Coaching Skills for School Leaders & Teachers

On successful completion of this programme participants will receive a DUAL AWARD.

QQI Level 6 Certificate in

Professional Coaching Practice and Ethics

Diploma in Life and Leadership Coaching

accredited by the Association for Coaching (AC)

A unique one-year part time training programme designed for School Principals, Deputy Principals, Assistant Principals, Aspiring School Leaders, and Teachers

The programme is endorsed by Oide – the support service for teachers & school leaders.

Coaching is becoming increasingly important in organisations across many sectors. Whether you are seeking to introduce a coaching culture to your school or striving to unlock the potential of your staff, this programme will equip you with the effective coaching techniques and skills to succeed. You will enjoy a powerful and practical learning experience.

In our world of increased demands and expectations of school leadership roles we often experience pressure, leading to:

• Overwhelm
• Anxiety
• Stress

It’s amazing how quickly these responses become the norm and we just accept this as a way of life.

We are offering a practical, skills based programme to equip you with some of the key skills necessary for effective leadership in your school environment and to support and resource your CPD in a real, practical and relevant way.

The Leadership Coaching programme content and skills respond in a relevant and practical way to the guidelines prescribed in the four domains of the Quality Framework for Leadership and Management from the Department of Education and Skills (2016) publication, Looking at our School.

The programme content is aligned with the AC [Association for Coaching] core competencies.

Module 1: Leadership coaching in schools – Coaching Principles and Practice
Module 2: Developing the School Leader Coaching Mindset and Skills
Module 3: Developing Emotional Intelligence – applying the coaching skills
Module 4: Coaching Models of Practice for the School Context
Module 5: Coaching and the ISM Team

On this Coaching Special Purpose Award Programme you will:

• Discover new ideas in learning and behavioural change based on recent neuroscience research, indicating the value of coaching for leaders.
• Examine cases and situations where coaching would be most useful in your school
• Determine how to blend managing with coaching for the most beneficial results.
• Have achieved a high level of self-awareness
• Identify what mental and emotional states are necessary to hold during a challenging conversation so the person stays receptive to the conversation.
• Learn models of coaching most useful for developing people’s thinking as well as solving problems.
• Practice using coaching in a variety of leadership situations e.g. with staff, parents and students
• Have increased confidence in your coaching skills ability
• Engage in constructive conversations
• Listen with intent and communicate more effectively
• Use powerful questions to influence thinking
• Make requests and acknowledge achievements and best practice
• Delegate with ease and confidence
• Design action plans
• Establish agreements and commitments
• Monitor and facilitate progress through support, encouragement and validation
• Engage in sharing constructive feedback
• Manage your emotional state to respond effectively to everyday challenges
• Become more resilience in your school leadership role

The course is interactive, combining a balance between coaching theory and practice. Participants will be encouraged to learn by doing and to continuously reflect on new learning experiences. Continuous reflective practice will enable coaching perspectives and skills to be firmly embedded in the school environment.

The programme facilitates experiential learning, giving participants opportunities to practice new skills and discuss how to integrate the skills into the scenarios they regularly face in the school environment.

A wide and varied range of training / learning methodologies will be used, e.g. live coaching demonstrations, YouTube videos, discussion groups, peer coaching practice sessions and observed coaching sessions with constructive feedback.

We firmly believe that one of the most important dimensions of the coach training process is the continuous personal and professional development and transformation of the course participant. Therefore, we encourage and support participants to:

• Become more self aware
• Make more conscious choices daily
• Develop a positive mental attitude about self, others, life and work
• Practice non – attachment
• Live with ambiguity and uncertainty
• Be more resilient

Taking part in the Leadership Coaching Skills Programme has been extremely beneficial and transformative for me – both professionally and personally. The skills developed have given me confidence in my abilities, enabled me to identify my strengths and empowered me to strive towards my goals. The course has also challenged me to examine decisions made as well as my interpersonal skills. I have learned techniques to manage and navigate challenging situations, empower, develop and challenge others and forge and maintain relationships. Since beginning this course, I have renewed energy, focus and enthusiasm in my leadership role.

– Mary Hayes, Primary School Principal

Wonderfully facilitated over Zoom by Noel and Elizabeth, a safe virtual learning space was created with a surprise element of convenience as Zoom negated the need to travel which allowed us to blend the course into our lockdown lives.

Continual encouragement to bring our learning to life in the workplace motivated keen interest throughout. Practical and skill focussed in essence with content which sparked vitalising awakenings… this the most engaging and personally fulfilling course I have had the pleasure of being part of to date.

