Abstract:
This research investigated teachers’ and coaches’ perceptions of risk in shadow coaching to support quality teaching for diverse learners and identified what influences perceptions of risk in coaching. This case study employed a qualitative method including semi-structured interviews to investigate participants’ perceptions of risk and uncertainty in a culturally responsive coaching context. The research found that participants’ uncertainty came from existing sources as well as uncertainty about their state of knowledge and the quality of the relationships between teacher and coach. Teachers were uncertain about knowledge of what to do in the coaching conversation. They also felt vulnerable in the observation and this affected their uncertainty about the coaching relationship as they feared that their coach might judge them. Novice coaches were uncertain about asking the right questions in the coaching conversation. This was related to uncertainty about their state of knowledge and uncertainty about the coaching relationship as they were concerned that the teacher they were coaching would perceive that the coach was judging them. This meant that uncertainty was cumulative for participants which had a particular impact on coaches who brought their uncertainty from their teacher role into their coach role and then layered on further uncertainty. The research also identified a range of enablers which work to reduce perceptions of risk in the coaching process. Some of these were characteristics which participants brought into the professional learning with then, others were deliberately developed in the culturally responsive coaching process. The findings have implications for improving the effectiveness of coaching and coaches and the scaling up of coaching programmes for teacher professional learning.