take big steps forward. Ask these questions:   What other information do I need to make sense of the feedback? What support do I need to deal with the implications? What plan can I put in place to make small, achievable changes in the short term? How will improving this impact other areas of my placement or life?

 

 

 

Let us know how this works for you.

 

  

 

The Coachmark Team

 

Coachmark supports schools in achieving excellence and recognition through the use of their coaching practices. Contact us for further information: info@coachmark.org.uk

 

info@coachmark.org.uk

 

 

 

 

Vision is important. The first section of the Coachmark Criteria and Portfolio of Evidence asks for a written Vision Statement for Coaching in your school – one that has been arrived at collaboratively.

A vision galvanises people into action. It creates a point of focus and direction. It inspires and injects enthusiasm.

 

Sometimes!

 

Not always, as I’m sure you’ve experienced! A vision can be perceived as too demanding, too big, too distant and therefore not motivating. If arrived at collaboratively, a vision has a stronger chance of success because of the intellectual investment offered by participants and the value placed on each opinion.

 

What conversations and ideas are you sharing in school discussions that build a shared vision?

What understanding, skills or experience do people seek in order to be fully part of this conversation?

What is the timescale for your vision? What would the ideal be? Too close and it can seem a pressure, too far and it can lack energy and motivation.

What will be the milestones along the way? How will you share and celebrate these? What differences do you envisage as you move forward? What might the obstacles be and how would you choose to navigate and overcome them?

As you look into the future to a point where the vision has become a reality, what will you actually be seeing with regard to coaching? What will you be hearing? What will you be feeling?

We’d love to hear about your school vision for coaching and the steps, small and large, that are in place to turn this into a reality.

 

The Coachmark Team

Coachmark supports schools in achieving excellence and recognition through the use of their coaching practices. Contact us for further information: info@coachmark.org.uk

 

Nothing gets in the way of peak performance more than doubt – the little voice inside your head that says:

‘What will they think?’

‘What if it doesn’t work? What then?’

‘I don’t know what to do and everyone is looking for my lead.’

Timothy Galway (The Inner Game of Tennis/ The Inner Game of Work 1974) called these thoughts ‘interference’ – usually based in fear and doubt.

One way to increase our own performance and to support others in the same way is to reduce interference. As interference lessens, more potential becomes available to us.

Which of the following cause interference for you? Which do you notice might be hindering colleagues?

Fear? Lack of self-confidence? Trying for perfection? Anger? Resentment?

A powerful way to reduce interference is to focus your attention on what you ‘re currently doing and on what’s going well. Focus on strengths and solutions rather than the ‘What if’ anxious thinking that may be currently swirling around in your head. Start to notice where things are going well and how you can build on this. Notice what your strengths are and put them into practice more of the time. Reframe the interference. Once you’ve taken note of any negativity and reflected on where this might be the voice of caution speaking, choose to look at things from a different angle and ‘flip’ the thinking, eg:

From ‘What will they think?’ to ‘What positive things will they think?’, ‘What positive results might come from this?’

From ‘What if it doesn’t work? What then?’ to ‘What if this works brilliantly? What will happen then?’

From ‘I don’t know what to do and everyone is looking for my lead.’ To ‘Everyone is looking for my lead because I’m best placed to know what to do and which choices to make.’ Or simply ‘I know what to do.’

Play with your words so that they work for you – sometimes when we ‘flip’ a thought it becomes too strong, in which case tweak it instead so that it becomes a milder, non-critical thought.

We’d love to hear from you!

 

 

The Coachmark Team

Coachmark supports schools in achieving excellence and recognition through the use of their coaching practices. Contact us for further information: info@coachmark.org.uk

Congratulations to all at West Ewell Infant and Nursery School in Surrey for retaining the highly-valued Coachmark Gold Award!

 

 

 

The school is an inspiring 4 form entry infant school and nursery with a preschool and infant specialist centre for children with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN).

 

 

 

The minute you walk into the school you feel a sense of purpose, positivity and togetherness. The coaching vision for the school can be seen in every aspect of school life and creates a really positive environment. The coaching ethos and approach is described as ‘revealing’, ‘exciting’, challenging’, ‘focused’, ‘reflective’, ‘decisive’, ‘valuable’, ‘beneficial’. The vision: ‘To further develop our coaching culture at all levels. To strive continuously to self improve, challenge and exceed expectations’ underpins the school Mission Statement which led to the creation of their unique School Promise:

 

 

 

The Children’s Promise:

 

 

 

I will always try my best and never give up.

 

 

 

I will treat my friends and teachers with kindness and respect.

 

 

 

I will have the confidence to try new things and find the answers for myself.

 

 

 

The Teachers’ Promise:

 

 

 

I will inspire, motivate and challenge.

 

 

 

I will always aim for excellence.

 

 

 

I will seek the best for every child.

 

 

 

Coaching is fully embedded at West Ewell Infant School and Nursery and simply a way of life at all levels. In line with the promises, the school regularly explores how it can continue to improve as a whole school and is not afraid to challenge or change as a result – everyone has a voice, including most importantly of all, the children.

 

 

The Coachmark Team

Coachmark supports schools in achieving excellence and recognition through the use of their coaching practices. Contact us for further information: info@coachmark.org.uk

 

 

Part of the Coachmark application process is to complete the Coachmark ‘Criteria and portfolio of Evidence’. This document has been designed to support you in evaluating, celebrating and developing your school’s coaching practice and will assist you in achieving the highest standards in coaching at Bronze, Silver and Gold levels.

A highly effective method of evidence collection is to gather views from colleagues via a survey. Even better if the survey can be completed anonymously. In this way colleagues will give their honest opinions and you will have a snapshot of how well this approach is working.

We’d like to share a free tool that you can use for this purpose:

It’s a FREE and easy-to-use, online survey tool. You can create your own simple survey and then invite participants to log on and complete it. Surveys are VERY easy to create.

It works well to conduct a survey at the beginning of a stage in your coaching journey and do the same again further down the line. This gives a real insight into the changes that result and the impact of coaching on individuals, teams and the whole school.

We’d love to hear how this works for you.

The Coachmark Team

Coachmark supports schools in achieving excellence and recognition through the use of their coaching practices. Contact us for further information: info@coachmark.org.uk