– Sinéad Keenan Primary School AP1

In this very difficult year Coaching Skills for School Leaders has had a very positive impact on me. This course is a journey of professional and personal growth. The skills I have developed have given me confidence in my abilities and my daily interactions with staff, students, and parents. After every session you are ready and equipped to try out a new skill and see the value in it. Completing the course via zoom made for easy access, no traffic delays and a safe space for conversations and skills to be practiced. I would highly recommend it to all current and aspiring school leaders who are interested in building positive relationships and developing themselves.  

– Claire Cunningham, Post Primary AP1

Participating in the ‘Coaching Skills for School Leaders’ course (QQI Level 6) is an enriching and growing experience for me. Not only the course itself but also the additional elements to it like the development of key skills through role-play and other practical elements. I would highly recommend this course to people who are genuinely interested in building positive professional relationships and developing themselves in their professional and personal lives.

Donal Cahir, Post Primary Deputy Principal

This course has provided me with skills that I will use throughout the rest of my career as teacher and principal.    I have learned skills that will be extremely useful on a daily basis e.g. listening, building rapport, summarising, questioning and reflecting back.  I have already used many of these skills in my encounters in school life, which has had a positive impact. I think that teachers / principals need to develop the aforementioned skills as the management of relationships in schools can provide the biggest challenges for leaders.  

What makes this course different to other courses that I have done is the practical nature of it.  This makes it extremely engaging and enriches the learning. This ensured that the skills I learned about have been firmly embedded in my practice. 

The engagement with other teachers / school leaders on this course has also generated huge learning opportunities. Also through practising the skills of coaching and being coached it has clearly demonstrated how powerful it is as a leadership skill. It provides space for the coachee to work through difficulties and challenges. Engaging in coaching practice has visibly decreased professional pressures for me this year. 

I have recommended this course to several principals I have met this year at other CPD courses. 

– Ann Lynskey, Primary School Principal

In these challenging times in the world of education, the Coaching Skills for School Leaders course has had such a positive impact on my daily interactions. The course is particularly relevant to a school context and the various relationships that exist there…students, parents, colleagues, etc. In an era when mental health and wellbeing are in the spotlight, teachers are not always considered. This course gives a positive mix of theory and, more importantly, practical skills and tools to navigate the often, difficult conversations we have in our professional lives.

The practical element of the course increased my self-confidence, especially in my roles as a Year Head, a member of the Student Support Team and a member of the Professional Support Team in the Droichead Process. I feel better equipped now when engaging with all stakeholders.

As a result of my participation in this course I have the tools with which to improve my relationships, even those that are more challenging, leading to a much more positive working environment.

Transformational leadership is valued in the school context, and this course equips participants with skills and knowledge to guide and lead others to be better versions of themselves, while simultaneously valuing themselves and their impact on the workplace.

– Claire Culligan, AP1 in Post Primary School

The wealth of experience that Elizabeth and Noel bring to our sessions has ensured that I feel I am being well guided on this my first introduction to Coaching. It has provided me as an Assistant Principal 1 with professional learning that I can put into action in my own school quite quickly after our sessions. As a result, I feel that the level of professional support that I have been able to provide to students, parents, teachers and school management has been enhanced as a direct result of the learning opportunities this course has given me.

As Coordinator of our Teaching, Learning and Assessment team I have encouraged my colleagues to view our School Improvement Plan as a tool for capturing the possibilities for high quality professional learning that they feel will help to improve the learning experience of our students, rather than just a checklist for a policy that sits on a shelf.

 We strive to work as a listening school, which provides opportunities for each of the stakeholders to meaningfully share their voice. This course has developed my coaching skills to ensure that those voices are heard and that I can support them towards finding their own solutions for the improvement of our school. 

– Justin O’Connor, API in Post Primary School

I would highly recommend the Leadership Coaching Course for all school leaders and to aspiring school leaders. The experience to date has been a very beneficial and positive one for me not only in terms of continued professional development but also the influence it has had in how I conduct my interactions with people both in my professional and personal life. The course has given me the opportunity to discover and utilise skills that I had within myself that had been lying dormant up until now.

The journey of self-discovery gives you the belief in your own abilities and equips you with the necessary approaches and skills in how to best utilise such abilities in your day-to-day responsibilities as a school leader. I have seen notable improvements in how I have handled challenging situations within my role in school with staff, parents and the children. The course has heightened my awareness and given me a greater understanding of people and their behaviours as well as liberating me as a leader in the understanding that I can only control my own actions.

– Jane O’Leary, Primary Deputy Principal

The Coaching Skills for School Leaders programme has given me a fresh approach to principalship. I’ve learnt new communication and management skills that are immediately transferable to my school. I am more far more confident and resilient in dealing with the challenges of school leadership. The course is very practical and tailored to meet the needs of school leaders. I would highly recommend it for all current and aspiring school leaders.

– Kevin Clohessy, Primary School Principal