Coachieve BLOG
Winter blues:
Midwinter chill or the winds of change?
Winter can be a tough time. The days are short, there's less sunshine, the cold weather can make it hard to get out and some people feel real financial strain after the festive period so it's no wonder many of us associate winter with feeling down.
Often called "Blue Monday", the third Monday in January was designated the most depressing day of the year by Dr Cliff Arnall in 2005[1], but the concept is not real, it was created as a PR stunt for a Sky Travel marketing campaign. Despite its origins, many people believe Blue Monday is a real phenomenon though mental health charities have tried to distance themselves from it as pseudoscience, making positive suggestions for improving mental health in the winter months[2].
Mondays in general do see the highest number of absences from work and “National sickie day”[3] - the day with the greatest level of sick leave in the UK - is supposedly the first Monday of February. So, what's really going on in winter? January is a time of reflection and change. Whilst some people do suffer from SAD and are genuinely affected by winter, others make (and sometimes quit) New Year's resolutions and consider real life transformations such as moving house/area or changing jobs as they see hope and promise in looking forward to spring.
So what if you feel it’s time for a change?
Well, change doesn’t happen without proper impetus so it depends to some extent on the level of change - a sea change in your current life situation is different to a completely fresh start.
You might seek to alter how you approach an existing situation to affect outcomes. For example, I worked with a client who was dreading appraisal with a looming sense of “someone’s out to get me” and “I’m going to get told off”. Working together, we unpicked what lay behind this thinking – they were holding onto several previous poor experiences with other managers. We looked at how the client could approach it from a different perspective so they felt in control then, when the appraisal happened, it was a positive experience and the client felt empowered by it rather than a victim of it.
A fresh start is a big step which can seem daunting but it is achievable. For example, I worked with a client who wanted to step down from a senior position after many years of service and move into a new career path. The history and relationships built up meant they felt trapped but as we worked together, they planned how the change could be managed well and, ultimately the client was able to plan succession hand-in-hand with the organisation and move forward with their personal life plans.
As a coach I often work with people looking for change. We work together to identify the client’s goals and strategies to achieve them, creating a feeling of empowerment to move forward. As you can see from the examples, sometimes this is a big life change and other times it is something smaller which is preying on their mind. Goal mapping and action-planning with a coach can help with all of these situations.
Is worklife balance possible for teachers?
“I feel like I haven’t been away” is a classic teacher comment one week into new term.
Teaching contracts have no finite number of hours to be worked – this infinity can become a burden which develops into a habit which can leave teachers feeling exhausted and trapped in a cycle of work - worklife balance can feel like a fantasy. So how is it manageable?
To some extent the answer lies in experience, self-discipline and home circumstances.
Less experienced teachers often still plan each lesson in great detail with new, novel ways to engage students – they lack the bank of resources more experienced teachers have built up, consequently they spend far more time outside the classroom and school hours planning, preparing resources and differentiating. There are strategies to reduce the load of preparing these activities but you have to spend time learning how to use them. In effective departments there will be a culture of resource sharing, however, in my experience colleagues are often quite territorial about their personal stash of worksheets and activities so, in reality, there’s not a lot of sharing happening.
Teaching is also a job which expands to fit the time available. As with many things in life, there’s always more you could do, so you have to decide when your output meets the requirements sufficiently. You can always improve a resource next time if you find it’s not quite right, this fundamentally depends on your self-discipline - your ability to stop and say – this is enough. If you are less experienced, this is something your HoD should discuss with you to ensure you are not over-working – if you are a HoD – are you doing it? Do you know how many hours your staff are putting in outside their normal working time?
With a busy home life there is a limit to the hours you can work, and this is accepted. However, if your home life is quieter, you can find yourself working a lot of extra hours simply because you have them. Contrary to what one might think, in several of the schools where I have worked, some of the hardest working people (in terms of hours) were those with fewer family commitments; they didn’t have other calls on their time and found it very hard to stop and prioritise themselves.
It is possible as a teacher to have balance but you have to work at it. Sometimes teachers can be their own worst enemies and have unhelpful patterns of behaviour or thinking which exacerbate this.
If you are over-working – ask yourself why you feel you can’t stop or manage it better.
If you need help with that, contact an educationally experienced coach or mentor like me who can help you work through it and get to a better place.
Finding it hard to focus your attention for any length of time?
Popcorn brain may well be a factor.
Research [1] over the last 20 years by Gloria Mark PhD, Chancellor’s Professor of Informatics at the University of California, has found that average attention spans are shrinking from 2.5 minutes in 2004 to 47 seconds (on any device) in 2022/23, what’s more, you probably don’t even realise it’s happened, we’ve grown so accustomed to immediate availability of information that we don’t necessarily realise we’re maybe less patient and tolerant as a result.
Many people are familiar with a scenario where they’re sat working when they remember a forgotten task – paying a bill, ordering a prescription, making an appointment etc. They pick up their mobile to set a reminder and, while doing that, a message pops up from a family member asking about dinner or something, so they also reply to that. Within a couple of minutes, attention has switched multiple times, it then takes a few moments to switch back. This is so common it’s almost imperceptible but the diversion can easily cause mistakes as the brain tries to multi-task.
