The document provides guidance for a closing the gap leadership challenge coaching session. It instructs participants to work in trios or pairs from different schools and receive coaching to formulate a plan. The coaching will involve 15-20 minutes of private discussion where the coach helps the coachee find their own solutions without writing things down. It outlines the skills of client-centered coaching like building rapport, active listening, asking open questions, and summarizing. It clarifies that coaching is not about giving answers, making judgments, offering counseling, or imposing agendas. It prompts consideration of where the greatest impact can be made and provides sample questions the coach could ask to explore gaps in achievement and strategies for developing an action plan.

1. Doncaster MLDP
Closing the Gap Leadership Challenge
What? How? Who? When?

2. Closing the Gap Leadership Challenge
• Work in trios/pair – not same school
• Coaching with a goal
• Help formulate a plan for CTGLC
• Quality time 15/20 mins each
• In privacy
• Enabling colleague to find solutions/make
decisions themselves
• No writing! – thinking, formulating ideas
• Where trios 3rd person observes & time keeps
• You will have personal time to write down
outcomes from the coaching session before you
leave

3. The skills of client-centred coaching include:
– Building rapport
– Contracting
– Active listening
– Use of open questions
– Summarising
– Demonstrating empathy
– Using appropriate challenge
– Setting goals

4. Coaching is not about:
• Giving answers or advice
• Making judgements
• Offering counselling
• Creating dependency
• Imposing agenda/initiatives
• Confirming long-held prejudices

5. Consider today’s learning!
• Where can you have the greatest impact?
• Use the statements from your prioritisation
matrix
• What is the context? Where are the gaps
in achievement? Do you know?
• If you have already decided on the area
explain why. Coach explore reasons, seek
clarification & deepen thinking on strategy.

6. Possible questions
• Which cohorts with gaps in achievement are you considering exploring?
• What evidence do you have around the gap?
• What other evidence might you need to gather?
• Have you considered a student voice activity?
• What support in school will you need?
• Which staff will you engage to help close the gap?
• How will you get them to buy in?
• How will you present this?
• Are there policies that need to be created or implemented to achieve your
goal?
• What aspect of classroom practice do you think will have the most impact?
• Will the staff involved need professional learning to support your initiative?
How will you coordinate this?
• How will you monitor progress?
• What will you do first?
• How will you organise an action plan?
• How long will your challenge need to be able to see impact on closing the
gap?
These questions are not prescriptive, merely a guide; listen & respond – you
are guiding and clarifying thinking