Being a Leadership Development Coach

Abstract

The use of coaching as a developmental methodology has been instituted as a way to develop leadership in schools in Scotland as elsewhere in the UK. While there are studies that examine the skills and impact of coaching, there is only limited discussion of the process of coaching and the role and experiences of the coaches. This article examines the role of coach in a development programme for aspirant headteachers, 'The Flexible Routes to Headship' (FRH), piloted in Scotland, UK in 2007-2009. Coaching was as the core learning process and consequently the quality of coaching is a major consideration in the success of this programme. This development programme is intended to enable candidates to demonstrate their achievement of a professional standard, The Standard for Headship and, as a consequence, the coaches have to undertake a number of different tasks including coaching, mentoring, facilitating, tutoring and assessing. This article draws from the data gathered from coaches and candidates in the evaluation of the FRH Pilot Project which suggests that while there are potential benefits for the coach as well as for candidates, there are some inherent tensions. The question of a model of leadership development based predominantly on coaching is explored.

Designing individualised leadership development programmes

“…However, there were significant tensions. The data shed some light on the way the support sought by participants required the coaches to take on a number of different roles in addition to coaching: tutoring, mentoring, facilitating and assessing (Forde et al 2013). The multiple roles limited opportunities for performance coaching to develop the leadership skills and confidence of the individual participant.…”

“…These processes are important in individualised development programmes. Forde, McMahon, Gronn, and Martin (2013) provide an account of the coach in the NFRH needing to adopt a wide range of pedagogic practices in order to create coherence in the programme. The experiential-based pedagogies of coaching, mentoring and facilitating were found to be powerful in promoting reflection and providing feedback on practice.…”

Autoaprendizaje en Pequeños Grupos para la Formación de Directores Escolares. Análisis de un Programa Piloto

“…Así pues, se centra en el individuo en formación, en sus características, su práctica profesional y las destrezas que necesita para desempeñar su rol, a menudo mediante el análisis y seguimiento de dicha práctica, para tratar de mejorarla, y la provisión de feedback por parte del formador sobre aspectos específicos de su trabajo (Forde et al, 2012).…”

Social justice and leadership development

“…In Scotland, the bias is towards experiential learning, the processes of mentoring and coaching being favoured (Forde et al 2013, Torrance 2011 and the place of knowledge building remaining problematic (Forde 2011). Insana et al (2014 argue that generally, scholarship connecting leadership and social justice is both fairly recent.…”

“…They report that they are able to set out their values as part of their practice and to recognise the contested nature of these values. The exploration of values is similarly an important element of the coaching process in the Flexible Routes to Headship (Davidson et al 2008, Forde et al 2013. However, to pursue an equality agenda takes more than simply the articulation of a set of values.…”