It could be argued that this is the new normal, things have moved on, life has changed with greater use and availability of technology, but Mark argues there is a direct correlation between the frequency of switching attention - our declining ability to focus, and stress levels. This is hugely significant as a teacher because many younger people have not learned to regulate themselves in the way that adults have. Personally, I now only pick up my mobile at work during a break, if I remember something in the meantime I write it on a post-it, this is self-regulation, I know if I get the phone out of my bag I will become embroiled in whatever has popped up since I last looked at it so I don’t do it. Students find this kind of self-discipline really difficult.
This lessening of attention span and inability to self-regulate is partially responsible for the boom in ADHD diagnoses. Many parents looking to explain their child’s lack of concentration are paying for private consultations and receiving diagnoses which are not necessarily appropriate as a way to explain their child’s lack of focus and potentially lower academic achievement. This is then passed onto the school to manage - increasing pressure on overstretched teachers. However, ADHD is now widely recognised to be a genetic condition [2] and one which some people have a greater predisposition to. In fact, what many parents and teachers are seeing maybe a combination of the shortening attention span and the idea of popcorn brain.
The term popcorn brain [3] was coined in 2011 by David Levy, a researcher at the University of Washington. It refers to difficulty focussing as a direct result of exposure to technology and specifically social media. Many of the apps we (and our young people) use are designed to have fast, rewarding content e.g. TikTok videos of dance routines, snapchat images / messages, videos of cute pandas, memes of politicians getting their words mixed up (think Keir Starmer and sausage-gate), doggos greeting their owners, cute babies etc etc etc, this content switches on our happy hormones, it raises endorphins and sets off our dopamine, thus we feel good watching a lot of these things.
This isn’t inherently harmful so we think it’s ok to watch. However, if we take Marks’ point that too much attention switching causes physiological stress symptoms, it’s reasonable to understand her resulting concern that our brains are trying to redress the balance by watching the happy-cat videos or checking our messages and so on.
For Tweenagers this even more addictive than for adults, they want to be in with the latest trends, if they don’t reply to messages fast enough they are hassled for it, there is peer pressure and there is addiction to the dopamine from the funny videos, likes, popularity and kudos resulting from knowing the latest nugget of trendy insight. It’s a very real paradox where devices are delivering the fast-paced attention switching feed which seems normal but is causing stress, and where the brain is simultaneously trying to use the phone as a means to de-stress.
Hints and tips for improving things.
If you think this might be you (or your children) there are things you can do, they are not new ideas, you just have to be firm with yourself:
- Take tech breaks e.g. at mealtimes.
- Create routines for work – like my post-it notes example
- Only look at your phone in work time if you have time to be interrupted.
- Keep your phone on silent mode at certain times.
- Look for other ways to raise endorphins which don’t involve screen time e.g. going to the cinema or exercise or just playing a game – not a computer game as they are also screen-based and fast-paced.
- If this is your children: Be the behaviour you want to see. It’s hard to ask your child to spend less time on their device if you are scrolling around on yours, the child immediately seems an unfair situation and an argument ensues
- Don’t allow screens in the bedroom at night. You can make a rule – they need to be on the landing by …. time or they have to be left downstairs – don’t allow the phone as an alarm – buy yourself (or your young people) an alarm clock.
- Read at bedtime to switch your brain off.
If you think you might be addicted to doom-scrolling – which is not even giving dopamine but is very addictive, you can always take this quiz to find out:
https://therapytips.org/personality-tests/doomscrolling-scale - not recommended for children.
1] https://megaphone.link/AMERICANPSYCHOLOGICALASSOCIATION6273479949
[2] https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd/causes/
[3] https://www.forbes.com/sites/traversmark/2024/04/04/a-psychologist-explains-the-rise-of-popcorn-brain/
Unlock your potential by building your self-confidence.
As far back as Aristotle (2300 years ago), confidence and personal happiness was a hot topic. In The Nicomachean ethics[1], Aristotle wrote about man’s soul, effectively, his self-confidence and happiness - although he doesn’t use those words; they are far more modern.
Aristotle is often quoted as saying “These virtues are formed in man by his doing the actions” This is a direct quote but it’s often used out of context because he broadly meant “you’ll feel better about yourself if you show virtues e.g. generosity to others”, and there is still a place today for acknowledging that your confidence and self-worth are, to some degree, affected by your own approach and actions.
Last week I took some students to a networking event where they had to meet and engage with Business leaders. I didn’t tell them much about it beforehand because I knew they would worry about what to say and how to act. In the first hour of the event they learned what to do and what to say – repeating the actions, learning how to greet people, shake hands and confidently say “hi, my name is…” and so on. They practised, become confident within the hour then had to put it into practice – and they all succeeded. Some were further outside their comfort zone than others but, when we left they were all buzzing about the realisation that these top execs are just people can have a ‘normal’ chat with. Great stuff! One of the learners came the next day to tell me he’d started being aware of his posture and found himself, even that evening, changing his body language to make it more confident and positive.
