Giving Compass' Take:

• A recent survey from Digital Promise found that educators who received coaching in their school districts benefitted from the resource and learning. 

• How can education donors help expand coaching programs for more school districts? 

• Read how instructional coaches can transform teachers. 


School staff who coach teachers to become better at their craft can be one approach to improving student outcomes, but few coaches have the time and administrative support to do their jobs effectively, a new survey finds.

A large number of teacher coaches surveyed say they oversee at least 16 teachers, more than the recommended 10 teachers per coach. And while teachers report finding value in receiving biweekly coaching, most see their coaches less frequently and in shorter durations than teachers would like.

The results are from a survey of more than 1,000 active coaches by Digital Promise, a nonprofit that promotes digital tools in education, and Learning Forward, an educator professional development nonprofit. Google for Education also took part in the survey’s release.

Digital Promise and Google for Education previously worked together to place coaches in schools and monitor the impact extra training had on student learning. After two years of observation, teachers with regular access to coaches felt more confident and had their students collaborate more through technology, a 2019 report said. Teachers trained by coaches also reported increased engagement from their students. Those coaches each supervised the progress of an average of nine teachers over eight-week periods.

Read the full article about teachers and coaching by Mikhail Zinshteyn at The 74.