Conversations about annotations during coaching cycles: Analysis of coaches’ facilitation to support teacher participation

Abstract

We analyzed how coaches and teachers discussed annotations during online content-focused coaching cycles to understand the relationships between coaches’ discursive patterns and teacher participation in conversations. Data showed teachers talked less about the annotations than coaches, particularly when coaches used directive moves to initiate annotation discussion or discussed the annotations in sequential order. Teachers showed high levels of participation in discussions in which coaches used combinations of directive, reflective, and facilitative discourse moves to promote extended conversation. Teacher participation was improved when coaches avoided sequentially discussing annotations or using directive moves during the early stages of annotation discussion.