Creating a MentoringCoaching Culture for Ontario School Leaders

Abstract

Mentoring is a highly recognized and accepted strategy for attracting, developing, and sustaining leaders across education sector and beyond. It helps accelerate learning, reduce isolation, and increase confidence and skill of newly appointed school leaders. It can also be a powerful learning and growth opportunity for experienced principals and vice-principals who become mentors. In spring of 2007, Ministry of Education invited Ontario Principals' Council (OPC) and others to a discussion about types of support school leaders needed, given shortage of school principals and unwillingness of many teachers to consider role of school leader. The data collected prior to these discussions revealed a huge exodus of practicing principals due to pending retirement. A Unique Approach The professional association for public school principals and vice-principals, OPC, developed a unique MentoringCoaching program in partnership with Ministry of Education and school districts across province. In recognition of claim from Leithwood, Day, Sammons, Harris & Hopkins (2006) that school leadership is second only to classroom teaching as an influence on pupil learning and that the effects of transformational school leadership on pupil engagement are significantly (p. 5). OPC's program is designed to influence leaders who are able to set direction, build relationships, develop people, develop organization, lead instructional program, and secure accountability (Institute for Education Leadership, 2007) in their schools and districts. The Program MentoringCoaching Program we developed, established in 2008, is grounded in principles and practices of adult learning. It takes a comprehensive approach to professional growth by facilitating knowledge and skill development within a collaborative community of practice and builds on learning from prior mentoring efforts within province. It is distinct in its ability to combine mentoring and coaching into one inclusive program. In this initiative, mentoring refers to a reciprocal learning relationship in which mentors and mentees agree to a partnership. They work collaboratively toward achievement of mutually defined goals to develop a mentee's skills, abilities, knowledge, and thinking (Zachary, 2007). Mentors meet with their mentees on a regular basis and maximize professional learning that evolves through veterans and newly appointed principals and vice-principals working together. As well, use of coaching skills for mentors helps to facilitate desired change through a positive relationship of ongoing support and challenge. The skills and principles of coaching include a focus on taking an individual or group from where they were to where they want to be. Coaching serves as a tool for building individual and team learning capacity and for developing competency and self-awareness. Coaching supports job-embedded, context-specific, and results-driven principles of effective professional development (Nishimura & Sharpe, 2007). MentoringCoaching was adopted as name of program. Bringing framework and skills of coaching to that of mentoring expands what is possible within relationship and network of support as rigor and depth of partnerships develop (Nishimura & Sharpe, 2007). Mentoring combined with coaching provides orientation, skill development, practice, and continuous support that results in a sustainable leadership development strategy and aligns with principles of effective staff development. Ensuring Long Term Growth OPC's efforts required creating a MentoringCoaching culture for school leaders to ensure its long-term growth and sustainability. According to Zachary (2005), best chance for fulfilling promise of mentoring within organizations today lies in creating a mentoring [coaching] culture. …