Blended Coaching: Skills and Strategies to Support Principal Development

"At last we have a comprehensive book that teaches us about the practice of coaching and the principalship! There are skills, strategies, tools, and stories of practicing leaders that can help a prospective leader grow and learn in this engagingly written book. This is clearly a must read for principals-new and experienced-and those who coach them."
-Ann Lieberman, Senior Scholar Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching

"One of the few books on education in the last decade that has the touch of genius, Blended Coaching gives principals the inspiration they need to shift from administrator to school leader, from cop to coach, from boss to mentor. It provides proven strategies, skills that can be practically and immediately applied to positively impact every teacher and student in America."
-Robert Hargrove, Author, Masterful Coaching

"Bloom, Castagna, Moir, and Warren have achieved new heights in our profession by building upon the best knowledge in coaching and systems change, and constructing blended leadership coaching founded on substantive research in cognition, linguistics, emotional intelligence, and cultural competency. Blended Coaching gives expression to a coaching conceptual framework erected with skills, tools, and vibrant examples."
-Linda Lambert, Professor Emeritus
California State University, Hayward

Support new and veteran principals through coaching-based professional development!

Research shows conclusively that principals and other school leaders are essential to school improvement, and that these individuals benefit from the intensive, contextualized support that a coach or mentor can provide. But how does a coach support a school leader in mastering the professional and emotional challenges of school leadership for a meaningful and positive impact on students?

This book, grounded in research and theory, provides readers with practical skills and strategies for leadership coaching explicitly tied to the needs of principals and other school leaders. It makes sense of the often contradictory literature on coaching by promoting a new approach, that of "Blended Coaching."  This model-based on more than 15 years of fieldwork at the renowned New Teacher Center, University of California, Santa Cruz-recognizes that effective coaches move between facilitative and instructional approaches in their practice, and has made a meaningful difference in dozens of school districts nationwide.

Designed for individuals and institutions charged with improving principal retention, teacher satisfaction, and student achievement, this indispensable resource features:

• Real-life examples to enforce key concepts
• Reflective prompts to enhance assimilation
• Insightful exercises for coaches, principals, and colleagues
• Comprehensive resources, including worksheets, sample forms, and assessments