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Forces that shape coaches’ classroom access
By Evthokia Stephanie Saclarides and Jen Munson
August 2024
For coaches, access to classrooms isn’t straightforward and is far from guaranteed. Access is a prerequisite for coaching, yet there are many barriers beyond a coach’s control, making their job difficult to impossible. In our recent interview study with 28 content-focused coaches in one school district with an established coaching program, we asked coaches about their access to classrooms for coaching work (Munson & Saclarides, 2022, 2024; Saclarides & Munson, 2022). They described both the barriers and the support, which we refer to as forces, that influenced their classroom access but were beyond their control. Of note, coaches pointed to administrators and school structures as formidable forces that played a meaningful role in either facilitating or impeding their classroom access (Munson & Saclarides, 2024). For
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References
Knight, D.S. (2012). Assessing the cost of instructional coaching. Journal of Education Finance, 38(1), 52-80.
Munson, J. & Saclarides, E.S. (2022). Getting a foot in the door: Examining content-focused coaches’ strategies for gaining access to classrooms. Elementary School Journal, 123(1).
Munson, J. & Saclarides, E.S. (2024). Conflict and cooperation: Micropolitical forces impacting coaches’ access. Elementary School Journal, 124(3).
Saclarides, E.S. & Munson, J. (2022). An exploration of coaches’ coordination of strategies to gain access to teachers’ classrooms. Elementary School Journal, 123(2).
Evthokia Stephanie Saclarides is an assistant professor of mathematics education in University of Cincinnati’s School of Education. She is a former public school teacher, instructional coach, and administrator. Her research explores how coaches can provide teachers with high-quality professional development to support the teaching and learning of mathematics.
Jen Munson is an assistant professor of learning sciences in Northwestern University’s School of Education and Social Policy, where her research focuses on understanding how interactions between mathematics students, teachers, and coaches can support learning. She founded and directs multiplicity lab (multiplcitylab.northwestern.edu) which supports mathematics teachers across the globe with activities that foster multiple ways of being in, knowing, and doing mathematics.
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