One instructional coach and an Administrator sit across from each other at the Instructional Coaching Institute, sharing what they're going to implement in their own coaching program.

We’ve been researching and practicing instructional coaching for 25 years

We believe coaching is the most beneficial training, leading to better teaching by educators and better learning by students.

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what do instructional coaches do?

Instructional coaches partner with teachers to help them improve teaching and learning so students are more successful. To do this, coaches collaborate with teachers to get a clear picture of current reality, identify goals, pick teaching strategies to meet the goals, monitor progress, and problem solve until the goals are met.

To put it simply… instructional coaching makes it easier for teachers to meet the needs of their students.

Need help designing a new coaching program?

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why is instructional coaching necessary?

Traditional training just isn't cutting it.

4
in
10
4 in 10 teachers leave the profession within five years
Source: The Public School Teacher Attrition Crisis
78% of U.S. schools report vacancies
Source: Learning Policy Institute: Teacher Turnover Report
78
%
$
20k
$20,000 is the average cost to replace a teacher
Source: Learning Policy Institute: The Cost of Teacher Turnover

The loss of an educator is felt system-wide.

High turnover rates reduce achievement for those students whose classrooms are directly affected, especially in high-poverty schools, where turnover-induced loss of general and grade-specific experience is the main driver of declining student achievement.

Teacher turnover harms the morale of the whole school; not only the students, but also the teachers who are left to carry the burden of teacher vacancies. It’s a hardship schools can avoid by providing better learning opportunities for their staff and ensuring they have the foundation and support in place for a successful year.

Let's develop a coaching program that supports your teachers.

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how does icg help?

We provide research-based professional development to build system-wide efficacy.

The coaching provided by the Instructional Coaching Group is tailored for educators who are designing, implementing, or overseeing a coaching program. As such, our goal is to help educators maintain successful and long-term coaching programs.

An instructional coach holds her notebook up to share with the group at the Instructional Coaching Institute.

Developing new coaching programs

We offer expert-led strategies for designing effective coaching programs from the start. If you’re designing a new program, consider participating in The Instructional Coaching Institute.

Learn more about the Institute
Two male instructional coaches sit across from each other at an ICG workshop, discussing ideas about improving their coaching programs.

Professional learning for coaches, teachers, and administrators

Our research has helped us identify several factors that are essential for developing and sustaining a great coaching program. We help organizations learn and implement these factors through workshops, coaching, consulting, and other forms of support.

Learn more about Professional Development
A young woman is intently leading a virtual consulting session on her computer.

Consulting for leaders of coaching programs

The Instructional Coaching Group's consultants have been trained directly by Jim Knight and are available to meet with districts to help create plans for developing and supporting highly effective coaching programs.

Learn more about Consulting
how does icg measure success?

When coaching is done well, it meets the 7 Success Factors

The Partnership Principles

The way we present ourselves to others—what we do and how we act—plays an important part in the strength of our relationships.

Workshop: Creating Learning Partnerships

Communication Skills

Since coaching is, above all, a series of conversations, coaches need to be effective communicators. They also need to employ effective coaching skills that reflect healthy beliefs about communication.

Workshop: Better Conversations

Coaches as Leaders

Leadership can be divided into two parts: leading yourself and leading others. To lead yourself, you must know your purpose and principles, how to use your time effectively, and how to take care of yourself. To lead others, a combination of ambition and humility is needed—to be reliable and ambitious for change but at the same time responsive to teachers.

Workshop: Better Leaders

The Impact Cycle

While every coaching situation presents unique challenges, an established process for guiding the coaching experience ensures that instructional coaches have all the tools they need to help teachers set and achieve their goals.

Workshop: The Impact Cycle

Data

Data is important within coaching because it provides a way to identify goals and monitor progress. Goals need to be measured frequently so that teachers can determine if what they are doing is working or if adjustments need to be made.

Workshop: Gathering Data

Teaching Strategies

When going through the coaching cycle, there can be so many factors at play that it’s easy to be overwhelmed. That’s why a central focus of instructional coaching is creating an Instructional Playbook to meet student-focused goals.

Workshops: High-Impact Teaching Strategies; The Instructional Playbook

System Support

When coaches flourish, it is often because they work in settings where leaders are intentional and disciplined about providing the support that is required for coaching success to occur. The opposite is also true. Without support, coaches will often struggle to have any impact at all.

Workshops: What Administrators Need to Know; Evaluating Instructional Coaching

Does your coaching program meet the 7 Success Factors?

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who is instructional coaching for?

We offer engaging programs to provide support at every level of the coaching system; we have programs for administrators, coaching champions, instructional coaches, and teachers.

Profile photo of a female educator
Administrators
A mature School Administrator smiles in front of her school building.
Coaching Champions
Profile photo of a male educator
Instructional Coaches
Profile photo of a male educator
Teachers
who leads icg consulting sessions?

Consulting is led by Jim Knight and ICG's team of consultants.

Dr. Jim Knight
Dr. Jim Knight
Founding Partner
Michelle Harris
Michelle Harris
Director of Consulting
Amy Musante
Amy Musante
Senior Consultant
Dr. Mary Webb
Dr. Mary Webb
Consultant
Dr. Jessica Wise
Dr. Jessica Wise
Consultant
Dr. Kamina Fitzgerald
Dr. Kamina Fitzgerald
Consultant

Let's design a research-based plan for developing or improving your coaching program.

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stories of impact

“This was an impactful learning experience. I was able to reflect on my own communication skills and really think about ways to improve my interaction with others.”

Director
California