Exploring the School Improvement Specialist Coaches’ Experience in Coaching English Language Teachers

Abstract

Having School Improvement Specialist Coach to support English language teachers is one of the most recent efforts taken by Malaysian government to improve the standard of English in the country. This paper aims to provide insights into the coaching process as perceived by the coaches. In-depth semi-structured interviews were carried out with two coaches where they were asked to share their coaching experience. Specifically, this paper addresses the coaches' perceptions on the professional and personal qualities required in order to be a good coach; their challenging and successful experiences; and their overall views of the effectiveness of the coaching programme. Data analysis reveals that coaching, as part of a professional development programme, is perceived by the coaches to have a significant impact on the enhancement of overall teaching practices. This paper offers valuable insights into the coaching process which are hoped to be beneficial to SISC+, teachers and other stakeholders in education sector.