Coaching, Mentoring – what’s the difference? Rachel Lofthouse explains – PP247

Professor Rachel Lofthouse Rachel Lofthouse is Professor of Teacher Education in the Carnegie School of Education. She has a specific research interest in professional learning, exploring how teachers learn and how they can be supported to put that learning into practice.  Rachel joined Leeds Beckett University in July 2017, and has established the Research and Practice Centre ‘CollectivED: The Mentoring and Coaching Hub’. Rachel is a teaching educator and researcher. She has a particular interest in how teachers learn through approaches such as coaching, mentoring, lesson study, professional enquiry and inter-professional practice. She marries these interests with a concern for the development of innovative pedagogies and curriculum design. Key to all of these are the opportunities for that professionals at all stages of their career and in all roles have for dialogue and creative and critical thinking. Rachel works with student teachers and their school-based mentors, teacher coaches, postgraduate students and school leaders as well as a range of educational practitioners, including those interested in community curriculum development and professional coaching for speech and language support in multicultural early years and primary settings. Mark speaks to Rachel this week about her varied and fascinating background as well as her thoughts on the value of mentoring and coaching – and also what the difference is. There’s also, of course, time for our favourite question – “What’s the best thing you’ve ever learned from a child” and Rachel’s favourite passage from a book. Rachel’s Leeds Becket University page Rachel on Twitter