Coaches & Admin...It's not a tug-of-war!

Technology is one of the most popular current trends in education today, to say the least. And, when it comes to technology, there are many obstacles like the cost of devices, sufficient internet access, and teachers who are resistant to this change, to name a few. One thing there shouldn't be is the battle between administrators and instructional technology coaches. These two groups of people both want what's best for our students and to give them the skills needed to succeed. Of course, their job titles assume different responsibilities, but when it comes to technology, there should be some overlaps.

According to the ISTE Standards for Coaches and Administrators, both groups need to display visionary leadership and model appropriate digital citizenship. Both parties are responsible for being leaders in the implementation of technology. As it should, this leadership will look different as administrators are the ones who are leading the development and the technology coaches are the ones who will work to implement this shared vision. The same is true for digital citizenship. Technology coaches model and promote digital citizenship and work to implement this knowledge to both teacher and students, whereas administrators are responsible for fully understanding the legal issues and responsibilities in the digital culture.

Of course along with similarities, there will be differences in the standards. When using the ISTE Standards for Administrators and Coaches, administrators, in short, are responsible for creating culture, promote professional learning and practice (including professional learning for the technology coach), and ensuring that improvements are made where and when they should be. For technology coaches, the standards are more focused on creating and modeling digital age learning environments, understanding what professional learning is needed, and knowing content of grade levels to assist in the integration of technology into classrooms.

Happy collaborating!

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The following graphic is taken from Building Teachers' Capacity for Success by Pete Hall and Alisa Simeral sums up the responsibilities and roles of instructional coaches versus administration. In my opinion, this is a great resource for any instructional coach to keep in mind when performing their duties.

#ISTEStandards