Exploring how peer coaching transforms teaching principles through collaborative professional development and evidence-based practices.
Imagine a classroom where students are so engaged in examining their own thinking that the teacher seems to barely intervene. This scene wasn't the result of a top-down training mandate or a prescribed curriculum—it emerged from teachers working together, watching lesson videos, and refining their approaches through structured collaboration. This is the power of peer coaching, an increasingly influential approach to teacher development that operates not through external experts, but through the collective wisdom of educators themselves.
of principals received coaching according to NAESP study 2
of principals who received coaching found it valuable 2
The traditional model of professional development—the one-shot workshop—has consistently proven inadequate for creating lasting change. By contrast, peer coaching creates relationships in which educators feel cared for and are therefore able to access and implement new knowledge, ultimately transforming not just their practices but their fundamental teaching principles 6 .
"Peer coaching creates relationships in which educators feel cared for and are therefore able to access and implement new knowledge."
At its core, peer coaching represents a fundamental shift from evaluation to collaboration. Unlike supervisory models that can trigger defensiveness, effective peer coaching operates through nonevaluative partnerships where professionals collaborate to reflect on and refine current skills and practices 9 . This collaborative approach has demonstrated significant effects on classroom instructional practices across multiple studies 9 .
Research from the Instructional Coaching Group has identified four critical components that make peer coaching successful 1 :
Seven key principles create safety and openness essential for growth: equality, choice, voice, dialogue, reflection, praxis, and reciprocity 1 .
Effective coaches ask genuine, open-ended questions and demonstrate respect through focused listening 1 .
The structured "Impact Cycle" guides the process through identify, learn, and improve stages 1 .
Coaches need knowledge of student assessment and access to "instructional playbooks" of teaching strategies 1 .
| Principle | Description | Impact on Coaching Dynamics |
|---|---|---|
| Equality | Both peers have equal power in conversations | Prevents control dynamics, fosters mutual respect |
| Choice | Teachers make decisions about their classroom | Maintains autonomy and investment in the process |
| Voice | The coached teacher talks more than the coach | Ensures the teacher feels heard and seen |
| Dialogue | Conversations are open, trusting, and bidirectional | Creates space for mutual learning and exploration |
| Reflection | Encourages deeper thinking for both participants | Moves beyond surface-level tips to principle-based change |
| Praxis | Focuses on real-life application in the classroom | Connects theory directly to practical implementation |
| Reciprocity | Both coach and teacher learn from each other | Democratizes expertise and values multiple perspectives |
To understand how peer coaching actually influences teaching principles, let's examine a compelling pilot study conducted in an Ohio elementary school, which specifically investigated how peer coaching improves teachers' reading instructional practices 9 .
The study employed a structured peer coaching model focused on literacy instruction. Teacher pairs engaged in a cyclical process of preparation, observation, analysis, and support 2 . The specific implementation followed a detailed protocol:
Teachers were paired with colleagues from different campuses and received training in peer coaching fundamentals, including questioning techniques and goal-setting frameworks 2 9 .
Unlike broad classroom walkthroughs, observations targeted specific teaching principles and practices, particularly around reading instruction. Coaches used the PEERS goal framework—ensuring goals were Powerful, Easy, Emotionally compelling, Reachable, and Student-focused 1 .
Following observations, coaches and teachers collaborated in reflective conversations using actual lesson evidence, often including video recordings of teaching practices 1 9 .
Together, they developed concrete action plans limited to one or two specific steps, with clear timelines and definitions of success 2 .
The study found that peer coaching produced measurable changes in both teaching practices and underlying principles. Researchers observed significant improvements in instructional delivery and, more importantly, in teachers' approaches to student engagement and assessment 9 .
| Teaching Principle | Before Peer Coaching | After Peer Coaching | Measured Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Approach to Student Engagement | Teacher-centered instruction predominated | Increased student-centered practices and metacognitive focus | Teachers explicitly modeled self-questioning strategies 4 |
| Use of Formative Assessment | Infrequent and informal | Systematic use of data to inform instruction | More frequent checks for understanding and adjustment based on student data 2 |
| Implementation of Reading Strategies | Variable implementation of evidence-based methods | More consistent use of high-impact literacy strategies | Improved fidelity to research-based reading instruction 9 |
| Reflective Practice | Limited collaborative reflection | Regular analysis of teaching with colleagues | Teachers engaged in structured analysis of lesson videos 1 |
Perhaps most significantly, the study found that peer coaching supported a fundamental shift toward what researchers call "mutually humanizing conversations" 1 . This represents a profound change in the teaching principle of teacher-student relationships, moving from a transactional to a relational approach.
The Ohio study contributes to a growing body of evidence about peer coaching's effectiveness. Across multiple studies, researchers have documented consistent patterns of impact:
| Area of Impact | Research Findings | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Instructional Practices | Peer coaching improves classroom instructional practices and routines for collaborative learning | 9 |
| Student Achievement | Teachers who participated in coaching showed significant gains in students' mathematics achievement | 9 |
| Teacher Collaboration | Coaching promotes reflective practice and application of learning more deeply and consistently than teachers working alone | 6 |
| Effect Size | Peer coaching has an effect size of 0.88, highlighting its profound impact on collective efficacy and student learning | 4 |
| School Culture | Effective coaching encourages collaborative, reflective practice and promotes positive cultural change | 6 |
This impressive effect size places peer coaching among the most impactful educational interventions studied—far exceeding the average effect size of 0.40 that represents a typical year's academic growth 4 .
Studying how peer coaching influences teaching principles requires specific methodological approaches and tools. Researchers in this field typically employ several key resources:
Tools like Swivl robots capture classroom interactions without being intrusive, providing objective data for reflection 4 .
Standardized frameworks code teaching practices consistently across different classrooms 9 .
Resources containing checklists of high-impact teaching strategies 1 .
Three-stage model (Identify, Learn, Improve) for implementing coaching cycles 1 .
Framework ensuring goals are Powerful, Easy, Emotionally compelling, Reachable, and Student-focused .
Structured questioning protocols for coaching conversations .
These tools enable researchers to move beyond self-reporting and capture the actual changes in teaching principles and practices that result from peer coaching relationships.
As compelling as the current evidence is, researchers continue to explore new dimensions of how peer coaching influences teaching principles. Future studies are examining how peer coaching can be most effectively implemented across different contexts, from healthcare education to leadership development 3 7 .
"Peer coaching in groups offers a potentially efficacious developmental activity at no or very low cost to organizations or individuals" 5 . This accessibility makes it particularly valuable for resource-constrained educational environments.
Effective coaching promotes "reciprocal accountability" and "collective leadership" across a school system 6 . When teachers examine practices together, they create a culture of continuous improvement.
The quiet revolution of peer coaching reminds us that the most powerful transformations often begin not with sweeping mandates, but with two colleagues sitting down together, watching a lesson video, and asking simple but profound questions: "What worked? What could be better? How can we grow together?" In these seemingly small moments, teaching principles are reshaped, and education moves steadily toward its highest potential.