KU reading research, instructional coaching net results

When teachers in the Topeka Public Schools return to their classes this fall, they will have the benefit of a University of Kansas program that helps them identify and use the best teaching practices available.

For the past six years, the KU program Pathways to Success, a part of the School of Education's Center for Research on Learning, has placed instructional coaches (ICs) in the teaching ranks of all the public middle and high schools in Topeka to partner with and guide the regular classroom teachers in everything from professional development to solving discipline problems in class.

 The results have been positive, according to Jim Knight, KU-CRL research associate and project director for Pathways to Success.

“Instructional coaching and teaching quality have become important issues since the No Child Left Behind Act became law,” Knight said. “It has emphasized how important professional development can be. Our approach is different than just sponsoring a couple of workshops. ICs are in the classroom with teachers every day.  The whole life of an IC is teaching other teachers.”

Knight recently published an article in the trade publication Principal Leadership, describing Pathways to Success and the ways in which it has improved student achievement and student comprehension. Pathways to Success employs 10 ICs in Topeka schools.  A similar program, Passport to Success, is being used in schools in seven counties in Maryland. Funding for both programs comes from the federal government's GEAR UP program.

“We enjoy our partnership with KU,” said Jim Glass, grant specialist for Topeka Public Schools and the school system's liaison for Pathways to Success. “The program has been a phenomenal success. It has helped our teachers do a better job of teaching core subjects tested by the Kansas state standards. Our district has seen test scores in math and reading rise significantly.”

Data published in the Principal Leadership article describe three reasons why using ICs can be a good option for school improvement efforts, Knight said.  First, instructional coaching leads to implementation when the right conditions are in place. In both the Topeka and Maryland programs, well-constructed instructional coaching programs have consistently generated implementation rates of at least 85 percent, with schools getting every teacher to use several effective instructional practices.  By contrast, previous studies have shown that only 10 percent of teachers implement at least one teaching practice through traditional “in-service” training.

A second benefit is that ICs also can ensure teachers' faithfully follow scientifically proven instructional practices, Knight said. Pathways to Success studied the importance of following proven practices by comparing the results of mid-level students in what are referred to as “high-fidelity” classrooms with mid- level students in “low-fidelity” classrooms. The results showed that students in high-fidelity classrooms improved on the number of complete sentences they could write by 13 percent, while students in low-fidelity classrooms improved by only 4 percent.