Ordering a bunch of new technology and then throwing it into a classroom isn’t necessarily a great idea. Students might be excited, but it’s highly unlikely that them or their teachers will know how to make the most of this technology or even know how to use it at all. With advances in EdTech and a greater focus on using it to prepare students for the future, educators are being given more responsibilities and some are even taking on new roles. One of those roles is that of a tech coach, which are becoming more and more common in K-12 schools. This week, we’ll be discussing the importance of tech coaches, what tech coaches should do, and what makes a tech coach effective!
Things Every Tech Coach Should Do
Tech coaches are becoming integral members of the faculty of many schools and their efforts are felt by both teachers and students. Like with taking on any new job, however, there are some basic characteristics tech coaches should possess that can help them do their jobs better. They should be highly motivated and “go-getters” who aren’t afraid to take charge of their own professional development. They should also be willing to rely on their peers for advice and feedback about specific tech tools or technology integration in general. The teachers who will be using technology within the school’s classrooms are a great source for this feedback and so are tech coaches from other grade levels or other schools. Finding little tips and tricks for tech integration is something that should not be overlooked and the best tech coaches tend to take advantage of everything they can to make the integration process run more smoothly.
One of the most effective things a tech coach should do—whether they’re new to the profession or not—is to find a professional learning network and join it. Online arenas offer educators invaluable advice and insights into the best ways to make use of their technology and their time. Over time, these PLN’s will grow and it’s great for tech coaches to rake in advice from many different sources since this allows them to absorb varying points of view and make the most informed decisions for how they want their teachers and students using technology. Tech coaches are going to have questions and being able to turn to a group of peers, who, to be honest, have probably already had the same questions, offers plenty of comfort for these educators. Twitter is also a great place to find helpful content and following the right hashtags can help tech coaches discover new ideas and share their successes with others!
In addition to social media, there are plenty of online blogs and podcasts for tech coaches to help perfect their craft. One of the best ones around is the TeacherCast podcast which provides educators with relevant advice for all stages of tech coaching, including podcasts, videos, blogs, newsletters, and more! With a little more digging, you could find tons more content online and likely something that can answer the specific questions you have. Finally, it’s important for tech coaches to not only ask questions and learn from other tech coaches, it’s important for them to also share what they know! Leading the implementation of new technology in the classroom is very important and tech coaches have the power to offer insights to others that can help them achieve the same success. We’re just getting started with helpful tips for tech coaches, but hope this section serves as a valuable foundation and offers some inspiration!
EdTech Coaching in Today’s Classrooms
School leaders know that they need to use technology and use it effectively in order to prepare their students for a digital future. This is not a bad school of thought, but this way of thinking can often lead to educators rushing to implement new tech tools in their teaching without really researching, vetting, or using them on a trial basis. Not every EdTech tool will offer enhanced engagement for every single student, but just hoping that something will stick is not an ideal approach. Teachers need support—maybe not at every single stage—but tech coaches do usually wind up playing a significant role in making sure that this is done efficiently and effectively. Many technologies that kids can use to learn 21st century skills obviously entail the technology itself and, a lot of times, a compatible device is needed as well. Tech coaches are able to research new technology in advance, try it out on their own, and learn the nuances of bringing it into a classroom successfully, saving the teachers the time and hassle of having to figure things out and troubleshoot on the fly, which is obviously a huge help for them.
Even though we don’t know exactly what it will be at the moment, today’s students need to be prepared for the future of work. So, this also means that today’s teachers need to be prepared to educate today’s students for the future of work. All teachers—whether they’re technology natives or brand new to this side of education—can benefit from coaching. Coaching for teachers is generally a short-term engagement during which they focus on the teacher’s weaknesses and address them to make him or her more comfortable with using technology in the classroom. Tech coaches are also very flexible and can work more directly with any teachers who need extra guidance. Tech coaching is intended to improve a teacher’s performance when using technology in the classroom and remembering that objective is important for both the coach and the educator or educators being coached.
The benefits educators can gain from working with tech coaches are pretty far reaching and there are a lot of them that could be mentioned. When teachers know how to use different kinds of technology, they’re able to enhance their lessons by deviating from the traditional lecture style and offering students more excitement and opportunities for engagement. Also, today’s educators expect their students to collaborate, so they should be willing to do the same and work with tech coaches whenever they’d like. Tech coaches are also great for helping educators reach new goals and empowering them to help students create new things. When teachers who are working with EdTech coaches are non-judgmental, patient, and approachable, they can learn to use technology in the classroom so that their students are able to develop 21st century proficiencies, like active listening, perseverance, problem solving, empathy, open mindedness, and more. It all starts with the teachers and their enthusiasm for being coached.
Why Tech Coaches Should Collaborate
The title of this section might go without saying and we have touched on the benefits of tech coach collaboration a bit so far, but we’ll get a bit more into the benefits now. First and foremost, when any educators collaborate, they are able to take advantage of a frontline support system that’s anchored by other educators who have been in similar situations. While a school may only have one tech coach who’s dedicated to helping out every teacher and student, they can certainly use the power of the PLN or collaborate with other tech coaches in surrounding schools, towns, and districts to maximize what they learn. Peer mentoring is often effective among students and it is just as legitimate a practice among tech coaches. When it comes to implementing new technology into teaching, tech coaches are obviously those leading the charge. As leaders, they need to be willing to access every available resource to them to make the process run more smoothly and this includes collaborating with others.
