Instructional Coaching and Mentoring Program
The School District of Cudahy supports new teachers and veteran teachers within the Instructional Coaching and Mentoring programs. We know that supporting highly effective teachers is critical to student achievement.
Instructional Coaching Program
Definition of Coaching:
The School District of Cudahy will utilize a coaching system to provide ongoing support to all teachers with the result of improved student learning. Coaching will support our core instructional practices in reading, mathematics, PBIS, Talent Development, student services and technology integration. Coaching will be in the form of Instructional Coaching, Facilitative Coaching and Transformational Coaching* determined by the direction of the conversation between coach and educator. As we follow Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development to take students from where they are to where we need them to be, coaching will support teachers to bridge the gap from where they are to where they wish to be.
Vision for Coaching:
Coaching within our system will help to bring out the best in all educators, discovering and leveraging each educator’s strengths and skills. Working to build our educators self-efficacy, coaching will cultivate compassion, clarify values and commitments, strengthen collaboration within teams, and build emotionally resilient educators.
Rationale for Coaching:
To support teachers by providing ongoing, focused support for professional learning.
To create a cadre of specialists who keep current with evidence based instruction
Provide a clear and specific connection between student achievement data, individual school improvement plans and the District Strategic Plan
To support classroom instruction that will prepare all students to be college and career ready graduates.
Teacher Induction & Mentoring Program
Definition of Teacher Induction:
Teacher Induction is the support and guidance provided to beginning teachers, those new to the district and school administrators in the first years of their careers. Induction practices include orientation to the district, mentoring, and guidance through beginning teacher practice.
Definition of a Mentor:
A mentor is an “instructional leader who takes responsibility for developing the next generation of teachers.” (New Teacher Center, 2016) A mentor's role may include: resource, teacher, reflective listener, assessor, learner, problem solver, advocate, facilitator, coach and collaborator. A mentors ultimate goal is to accelerate new teacher practices to increase student learning.
Purposes
To provide a support network for beginning teachers and teachers who are new to the district
To help keep beginning teachers in the profession
To build a helpful relationship for beginning teachers with veteran teachers
To provide an orientation to the school system goals, values and expectations
To provide an orientation to the district's instructional and support programs
To provide orientation to the community
To provide support for Educator Effectiveness processes
To provide an orientation to the employee handbook
To provide for the development of strategies of learning, teaching and discipline
To provide orientation to "time-saving" procedures
Contact Information
Mallory Umar
Director of Curriculum & Instruction
Phone: 414.294.7405