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