Buses and which Coaching and Mentoring course?
Buses and which Coaching and Mentoring course?

Buses and which Coaching and Mentoring course?

Things comes in threes. (Right @Leah_moo?)

Like snow storms, keynoters stuck at the train station and lost room keys (the only room in the hotel with an old fashioned key).

What about the Early Careers Framework (ECF), new NPQ qualifications and link to “Coaching for Success?

Under the ECF new teachers will receive a structured, consistent and coherent induction period, with the aim of establishing the foundations of career in teaching.

In a nutshell, £130 million a year for mentoring, full framework training programmes, free curricula and training materials, and 5% off-timetable for second year teachers. Upstreaming.

Surely this is a wiser that losing a fifth of teachers, within two years that you have just spent, on average £23,000 (The Institute for Fiscal Studies) training?

Then came the night bus. Five new national professional qualifications (NPQs) and a further £20 million in scholarships to encourage the take-up of the qualifications. I was particularly interested in the “teacher developer” NPQ that will support the roll-out of the ECF.

Then lastly, a link to Coaching for success: The Key ingredients for coaching delivery and coach recruitment. It speaks of emerging, if unregulated field that can have

…significant and positive effects on coachees’ performance and goal attainment, as well as skills, attitudes and well-being. 

Just what we want for our new teachers?

I have reflected on my own career professional development and I have
lamented on my professional awareness and engagement with Coaching. If education is about to embark on a greater investment in it’s workforce, then Coaching has to play a part?

Which coaching course

Coaching is an unregulated business, which is surprising given the great responsibility that a coach has to keep a coachee safe. Coachees are precious human beings that have their own values, beliefs and life experience within them and there is a real risk that an untrained coach could lead them to outcomes that are inappropriate or distressing for them.  I would certainly recommend that anyone wanting to learn how to be a coach chooses a course that is underpinned by one of the leading awarding bodies such as the ILM, the UK’s top leadership and management qualifications specialist. This will ensure that the course is thorough and of high quality in order to meet the awarding body’s exacting standards thus enabling coaches to safeguard their coachees and help them achieve the goals they want.

When choosing a course, the first thing to consider is the reason that a person wants to undertake a coaching course and where they want to be on completion of the course. – Jane Suter Coach and owner of Red Tiger Consultancy

Now, I am writing this, because I am proposing such a course would underpin the role of “teacher developer,” that will support the roll-out of the ECF?

ILM Coaching and Mentoring Qualification courses are at 3 different levels:

  • Effective Coaching Level 3 – equivalent to A level.
  • Effective Coaching and Mentoring Level 5 – equivalent to Foundation Degree.
  • Executive and Senior Level Coaches and Mentors Level 7 – equivalent to Masters Degree.

The higher the level of the course, the more demanding the course assessments become, requiring deeper levels of study and increased amounts of coaching practice. Let’s hope the “teacher developer” role is given the support and training it needs, to ultimately retain more teachers to the profession. Let’s hope we see teachers in schools with Level 5 coaching accreditation.

Which coaching course for teachers or educator? I will always be thankful of Jane Suter’s honest and informed council. Connect with Jane here – @Jane_RTC or visit Red Tiger Consultancy.

Leave a Reply