So, Aristotle definitely had something there, a good trick to bolstering your confidence is a bit of good old-fashioned practice. The Lesson? Sometimes, the biggest hurdle is that first step. So, here's a tip to boost your confidence, ask yourself: What's the worst that can happen? Prepare for that and even if things go a bit pear-shaped, you'll have a plan B – and that in itself is a confidence booster!
[1] https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19068.The_Nicomachean_Ethics
The magic behind the movies:
A coaching perspective on the genius of Walt Disney.
Disney is one of the world’s most successful and recognisable brands, as we gear up towards the festive season with new releases like Moana 2 and Mufasa, I wonder if we could all benefit from being a bit more Walt? Yes, Disney was in the right place at the right time when the birth of animation and movies coincided, but there was definitely more to his success than luck.
In the 1990’s, the key to Walt Disney’s success was analysed in the book “Strategies of genius” by Robert Dilts[1]. Dilts (a leader in the field of neuro-linguistic programming) recognised three main characteristics exhibited by Disney which contributed to his success, these became the foundations of a neuro-linguistic programming coaching tool known as The Disney Strategy.
Dilts’ work concluded that Disney’s success stemmed from his abilities in perceptual positioning; in lay-person’s terms, he was able to see his ideas from other’s perspectives. He was exceptionally effective at putting himself into the shoes of others and then using their perceptions to critique and adapt his ideas.
The three elements to Disney’s creative approach were:
- Dreamer – the ability to visualise something completely - to imagine a new concept and envision how it would work.
- Reality – the ability to step into the world of his characters – to walk in their shoes in a storyline and feel their emotions and responses.
- Critique – the ability to move from the first two positions to a point further away – to be objective and see the concept from a different perspective, identifying its shortcomings which could then be adapted/improved.
Disney as able to create unique novel storylines, to put himself into the position of his characters and see the world he was creating through their eyes. Furthermore, he was able to see these creations through the eyes of his potential audience, in this last phase he evaluated whether the ideas were interesting to his audience, to see if there were any “dead” phases and assess whether the concept was appealing to the target market. By applying these elements, Disney was able to create stories which resonated with audiences.
This innovative approach to storytelling and audience engagement was ahead of its time, and its principles can be applied to various fields, including business, education, and personal development. Whether you're a team leader, creative professional, teacher or entrepreneur, you can apply the Disney principles into your own work, unlock your creative potential, enhance your problem-solving skills, and achieve greater success.
[1] https://www.academia.edu/39219222/Robert_Dilts_Strategies_of_Genius_Volume_One_M_E_T_a_Publications_1995_
Mock exams are on the horizon…
Here we take a broader look at the exam circus – and how (not) to help your teen
Being a teen parent in exam season, whether it’s mocks or the real deal, is akin to being a tightrope walker – precariously balanced – wanting to help but not get it wrong, wanting to be supportive but not too supportive or your young person won’t become independent, wanting to offer guidance, but not be overbearing. It's a hard act!
One of the biggest stressors for students at this time is the fear of not meeting parental expectations. One of the biggest challenges for parents is managing their own expectations and not intervening.
The vast majority of parents want their child to succeed, of course, but it’s important to refrain from adding to the anxiety teens already feel. There’s a fine line between pushing them to do their best and creating a sense that they can’t measure up. While a little pressure can be a good thing, parents should be mindful not to push their child too near the edge. A key lesson for parents is to learn to manage their own emotions so they don't accidentally create a situation where their child is too scared to talk to them. No parent wants to create this dynamic from their unstable high-wire position.
Essentially, parents want to be in the audience cheering their child on, but all too often can they become the Ringmaster – or develop other circus skills – I wonder if any of these sound familiar:
The magician: it's easy to lapse into the magician, trying to make everything better for your child, buying resources, paying a tutor, downloading exam papers and so on – trying to conjure up good exam results the best way you can by waving your magic money-wand.
The clown: also quite common, creating a jaunty air of “it’s fun”, “it’ll be alright”, jollying the young person along with funny memes and exam-based banter to mask their concern about progress, attainment and mental health, or even the fact that they themselves are out of their depth with, for example, GCSE maths – just keep smiling - it’ll all be fine – how very British!
The lion-tamer: going into battle for their offspring, trying to face-down scary teachers – it must be their fault if the young person isn’t doing well – this is rarely the case but often parents are quick to apportion blame and slow to respectfully ask for (and listen to) an education professional’s help or advice.
Sometimes these circus performer parents also create performers in their teens – the juggler – who does well in school despite (or as well as) swimming, playing clarinet, being a scout or guide, doing DofE and so on – how does this person fit everything in normally, never mind at exam time? It’s a mystery. Their whole life is timetabled to the minute, yet they seem to thrive, but they are exhausted when they climb into bed at night and frequently yawning in lessons.
