Implement strategies for initiating and sustaining technology innovations and manage the change process in schools and classrooms
ISTE Coaching Standards (2014)
Resonant Idea: Managing the Change Process
As described in my description of Indicator 1c, coaches help make a district’s technology vision a reality in the field – and the job is endless. Technology tools get updated and district contracts or policies change, sometimes requiring teachers to alter their classroom practices. Or innovative teachers find new digital tools that they want to try and it’s up to the coach to figure out whether the tool fits with the policies and strategies defined by the district. All these scenarios represent change. And when things change, support is needed for a smooth transition.
Managing the Change Process
Change is particularly difficult for classroom teachers who need to balance student needs, teaching standards, and administrator and contract requirements (just to name a few). Many educators are risk averse (see Culture and Technology-Enhanced Instructional Practice), but can be helped by administrators who scaffold new initiatives and also signal that it’s OK to fail, as long as lessons can be learned. Risk can be minimized by going slowly with new technology, running pilot programs, getting feedback from a variety of users, and leveraging teacher innovators to model and train more reluctant educators as described in Leveraging the Power of Innovators and Early Adopters.
Protocols and Professional Development
Another way coaches can help teachers deal with change is by using protocols so that educators have a predictable format and safe space to explore changes to their teaching practices, as described in my post Protocols: Safe Haven for Discussion. Though I was initially skeptical of the rigid format of education protocols, I’ve come to recognize their power to build relationships between teachers and encourage change, while respecting the limited time and bandwidth educators have for both.
Providing high-quality professional development and resources is also a key way that coaches can ease the strain of changes in ed tech. Giving teachers access to hands-on, timely PD that is relevant to their classroom practices is essential. Coaches can also point teachers to online resources so they can explore and collaborate on their own schedule, as described in my post Online Methods Support Effective Professional Development.
