An ASCD Study Guide for Building Teachers' Capacity for Success

Most of the questions contained in this study guide are ones you can think about on your own, but you might consider pairing with a colleague or forming a study group with others who have read (or are reading) Building Teachers' Capacity for Success.

Chapter 1: Strength-Based School Improvement

1. Consider the conversations you've participated in, overheard, or even led about school reform. How often has stuff (programs, materials, or anything else arriving in glitzy packaging) been touted as the savior? What are the arguments in favor or spending school-improvement dollars on such items? How do you respond to those arguments?
2. On page 13, the authors write, "Teachers are the field agents of educational change." In your experience, how often (and to what extent) do teachers have a voice in the direction of change? How often are teachers the directors of change?
3. Think back about your own schooling experiences. Which teachers do you remember? Why do you remember them? Who inspired you the most? What characteristics did that teacher (or teachers) have? What other factors in your schooling were essential to further your pursuit of education?

Chapter 2: The Coach–Administrator Partnership

1. The term professional learning community is one that we all understand … to a point. To what extent is the PLC concept alive and well in your school or district? Does everyone in your school/district share a common understanding of the term? What are some of the key elements of a PLC that affect each individual teacher in the building?
2. If you were to sit down and write the job description of an instructional coach prior to reading this chapter, what duties would it include? What about the job description of a school administrator?
3. Have a second look at Figure 2.2 (page 22). Do these responsibilities make sense to you? Do any of them catch your attention? Why? Is anything missing? In the wrong column? Why do you think so?
4. As you read the descriptions of the administrator and coach responsibilities, do you recognize the need to mind the "Distinct" subset? The authors imagine a tall, barbed wire fence separating the two. What happens if an administrator or coach "crosses the fence" with one of these distinct responsibilities? Are there occasions that such straying would not be damaging? Why or why not?
5. What are some actions that an administrator can take to maintain a strong and healthy partnership with a coach?
6. What are some actions that a coach can take to maintain a strong and healthy partnership with an administrator?

Chapter 3: Introduction to the Coach's Role

1. When was the last time you made a significant change in your life—personally or professionally? What was the reason for making this change? Was anyone other than yourself involved in the process? What role did they play?
2. Write down the names of three people with whom you have a close relationship. How do those relationships influence you on a daily, weekly, yearly basis?
3. Now consider the three names you've just written down. List a few characteristics that are unique about your relationship with each of these people. How do you think these characteristics relate to the interpersonal skills that an instructional coach must have when building relationships with his or her colleagues?
4. Define self-reflection in your own words. How might self-reflection and classroom effectiveness be linked?
5. Draw a simple T-chart on a sheet of paper. Compare and contrast the outcomes of a coach whose focus is to get teachers to use best-practice instructional strategies and a coach whose focus is to lead teachers to self-reflect on their instructional strategies.
6. Consider "the bus question" on page 35. How are the teachers you work with better off for having worked with you? Has your coaching helped them to embrace meaningful change, build their capacity, increase their instructional skill, and strengthen their self-reflective tendencies? What evidence do you have?

Chapter 4: The Coaching Framework

1. Look over the Continuum of Self-Reflection on pages 41–42. At first glance, what jumps out at you? On a piece of paper, list the four stages of self-reflection and the capacity-building goal for each stage.
2. How might identifying a teacher's state of self-reflection help the coach and administrator fulfill their roles?
3. Reread the first paragraph on page 40 aloud. Each time you come to the word "stage" use the phrase "state of mind" instead. Why is it important to view each stage on the Continuum as a state of mind?
4. Consider Figure 4.5 on page 53 and compare the three levels of resistance with your common sense as a coach or administrator. Why would it be important to identify a teacher's possible level of resistance? What is helpful about this figure?
5. You've heard of the saying, "Give a man a fish, feed him for a day' teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime." How does the coaching model described in this chapter embody that statement?
6. What, if any, coaching model do you currently use? What are you using to assess your own performance as an instructional coach? How are you, as an instructional coach, currently engaging in the process of self-reflection? What role do those around you play in helping you to self-reflect?

Chapter 5: The Unaware Stage

1. Think of a time when someone brought something to your attention that you were completely unaware of. How were you approached? What was your response, both initially and over time?
2. Compare your "unaware moment" with the Unaware stage descriptions in Chapter 5. List possible similarities between yourself and an Unaware-stage teacher.
3. In your own words, explain the role of an Unconditional Partner. How does this role best suit the needs of a teacher in the Unaware stage?
4. What is the capacity-building goal for a teacher in the Unaware stage? Why is it important for an instructional coach and administrator to have this goal in mind when working with an Unaware-stage teacher?
5. Think of a teacher you know who might be in this stage. What reflective tendencies and classroom characteristics does he or she exhibit? Write down one instructional strategy that you would like to bring attention to and build awareness around. Now look over the coaching strategies listed in this chapter. Identify several strategies that you would like to use with this teacher, and then create a month-long plan to implement these strategies. Don't forget to schedule time at the end of the month to sit down and reflect on the outcomes of your specific coaching plan and create a new plan for the following month.