The strong (wo)man – holding it altogether, carrying the weight of the world and its expectations without complaining and without asking if they can have a hand with it all. This teen often doesn’t understand things, they work harder not smarter, they do more and more in the hope of getting better and eventually burn out long before exams are due.
Try standing in your teen’s shoes for a minute. It may be a long time since you were at school and did your exams and you may have forgotten quite how much they are trying to learn.
Imagine your day is divided into hour-long chunks, you move between rooms in your office or house every hour, sit still whilst someone gives you information, then pack up, move rooms and do it again - over and over. Then, at an appointed day / time, you are expected to remember everything you have been told in these hour-long sessions in the individual rooms, write it on paper so it makes sense and someone else will grade how well you remembered and explained everything. If you do it well enough you can even move onto yet more of this in other formats for the next 2, 3, 4 maybe even 6 or 7 years. No wonder teens are stressed – and yes, this format hasn’t changed, but we just need to remind ourselves what it was like.
So, how could you offer some support and approach this issue?
- Remember that your ideas and expectations are not your teen’s, they have their own thoughts and ideas about work / study – which you may not like or agree with.
- They are probably able to identify what the issue is themselves if they don’t understand something – your instructing them or suggesting things is not actually very helpful – you are not them – they need to identify their own problem in order to solve it.
- If you want to help plan revision, sit down with them and brainstorm different ways they could revise and learn the information. (You can look this info up beforehand so you have a few things you can suggest if they get stuck but let them do most of the work).
Find a sheet of A3 paper, give them a pen and get them to make a spider diagram:
- what are good ways to revise?
- which subject fits best with each method? (Ask why but don’t comment).
Don’t be tempted to start telling them what you think or what worked for you – this is their diagram about what works for them.
20 minutes later - hey presto! They’ve planned how to revise each subject without you telling them what to do. Just the act of doing this will be helpful and move them forward.
Here are some ideas of good revision strategies:
- Make flashcards
- Test yourself using Quizlet
- Play Kahoot
- Make a mind map
- Teach it to someone else
- There’s also some great information here: YoungMinds revision tips
When is a coach not a coach?
Well, quite often actually - when they’re a colleague, a friend, or a relative – i.e. when you haven’t asked them to be a coach.
Coaches could be subconsciously coaching everyone all the time, however, although the coaching mindset may always be switched on, there are definitely times to let it surface and times for it to be in hiding.
Coaching is a contracted profession i.e. when someone enters into a coaching relationship they also enter into a contract with the coach. The coach agrees to give them their full attention and apply their skills to the best of their ability to help with coachee move towards their desired outcome. Crucially however, the coachee also has a role to play in the contract. They agree to be coached, the coachee agrees to be honest and open in the sessions, willing to accept a level of challenge to how they currently do things and a readiness to try out new behaviours or strategies i.e. to try to achieve their target outcome – ultimately it’s a 2-way street.
There is a quandary to navigate when at work. It’s very easy to slip into coaching-mode in the middle of interactions with colleagues or the students I teach. However, many of smaller, less noticeable interactions I have with people are not fully contracted – because the nature of the interaction doesn’t lend itself to that level of formality. Often I come into contact with people e.g. at work, who are experiencing a mild degree of frustration by the photocopier and want their thinking to be pointed in a different direction. I have, once or twice, suggested people book an appointment or made a joke saying, “I do charge you know”. It’s hard balance to strike – I want to be a helpful colleague; I’d like them to think my assistance is useful because they might decide to come for coaching – or recommend me as a potential option to other people - but I don’t want to be giving away my services for free.
Sometimes I ask “would you like to know what I think”? Just in case they want my opinion – coaches generally avoid this (it’s more mentoring) so as not to bias or lead someone’s thoughts. If I think I could help them with a quick, well-aimed question I tell them I’m “putting my coaching head on” so they know I’m looking at their issue from a coaching perspective. Coaching’s big strength is in facilitating people to analyse their own thoughts and mindset to embrace new ways of doing things which they identify – it’s not about the coach making suggestions - coaching is solutions-focussed and the solutions come from the coachee, the coach’s skill is in bring this to the fore.
On the other hand, friends don’t constantly want you to be coaching them, sometimes they just want a friend, they want sympathy or empathy where a coach will veer more towards compassion. Moreover, a friend or relative doesn’t necessarily want this when they are exasperated with their teenage offspring or someone at the council who hasn’t processed an issue, or their inability to get a refund at a retailer etc etc. They are just looking for a sounding board, not a coach.
People think coaching must be really helpful – and it is – to all sorts of people with a variety of different problems, but if you launch into coaching mode it won’t always be welcome and you may actually cause offence because of the tone of what you saying where you didn’t establish their boundaries first. Ultimately, this is the same as a Dr or a lawyer, they are not constantly advising you about your ailments or your legal position – although I guess they might jump in if there were red flags around you. A coach is a coach when you ask them to be, but at other times they may well keep schtum unless you specifically ask them to flick the coaching switch.
Mid-life, mid-career – is it acceptable to admit you’re bored?
As I’ve worked in education for many years, I know teachers feel despondent if they try to make a topic interesting and students just say it’s boring – but is it actually OK to admit it sometimes?