Tech coaches are involved in the education process to help support instruction and learning, so learning how to effectively communicate with students and classroom teachers is important. Since tech coaches are responsible for coaching students, teachers, and administrators a lot of the time, working with other tech coaches can help them learn different ways of communicating and instructing each of these groups. What works with one set of people might not be as effective with another. Since tech coaches have a ton of responsibility in this day and age but no real authority, working with other tech coaches can help enlighten them to know what’s necessary to include in their instruction and what to potentially omit. And, oftentimes, technology breaks down in the classroom or a teacher can’t figure out how to get it to work correctly. This is when having multiple tech coaches in the room can definitely benefit because, after all, two heads are definitely better than one when troubleshooting and problem solving.
Ultimately, tech coaches are not that different than classroom teachers in the sense that they should be working with and learning from others whenever possible. Collaborating with other tech coaches allows you to share what you know, find ways to better support students, find ways to better support teachers, and find ways to better meet district goals and technology expectations. Collaboration also helps challenge tech coaches to discover new ways of enhancing their craft as well as the chance to learn about and implement new resources and, of course, simply share subtle tips and ideas. Plus, collaboration, a lot of the time, is really as simple as having a quick conversation or a brief weekly meeting to discuss new ideas for integrating tech effectively. Remember—others have been there before and it’s more than okay to seek out wisdom from those who have!
Providing Leadership and Direction as a Tech Coach
We don’t want to minimize the role that tech coaches play in education today, but the truth is that they usually wind up being more of facilitators than game changers in the classroom. This is partly because it is their role to enhance learning rather than directing it completely and also because classroom teachers remain largely in charge of the overall experiences of their students. Despite this fact, however, tech coaches can still have an enormous amount of influence on how learning goals are achieved and, of course, how the effective use of technology can make them possible. So, tech coaches still need to act like leaders as they wear many hats and guide both teachers and students through using new technology. Leadership is important for tech coaches because they are able to set the tone for enhanced classroom instruction and also bring to fruition the fundamental beliefs and goals set at the administrative level.
In order to guide teachers and students in the right direction when they’re using new technology in the classroom, tech coaches need to develop some amount of leadership. Without being too demanding or confrontational, it’s important for them to establish this role among the school’s teachers and faculty members in and out of the classroom. In the classroom, they also have to be more than simply a teacher and provide help whenever and wherever it’s needed—at all stages of the technology adoption. And, as teachers begin to successfully implement new tech tools in their instruction, tech coaches can take it upon themselves to highlight these accomplishments and allow those involved to feel proud. Ultimately, there are a lot of ways in which tech coaches can be leaders, but these are some of the best ways they can bring that leadership directly into the classroom and, now, we’ll focus on additional ways they can lead.
Not only are tech coaches the leaders when it comes to technology implementation, they serve as leaders for the school’s administration as well. This leads them to become the voice of the classroom, the voice of the students, and the voice of innovation all in one. It also tends to lead to them becoming the link between the educators of a school and the administration. Tech coaches should also be leaders within the community and be excited about offering training, information, and parent nights so that all members of the school community can be informed about the great things that are happening in the classroom and excited about the opportunities their children are going to have. Finally, tech coaches can be curricular leaders and advocate for what should be included in the school’s requirements and perhaps even what should be omitted. It might seem like a lot, but becoming a leader is pretty easy for any tech coach who simply wants to use the tools available to give students the best education experience possible.
Characteristics of Effective Tech Coaches
When the role of tech coach was first created and implemented in schools, there weren’t that many around. Fast forward just a few years and, now, the number of schools who do have tech coaches far outnumber those that don’t. Technology has obviously become a huge part of 21st century education and school systems are not waiting around when it comes to finding people with the skills to prepare their students for the future. What are those skills, though, and what makes a tech coach good? Should they work more closely with teachers or students? Well, there’s no wrong answer, but tech coaches are usually brought in to work more with teachers and they can make a significant impact when it comes to getting teachers comfortable with using new tools. How they do this is also very important.
What tech coaches learn in their own training and the characteristics they develop go a long way in shaping how effective they will be in schools. Tech coaches are at their best when they can learn how to personalize the instruction they are giving to teachers. Learning their individual needs and developing a specific plan of action goes a long way in easing the process for classroom teachers. Tech coaches also have to be a bit intense and demanding in order to ensure that the teachers they are working with end up knowing enough about the new technology tools. After all, they are being implemented in the classroom to better prepare kids for a future that’s heavily reliant on technology. This helps teachers easily become confident in the tech coaches they are working with and more likely to confide in them, helping the flow of idea sharing and building comfortability at the same time.
Many school leaders also like to find tech coaches who have previous teaching experience—ideally at the same school. Plus, tech coaches need to have exceptional communication skills since they will be spending most of their time instructing teachers and students and clarifying how to successfully use technology. In fact, being a successful tech coach might be more about having the ability to foster meaningful relationships than it is about being highly technical. So, being an effective tech coach entails a lot of hard work and knowing what to do in delicate situations. It’s also a lot about being a leader—something that is often overlooked when bringing in new technology. When all is said and done, however, technology will continue to play a huge role in the education of today’s students and the technology coaches who work with their teachers are among the ones who need to be thanked.
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