Chapter 6: The Conscious Stage

1. Think of a personal habit that you would like to establish or change (e.g., going to bed earlier, eating healthier, exercising more). Have you made prior attempts toward this change? Why haven't you been successful?
2. Compare this "conscious moment" with the descriptions of the Conscious stage. List possible similarities between yourself and a Conscious-stage teacher.
3. In your own words, explain the role of a Motivator/Strategist. How does this role best suit the needs of a teacher in the Conscious stage?
4. What is the capacity-building goal for a teacher in the Conscious stage? Why is it important for an instructional coach and administrator to have this goal in mind when working with a Conscious-stage teacher?
5. Think of a teacher you know who might be in this stage. What reflective tendencies and classroom characteristics does he or she exhibit? Write down one instructional strategy that you would like to build consistency around. Now look over the coaching strategies listed in this chapter. Identify several strategies that you would like to use with this teacher, and then create a month-long plan to implement these strategies. At the end of the month, don't forget to schedule time to sit down and reflect on the outcomes of your specific coaching plan and create a new plan for the following month.

Chapter 7: The Action Stage

1. Think of the last time you made the decision to positively alter something in your life and followed through with your decision. How did it feel?
2. Compare this "decision to take action" with this chapter's description of the Action stage. List possible similarities between yourself and an Action-stage teacher.
3. In your own words, explain the role of Teacher as it relates to an instructional coach. How does this role best suite the needs of a teacher in the Action stage?
4. In your own words, explain the role of Teacher as it relates to an instructional coach. How does this role best suite the needs of a teacher in the Action stage?
5. What is the capacity-building goal for a teacher in the Action stage? Why is it important for an instructional coach and administrator to have this goal in mind when working with an Action-stage teacher?
6. Think of a teacher you know who might be in this stage. What reflective tendencies and classroom characteristics does he or she exhibit? What instructional strategy does this teacher want to improve? Now look over the coaching strategies listed in this chapter. Identify several strategies you would like to use with this teacher, and then create a month-long plan to implement these strategies. Don't forget to schedule time at the end of the month to sit down and reflect on the outcomes of your specific coaching plan and create a new plan for the following month.

Chapter 8: The Refinement Stage

1. Consider the classroom described on page 93. Think of a time when doing the "right" thing can be wrong or doing the "wrong" thing can be right, as it relates to classroom instruction.
2. John Murray, a professor of higher education administration at Texas Tech, says, "While transformative learning begins in self-reflection, it requires a community to sustain it" (2005, paragraph 6). What does this statement mean to you? How does it relate to a teacher in the Refinement stage?
3. In your own words, explain the role of Collaborator. How does this role best suit the needs of a teacher in the Refinement stage?
4. What is the capacity-building goal for a teacher in the Refinement stage? Why is it important for an instructional coach and administrator to have this goal in mind when working with the Refinement-stage teacher?
5. Think of a teacher you know who might be in this stage. What reflective tendencies and classroom characteristics does he or she exhibit? Now look over the coaching strategies listed in this chapter, and then identify several strategies that you would like to use with this teacher to build his or her capacity. Create a month-long plan to implement these strategies. Don't forget to schedule time at the end of the month to sit down and reflect on the outcomes of your specific coaching plan and create a new plan for the following month.

Chapter 9: Introduction to the Administrator's Role

1. Consider the demands of a building administrator and plot them in a diagram of Covey's Time Management Matrix (see Figure 9.1 on page 109). Where do most of the tasks land? Where do you (or an administrator you know) spend most of your time?
2. What is a personal strategy you have employed to help you prioritize items on a list? (This could include budgeting, shopping for gifts, determining how to spend your free time on weekends, or anything related to work.) Ask some friends and colleagues about their prioritization strategies. Which ones might work for you even more successfully than those you have used before? Why might you try a new time-management strategy?

Chapter 10: Individual Relationships

1. What do you really know about the people who work with you? Get a staff list, and next to each person's name, write down some notes. What are some of this individual's most notable characteristics? What does he or she do for fun? What is his or her family like? What are his or her goals? What are three words with which you might describe this person? If you were stuck in an elevator with this person for three hours, what would you talk about?
2. What is your response to the Buckingham quote on page 115?
3. In your school or district, do you have the right people on the right seats of the bus? How do you know? How closely matched are the individuals' strengths to their job responsibilities and positions? Are you in the right seat on the bus? How do your strengths match your position in the organization?
4. After reading the guidelines for identifying individual goals for teachers in each stage of the Continuum of Self-Reflection, write down a sample goal for each stage. What are the key characteristics of each goal? What do you notice about the goals as you scan from stage to stage?
5. What experiences do you have in setting SMART goals with teams?
6. How might the team's goal mesh with an individual teacher's goal? How much does each teacher's location on the Continuum of Self-Reflection affect the creation of and support needed for the team's goal?