According to the CIPD[1] in 2024 around 50% of people reported experiencing boredom at work either always (16%) or sometimes (34%). If that’s representative then it’s logical to suggest it must apply to a wide range of employees.
Job-boredom is likely a contentious issue in workplaces, it’s not cool to admit to your manager that you’ve lost interest in your job – it may result in a perception that you don’t have enough to do and your workload might suddenly increase. People can be bored for different reasons; lack of workload might be a factor but it’s unlikely to be the main cause.
Over the last few months, I’ve received feedback from a number of teaching professionals privately acknowledging that they no longer find their classroom job especially interesting. That doesn’t necessarily mean they hate teaching or that they want to leave the profession, but teachers are often repeating the same information yearly to different groups – it’s the groups of students which make the job interesting and enjoyable – not the work itself.
You could say that a teacher in this position might expand their teaching methods and invest time into developing new and innovative teaching resources – and you’d be right – that’s certainly one strategy they could adopt, but therein lies the problem, in order to do that you have to find time – a commodity which is lacking in most teachers’ lives.
Your mid-career double-decade teaching-lifer is quite a tired person. They’re around 45-50 years old, they have a lot of marking, photocopying and admin to do plus commitments outside school e.g. looking after children or an elderly parent – they don’t have much energy to invest in being exciting but feel a bit despondent opening the GCSE textbook to P233 for the 7th year in a row. Teachers want their worksheets to be new and their teaching methods inventive – remember when we all found Kahoot and used it until we could no longer bear to listen to the theme music! But at the end of the day they are time and energy poor.
The realisation that I was bored in my job came in my 28th/ 29th year of teaching; I don’t mind admitting it. I enjoy working and being occupied, I like young people, I’ve worked in good schools with agreeable colleagues but there are only so many ways I can teach the Marketing Mix, Critical Path Analysis or Accounting ratios. After 30-ish years I just wanted something different to think about so I went part-time and undertook a coaching / mentoring qualification and I use my coaching skills with both education professionals and my students.
So, what’s the answer?
Well, the first step is acknowledging that this is how you feel. Once you’ve made that leap there are options - my solution certainly isn’t for everyone.
As a coach, my first question is “what do you want to have happen – what is your goal or desired outcome”? That will be different for every person. Sometimes people don’t know and then we might start with “what would your ideal situation look like”? Once they know that we can work together to remove obstacles and develop strategies to achieve it bringing back enjoyment and interest.
Ultimately if 50% of workers are always or sometimes bored, that will cover types of workers and job levels and some of them will be in teaching, but you have to ask yourself if this might be part of the problem in order to be able to solve it.
[1] https://www.cipd.org/globalassets/media/knowledge/knowledge-hub/reports/2024-pdfs/8625-good-work-index-2024-summary-report-1-web.pdf
Should all teachers have a mentor?
As with many things in life, the realistic answer to this question is not clear cut with several factors to consider.
Formal coaching and mentoring tools are used less commonly in teaching than many professions. Experienced teaching professionals frequently slip into an ad-hoc mentoring role if a less experienced member of staff asks advice, but the role is rarely formalised or planned as a CPD activity. Mentoring is widely recognised as having a positive impact on an employee’s motivation through empowerment and goal achievement so yes, theoretically all teachers should have a mentor to guide them and share good practice.
It depends if they want a mentor.
Whilst Early Careers teachers (ECT) often welcome mentoring as a chance to discuss problems and workshop appropriate solutions with an experienced colleague, it can also support mid-career teachers who are ambitious for promotion and are seeking to grow their skills to apply for career development positions.
However, more experienced teachers often feel they have a mountain of work to do so adding something else into the mix is not always well received and they may not see it is a valuable process. It’s common for a teacher to think “well, if I do that I have to move something else – and when will I do the thing I’ve moved”? A sinking, almost drowning, feeling takes over and they attend activities with an air of resignation.
There may also be an element of “old dog-new trick” here as some experienced teachers will feel aggrieved if allocated a mentor – even if that person could teach them a new skill e.g. how to develop lessons on Canva. There will always be a resistant group who are happy with how they do things and don’t see the need to change[1] (and who’s to say they are wrong)?
For mentoring to be successful it has to be contracted i.e. the mentee must choose to participate in the process otherwise meetings will go round in circles with little progress towards the development objectives because commitment is lacking, eventually failing and being classed as “an absolute waste of valuable time” when it could have been really positive. There are of course ways of approaching this from SLT but it requires an investment of time and strategic management.
Successful mentoring therefore should be on the basis of desire and commitment to the process and so should be discretionary rather than mandatory for all teaching staff.
Who will be the mentor?
Effective mentoring relationships are built on trust. If Teacher X has students (or students’ parents) who complain about them, giving them a mentor may be counterproductive and generate mistrust. Without effective communication, it may indicate that they are inadequate and increase anxiety rather than decreasing it - especially if it’s performance related or linked to the appraisal system. Similarly if Teacher X has a Learning walk and then discovers they’ve been allocated a senior member of staff as a mentor, it will create more problems than solutions as Teacher X worries about the implication that they are underperforming in specific classes.
