THE VALUE of COACHING

The study site is an elementary school in a small, urban community in the Midwest with a diverse student population. The primary form of data collection was observation of collaborative sessions (e.g. conversations with Gibbons, co-planning lessons with teachers, grade-level collaboration meeting, and small-group instruction). Whether Gibbons modeled a lesson, observed a classroom's structure, or was in a grade-level collaboration meeting, the elements of what was meaningful and valuable in collaboration stayed consistent among participants. In an interview with Jones, she said that Gibbons' observation of her classroom set-up, routines, order, and student engagement was invaluable because it offered her "an extra set of eyes. [...]these observations were organic and constructed specifically for Jones' classroom setting. Gibbons' relationships with teachers embodied strong relationship capital, reciprocal learning, organic construction, and job-embedded work to create a strong culture of collaboration in this building. Furthermore, this study suggests that a literacy coach can be a means for more job-embedded professional learning, and it is worth allocating time and opportunities for teachers to collaborate. By Grace Y. Kang A two-month qualitative study of a literacy coach's relationships with two elementary teachers looks at the nature of collaboration and how it is enacted in teacher practice and instruction. Student achievement through staff development (3rd ed.). How formal and on-the-job learning opportunities predict change in elementary school teachers' practice.