Chapter 11: Daily, Intentional Supervision

1. Consider your own actions as an administrator (or, if you're not an administrator, imagine yourself in the shoes of an administrator you know). What are the barriers that prevent you from getting into classrooms on a regular basis? What obstacles must you overcome to make this a standard practice? Finish this thought: "Conduct walk-throughs? Yeah, I would, but ______."
2. Tomorrow, walk into a classroom with the intent to conduct a single "round." Stay for 45 seconds and attend to the Big Four (see page 127). Then exit to the hallway and record your findings in a notebook. What did you notice? Could you collect observational data on each of the four areas? Do another "round" in another classroom. What do you notice?
3. How do students respond when you (or the school administrator) enter a classroom? How does the teacher respond? What does this tell you about their readiness for walk-throughs?
4. Think about the term look-for. What might be your priorities in walking through a classroom (any classroom)? What might you expect all teachers to be doing, to some extent? What would you focus on in a 6th grade classroom? How about in a science lab? Do your expectations change from room to room, subject to subject, or teacher to teacher? Why or why not?
5. What is the current state of affairs for walk-throughs in your school or district? Are walk-throughs common practice? Accepted by the teachers' union? Embraced by the school board? Endorsed by the superintendent? What are the common arguments for and against their application?
6. What might be the benefits of using walk-through data in teacher evaluations? What might be the pitfalls?
7. Reflecting further on prioritization: What methods do you use to get yourself up and going? (Think about your diet, exercise regimen, devotion to religion or family, budgeting, cleaning, or fidelity to a hobby.) How do you maintain your focus and your momentum? How can you best transfer that (or improve upon it) to generate positive energy towards conducting frequent walk-throughs?

Chapter 12: Reflective Feedback

1. Describe a time you delivered or received feedback that resulted in improved effort or performance. What were the characteristics of that feedback?
2. The TARP acronym outlines some descriptors of effective feedback. What steps can you take to ensure that the feedback you deliver to teachers is timely, accurate, relevant, and private?
3. Do you have prior experience using form of some sort to deliver feedback to teachers after a walk-through or other short classroom visit? What about that form was helpful? What wasn't? How might you use (or alter) the Hall Walk-Through form to better meet your needs?
4. Tomorrow, walk into a single classroom with a pad of sticky notes. Observe the goings-on in the room for several minutes, keeping a keen eye out for specific items or actions that were effective or positive. Write the teacher a quick note with a specific compliment or some specific praise and put it on his or her desk. How does the teacher respond (later that day)? How did that feel for you? Repeat the process as often as possible.
5. Consider a teacher you would classify as being in the Unaware stage. As a Director, practice writing a couple pieces of feedback that you might deliver to this teacher. Write them privately in a notebook. Compare these with some of the sample stems in Figure 12.1 (page 148). What difficulties did you run into when trying to craft this feedback? To what extent would these comments help usher that teacher toward the Unaware stage's capacity-building goal?
6. Repeat the process from #5, this time focusing on a teacher in the Conscious stage. Compare your feedback with the samples on page 149.
7. Repeat the process from #5, this time focusing on a teacher in the Action stage. Compare your feedback with the samples on page 150.
8. Repeat the process from #5, this time focusing on a teacher in the Refinement stage. Compare your feedback with the samples on page 151.

Chapter 13: Development and Evaluation

1. What is your district's policy and protocol surrounding teacher evaluations? Is there a professional development angle to it? Has your use of the current teacher evaluation process resulted in significant teacher growth? Why or why not?
2. Consider the list of possible professional growth opportunities for teachers on pages 165–166. Which of these have you used before? Which consume a considerable amount of resources? Which result in significant teacher growth? Which might you want to investigate further to determine exactly how to implement them with your teaching staff? Look them up and get started!

Building Teachers' Capacity for Success was written by Pete Hall and Alisa Simeral. This 196-page, 7-7/8" x 9-7/8" book (Stock #109002; ISBN-13: 978-1-4166-0747-2) is available from ASCD for $22.95 (ASCD member) or $29.95 (nonmember). Copyright © 2008 by ASCD. To order a copy, call ASCD at 1-800-933-2723 (in Virginia 1-703-578-9600). Or buy the book from ASCD's Online Store.