Effective solutions here could include telling Teacher X that mentoring can be available internally from SLT-A or SLT-B if they would like to access the support – thus allowing the teacher an element of choice - not only about whether they want it, but also who will do it. Another option would be to buy in an external education coach / mentor who is an experienced professional. This person brings a fresh pair of eyes and can contract for the confidential / safe nature of the conversation. In both scenarios, the teacher is far more likely to commit to the mentoring and benefit from it.
Who will pay for mentoring?
Of course, in teaching money is always an issue, even internal mentoring is not free as it has to be performed by another member of staff. A Deputy Head spending an hour a week mentoring has a direct cost burden, it’s just that the cost is buried in their salary rather than overtly chargeable to the school or teacher.
This will always be an issue in state education where budgets are so tight. Research by the Institute for Fiscal Studies [2] shows that school budgets are decreasing in real terms so it’s clear that asking schools to pay for external mentoring for teachers is therefore challenging.
However SLT should be providing CPD. In 2021, schools spent an average of £2950 per employee[3] on CPD so there is scope for diverting mentoring costs to this budget and for an outside agency to be utilised. Additionally, some teachers may be willing to pay if they felt it would help them manage workload and develop strategies for time management, improving confidence and worklife balance, schools could negotiate rates with an external provider – I would certainly be willing to do this.
On the other hand the UK Government is providing money to support mentoring in FE[4]. A fund of £1.75m has been allocated to mentoring for early careers teachers in FE, colleges can apply for funding of up to £5000 per qualified mentor up to a maximum of £25,000 or mentors can be trained. This may be because there are many unqualified teachers working in FE. Staff who are experienced in trades such as joinery, motor vehicle etc make great teachers but don’t have a PGCE so they are often training on the job and need mentoring as the world of teaching opens up in front of them with mountains of admin they never knew existed.
Overall, whether a teacher needs a mentor depends on who they are and their current position. It would be reasonable to say that some teachers don’t want or need a mentor, but certainly some teachers would benefit enormously. Not all mentoring can, or should be, internal as that can increase pressure on staff and be counterproductive but adding in an element of choice might reduce those issues. Additionally, schools could use some of their CPD budget to provide or subsidise mentoring from an external provider or could agreed a preferential rate with them which must be funded by the teacher themselves – there are various options. However, with the current drain of teachers from the profession, many because of workload and worklife balance issues, it is surely an option worth exploring to boost retention.
[1] https://hbr.org/2008/07/choosing-strategies-for-change
[2] https://ifs.org.uk/articles/latest-picture-school-funding-and-costs-england
[3] https://epi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/2021-Cost-of-quality-teacher-cpd_EPI.pdf
[4] https://www.find-government-grants.service.gov.uk/grants/teacher-mentoring-programme-tmp-1
The common ground between Independent schools and FE.
Can there be common ground between these education settings? In my experience, yes, and possibly more than you’d think.
Whilst you might expect there to be more differences than similarities between teaching in an Independent school and an FE college (and you may be right), I’ve found there are also some notable similarities which are worth a mention.
- I’m teaching the same content to the same standard.
- The students want to do well.
- Good rapport will get you a long way.
Same content, same standard
After more than 30 years in teaching, the latter 15 of which were spent in Independent schools, I’m now in my 2nd year of teaching in FE. In schools I was teaching GCSE and A-level Business but now I teach on the BTEC National Diploma in Business. Students completing the Extended Diploma receive 3 grades - the highest combination of which (D*D*D*) is the equivalent of top A-Level grades and they can go to Uni, there are still exams, students have to pass them and they have the same Higher Education options open to them as anyone with A Levels.
I’m mostly using my A-Level teaching notes and worksheets to cover and embed the curriculum. I’m currently wading through the Finance unit, students have to understand and remember all the calculations: profit margins, return on investment, ratio analysis (I could go on but I won’t) so, if the content and the depth is similar between the two settings, what’s the difference? Mainly that there are also assignments through internally assessed units - everything doesn’t rest on students having a good day in their final exams, the workload is spread consistently across the years and students who find exams more challenging, experience far less stress.
Students want success
I don’t know how many students I’ve taught over my 32-year career - maybe a thousand - very few of them didn’t want to do well. No matter the background, family status, ability etc. students mostly want to achieve.
For some students that means an ‘A’ at A Level, but for others, good attainment is a 'D' - dependent largely on academic ability rather than work ethic. In all settings, there are students who underachieve, potentially their circumstances weren’t conducive to study, but there’s also a contingent for whom it is ‘easier to fail without trying’ than to try and achieve less than you might desire, if the results are poor they can say “oh yes, well, I didn’t try” - that’s much easier than trying and getting a relatively low grade or even worse, trying and not passing. The reality is that wherever you teach, if students try hard and all other things are equal, they will almost certainly meet or exceed their expectations and potential.
