What’s a Learning Coach?

A learning coach is not a teacher. Most public-school teachers utilize lesson planning, which includes instructional strategies, to present a state-approved curriculum to their students. Most of those strategies are judged successful or not by a state-approved standardized test at the end of a teaching cycle, usually 36 weeks.

A learning coach creates a learning plan to begin their educational relationship with their young learner or learners. Whereas the traditional teacher develops a lesson plan for 25 to 30 students, a learning coach develops a learning plan for each of their young learners. Sometimes we see this in the traditional school setting with special education students, where the teacher, along with the parent, develops what is known as an individualized educational plan, or an IEP. Rarely, though, do you see individualized educational plans inside the traditional regular classroom.

Although we have covered the learning plan process in another article, let’s do a quick review. The learning plan process:

1. begins with a needs assessment to determine where the learner currently is regarding reading, writing, problem-solving, and learning skills.
2. asks the learner “What would you like to spend some time learning?”
3. asks the learner to define what they would like to learn in the areas of reading, writing, oral communication, problem-solving in mathematics, science, and social studies, and learning characteristics, sometimes called “habits of the mind.”
4. asks the learner how they will know if they have learned what they wanted to learn within the skill areas listed above.
5. asks the learner what types of interventions will be needed if the learner doesn’t learn what they want to learn, and what types of celebrations and adjustments will happen if they do learn what they want to learn.
6. emphasizes the learning cycle of defining, planning, executing, and evaluating every learning goal created.

Initially, the coach leads the learning plan process. Eventually, though, the learner themselves take over the planning process from the coach. The coach then becomes a critical supporter as the young learner begins to plan their own learning.

In addition to leading the learning plan process, a great learning coach should:

• demonstrate the ability to build relationships with young learners and their families
• be able to help young learners resource their own learning by being well-versed about the expertise and information available around the world to help the young learner meet their learning goals
• be able to lead assessment interviews and facilitate other assessment practices to make sure the young learner is on track with their learning
• be able to adjust the learning plan based on successes or struggles
• be able to create and maintain a budget to support learning plan execution
• be able to lead decision-making processes involving the young learner and their learning plan, which should include the young learner’s family
• be familiar with state and local policies regarding young learners

A more detailed learning coach job description can be found here.

Learning coaches come in two varieties, and those varieties follow a model already established in modern-day medical practice.

The primary learning coach (Plc) handles all general responsibilities noted on the young learner’s plan. The Plc monitors learning plan progress on a daily basis. Sometimes Plc’s have either a literacy or numeracy specialization, but not always.

The specialist learning coach (Slc) supports the young learner when something on their learning plan requires an expertise the Plc cannot provide. A few examples of Slc’s would be someone who has calculus expertise, a choir director, or an athletic coach.

Learning coaches usually lead between 10-20 young learners. Depending on the cost per learner, learning coaches can make a salary between $70,000 to $100,000. With training, learning coaches can build and be responsible for the learning cohort’s annual budget. When needed, the Plc can access budgeted funds to pay for Slc learning time. Spending is driven by the cohort learning plans. If it’s not in the plan, then money can’t be spent. This relationship between learner needs and available funding is rarely seen within the traditional public school system.

The major challenge facing the learning coach position today is lack of training. Few higher education institutions are interested in supporting this type of training. As a university dean of education once said, “Scott, school districts aren’t interested in hiring learning coaches. They are in the business of hiring teachers, so that’s what my college of education is committed to providing.”

But learning coaches are out there. We hired two excellent performers when my team launched a personalized lab school in the Houston Museum District several years ago. One was a literacy expert and the other led problem-solving learning (including mathematics.) They were gifted in relationship building, with both young learners and their families, creating and monitoring learning plans, assessing learning using multiple strategies, building a budget and learning system that met the needs of their young learners, and practicing decision-making that always put the learner and their plan to the forefront.

I’ve also seen some so-called learning coaches struggle mightily. These folks just didn’t understand their role from the beginning. They behaved like teachers, feeling the need to be the “sage on the stage.” They didn’t trust the process by which the learner and their needs are the adult learning leader’s greatest concern. Often, they spoke down to the learner, and their family, because they saw themselves as the professional educator in the room, and felt it was their responsibility to make decisions for their young learners. These people failed as learning coaches because they didn’t see it as their role to build learning capacity within their young learners. They just didn’t understand that the process wasn’t about them – it was about the young learner and their training to own their own learning.

And, you know what they say about owning your own learning – once you own your own learning, no one can ever take that power away from you. It really is the civil right of the 21^st century, don’t you think?

Til tomorrow. SVB