Coaching schOols to fAce Change aHead Erasmus Project

Project Title

Coaching schOols to fAce Change aHead

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Quality Improvement Institutions and/or methods (incl. school development); New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

Education & Training 2020 and the Communication Rethinking Education highlight the need of continuous professional development for teachers . Standards and levels of achievement in education should increasingly match the present ever rising demands of society, and transversal skills are to be encouraged to ensure the capacity to face increasing inevitable changes.
The project, C.O.A.C.H.(COACHING SCHOOLS TO FACE CHANGE AHEAD) aims at designing a blended Continuing Professional Development Programme in seven modules to introduce a new role in education: ‘the school coach’ able to strengthen quality processes, effective cooperation and well-being in schools through an individual and organizational development.

The main objective is to support teachers to develop professionally and, throughout the programme, to gain fresh perspectives on personal challenges, enhancing decision-making skills, greater interpersonal effectiveness, and increased confidence. Moreover, the participants in the blended training activity expect appreciable improvement in productivity, satisfaction with life and work and the attainment of relevant professional and personal goals.
Taking into account needs and challenges in education, the main aim of the blended Programme is to favour the acquisition of a set of core competencies to become a certified school coach, capable of promoting quality and self-assessment in schools.
Below are the goals linked to the achievement of the above main objective:
1) To stimulate an expansive mindset in trainees
2) To elicit transversal skills through a multiplier effect
3) To support increased openness to personal learning and generate improvements in individuals’ attitudes and performances.

The C.O.A.C.H. partnership is composed by 9 institutions from 6 European countries(LT,IT,NO,RO,TR,UK,AT), whose expertise belongs to the following sectors:
1) education(5 schools from IT,LT,NO,RO,TR, 1 university from the UK, 1 research association in education and training in AT)
2) coaching and training (two accredited enterprises from IT and the UK).
The C.O.A.C.H. main activity is a PDCA (plan–do–check–act) focused on the project programme to become a school coach. The pilot phase in 5 countries has highlighted the corrective actions to put in place before the release of the final programme.
The methodology of the programme is designed to promote a cooperative approach, and participants have developed skills to critically examine their job and an attitude to team work in line with constructivist learning theories.
The training programme has provided teaching in an inductive manner through hands-on training opportunities to allow personal and professional working styles to emerge from practical experiences.

The results of the above mentioned programme include:
1) the definition of a School Coach Profile in line with school education and coaching requirements
2) The C.O.A.C.H. Research to highlight and compare the practices used in the participating countries
3) a 130 hour blended Continuing Professional Development Programme in 7 modules(80 face to face and 50 online), which has been accredited by the International Coach Federation. The Programme has also been tailored for a Postgraduate Professional Development course.
4) The use of the C.O.A.C.H. interactive platform, which is part of the training and a tool for the future use of coaches, who will have the chance of exchanging experiences with their peers, creating a network, using a cooperative environment and conducting online coaching.
5) The ‘C.O.A.C.H Impact Report’ to highlight the benefits at European level observed in participants.
6) The production of ‘C.O.A.C.H e-Guide’ that includes material on all the modules of the programme.

The number of the direct target group in all 7 participating countries is formed by all the professionals who have taken part in the participating institution to the project activities and by 100 school coaches (20 per each school in the partnership) who have impacted through a cascade effect a number of about 1000 teachers within the partnership, considering the whole staff in each participating institution. The other beneficiaries of the project both direct and indirect have been the students(about 6000) and their families(about 12.000). In the long run the benefits are designed to impact the whole school system reaching about 157.000 people(teachers, students, families, ICF coaches, policy and decision makers).

C.O.A.C.H long-term positive effects will be felt in the teachers’ acquisition of a mindset able to support schools to face changes and innovation and to take an active role in the teaching/learning process. Moreover, advantages will be felt on individual and school well-being, and on the ability to cope successfully with challenges and stress.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 286330 Eur

Project Coordinator

Liceo Scientifico Statale Augusto Righi & Country: IT

Project Partners

• Charlottenlund Upper Secondary School
• UNIVERSITY OF NORTHUMBRIA AT NEWCASTLE
• 3S RESEARCH LABORATORY – FORSCHUNGSVEREIN
• OZEL BUYUK KOLEJ EGT. YAY.BAS.TIC.SAN.AS.
• Associazione Professionale Universo CLIL (Coaching Lifelong Innovative Learning)
• The Performance Solution (2004) Ltd
• HS Zwentendorf