In FE, students are often a bit older, the average age of our new intake is 17 rather than 16. Maybe they didn’t do well at GCSE, have had a year working or retaking qualifications and are now ready to attempt Level 3 qualifications and move forward. In some respects they are ready to work harder because they are more mature, they have chosen to be in college and do the course we teach. In this respect they are more committed, they don’t have parental pressure in the same way as students whose parents are paying c. £15,000 per year and are not constantly stressed that their parents are monitoring their attainment. Our FE students are more likely to be motivated internally to do well for themselves and improve their life chances, rather than externally by the potential consequences at home of underachievement when weighed against parental investment.
Rapport is key
Rapport and relationships are key in education, it’s a customer-facing role. Students from all backgrounds are relying on you to teach them well, to cover all the syllabus and prepare them appropriately and fully for assessment. This means students have to trust you and (preferably) like you.
Notwithstanding that, the reality is that some students won't like you, and you won’t like all your students. The old adage “you’re not there to be their friend” is true but you have to create warmth and empathy. In my experience there are very few students you actually don’t warm to as people (I can personally count them on one hand), what teachers often don’t like is a student’s behaviour, rather than the student themselves. This is an important distinction which often gets lost when students say “teacher X hates me”. No! Often they just want you to stop messing about while they’re talking, or for you to hand in your work in on time and occasionally say “thank you”.
I’ve spent most of my career trying to keep up to date with what young people are into so I know what they’re talking about and I use humour to deflect a lot of potential confrontation in lessons. Remembering information about student e.g. their hobbies or problems and asking about them shows engagement - which is generally one way - but enables students to feel at ease and build positive relationships which facilitate greater success. They want to be liked and feel seen - and that doesn’t change with the type of school they are in or the background they come from.
On balance then, the underlying core of the job is the same across the two settings, the level of work is similar, the future destinations and desire to achieve are similar, the need for positive and nurturing student relationships is universal, it is, in many ways mainly the outward benefits which are so very different.
These comments represent my personal experience, which may be different to yours
How coaching & mentoring can help you shape today and tomorrow?
What do coaches and mentors do?
Coaching and mentoring are terms we hear (and use) often, sometimes interchangeably, but they are not the same thing.
Coaching has many iterations: life coaching, sports coaching, personal development coaching, career or job coaching and so on, but what does it entail?
Coaches use a variety of tools and techniques to facilitate growth in their clients, they hold the belief that their client has the resources to achieve their desired outcomes - that they have the ability to answer their own questions. The role of the coach is to help the client to find those answers, identify the resources they have and decide how to use them to their greatest effect.
Sometimes this means looking at difficult situations with clients and examining how their behaviour could help them to manage those situations differently.
For example, imagine you are dreading a particular Wednesday afternoon interaction with a colleague. Something as simple as having your favourite sandwich, listening to your favourite tunes or wearing your favourite top, can positively impact on your mindset going into the meeting, putting a spring in your step and changing your behaviour – you will give off positive vibes and walk with confidence. Imagine doing all those things on Wednesday - how much more positive you would feel walking into that meeting. The agenda won’t change but your reaction and ability to deal with it will be different.
Mentoring on the other hand is about passing on knowledge from a more experienced colleague to a less experienced one. Mentors should be specialists in their industry, but this doesn’t necessarily mean “older and wiser” a mentor could be someone younger with specialist training sharing their expertise with other staff.
Mentoring involves a level of advice giving, discussing strategies and identifying what the mentee will try before you meet again. Mentees are generally accountable for trying to implement strategies which are agreed and often measurable. Effective mentoring helps employees feel more confident and engaged in work, it helps with problem solving and speeds up career development pathways.
I have worked for over 30 years in education, I’ve worked in state schools, independent schools and FE, I’ve been 50% on the ‘shop floor’ and 50% in management. There are very few scenarios I haven’t come across through these years, so the field of education is my mentoring speciality.
Maybe you haven’t thought about coaching or mentoring before but, do yourself a favour: tomorrow, pack your favourite lunch, wear your favourite clothes and listen to your favourite music in your way to work and see how differently your day goes!
I'm all ears!
One of the things which strikes me as a coach is how often clients say, “it’s amazing to have someone just listening to me” as a result I’m starting to think people don’t actually listen to each other most of the time.
As a teacher, I guess maybe I haven’t experienced this as much because teacher are used to securing the attention of their listeners before they start talking – for example I’ve realised I often use someone’s name before I speak to gain their attention - however, this doesn’t necessarily mean they are listening to me fully.
How do we listen?
This is a strange question because you’d think the answer is obvious, but it really isn’t. A lot of coaching is about listening – and not always to what is being said out loud. Coaches also listen to non-verbal information such as body language, posture, eye movements and gesture as well as their guts feelings. Moreover, when a client is speaking, coaches listen for specific language which a coachee might use – word choice is a big thing!! Whenever people speak or write they are consciously or unconsciously selecting the words used so listening to word selection can tell the coach a lot about their coachee.
For example, if a coachee is looking for career change and discussing the main factors preventing that, they might say they feel they are “abandoning their colleagues”. Abandoning is a very strong word which an effective coach would want to explore more to help their client move forward. What makes you feel you might be abandoning them? What actions can you take to change that feeling? etc etc.
Over the next few days, try to really listen when someone is talking to you; listen with all your senses - not just your auditory system, and see what the person is actually saying. Similarly, maybe try thinking about the words you select in conversation, ensuring you choose the word you really want to use and see how that thought process affects your conversations.
Every ending is a beginning.
Sometimes an ending can pivot you into a new way of thinking.
It’s autumn, September heralds the end of summer, of long days, friendly BBQs, holidays and day trips to the seaside, but for many people autumn brings new beginnings.
In education, it’s the start of the new academic year, students start at new schools, they begin new courses and make new friends. We can look forward to Bonfire night, to fireworks, thick jumpers, Christmas and snowflakes.
In coaching terms, if you’re stuck in a rut, maybe now’s a good time to think about the issues which concern you most and start to think about your goals and how you might achieve them. No-one else can define your goals, take a few minutes to think about autumn as a new start, what do you want to achieve or change? Within that, you can think about what’s realistic for your situation? What are your options for progressing. Once you’ve got that far you just need to decide what you will do to move towards your goal?
Coaching, mentoring and tutoring - what's the difference?
These are related terms but they don’t mean the same thing.
Let’s take tutoring first, most people are familiar with tutoring, it’s usually done by teachers, often to help students who need some extra input with GCSE or A level subjects prior to exams.
Commonly tutoring is most helpful if:
- A student has missed classes for some reason e.g. due to illness
- A teacher has been absent for a prolonged period e.g. due to illness and the school have not managed to find a replacement teacher.
- A student is on a course which is not best suited to their skills and abilities and therefore finds the work challenging.
- A student is in a large group and the teacher is not able to devote time to them individually due to workload.
- Behavioural issues in the classroom mean it is hard for the teacher to facilitate learning properly as they are spending time on “crowd control” rather than teaching, this will often be due to a poor behaviour management system in the school, not the teacher per se.
Mentoring occurs where an experienced person gives advice to someone less experienced but it’s not academic-subject related. For example a mentor might advise a student about planning and managing workload and revision or how to ask the right questions or how to complete a UCAS form or choose a university course. These are general topics which an experienced teacher or manager can help with. Mentors are not required to have any specific qualifications.
Mentoring can be good if:
- You feel stuck and don’t know how to organise yourself
- You need advice on a particular issue
- You want to chat about possible scenarios with someone experienced
- You have a lot to do and don’t know where to start
Coaching involves a professional or experienced coach helping their coachees to set goals to achieve their potential. They use techniques to help clients to develop an optimistic approach and set achievable goals. They do not advise as such; they use techniques to help the coachees think about how they can develop personally and achieve their goals. Coaches have usually completed or are working towards a specific coaching qualification.
Coaching can help you if:
- You feel stuck in rut
- You have good skills but feel you don’t know how to develop forward
- You want to discuss situations but can think them through yourself, coaches generally ask questions rather than provide answers.
- You want a change of direction but just can’t organise your thoughts or actions
Mock madness
I'm worried my grades are not what I'm hoping for.
For most students, at this stage your grades won't be what you're hoping for in the summer, that's because you are not ready to take your final exams yet.
Mocks are a chance for you to see how it's going, they have several benefits even if you think the exams have gone really badly.
- You get to have a go at learning a large amount of information - to see how easy or difficult that is for you, which revision techniques work for you and which don't.
- You are sitting a paper under timed conditions in an exam hall to get a feel for what it will be like in summer. Although you might have done a lot of tests in class leading up to this, apart from Yr 10 or Yr 12 exams, they will mostly be maybe 45 - 50 minutes long because that's how long lessons are so, you need to see what 90 or 120 minutes feels like when you have to sit and concentrate for that amount of time.
- You can spot any areas you really don't understand and ask for help with them
- You get a realistic idea of what the result is in relation to your effort level - that's why it's important to try - otherwise the result doesn't indicate what you might get - it shows what you'll get if you don't really try.
Don't forget you still have 3 months before your actual exams so you have time to improve with the right revision techniques and some time devoted to it.
Some students get very anxious around this time because they see others doing much better than them, seemingly without effort, in my experience those people are often working very very hard at home but telling you they're not doing anything - that's so common. Don't compare yourself to other people - fix your eyes on your own work and your target grades and work towards them.
Students can become worried that they have let down their parents or their teacher. That's very unlikely to be true. Sometimes parents (and teachers) become frustrated if students look as if they are not really trying. Parents worry about what will happen next because they want their children to do well and this shows itself as frustration.
Teachers are highly educated people, they have a degree in their subject and want their students to do well, they are devoting their time and skills to help students learn. It can therefore be frustrating if they mark a set of 25 exam papers and can see that some students didn't do a suitable amount of revision - this is understandable but it's not personal. You also have to remember that teachers are accountable for class performance in terms of value-added so they do became stressed if students don't seem to be making efforts to progress.
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