Mechanics of Coaching: The past, present, and future of coaching in Washington’s Quality Rating Improvement System (QRIS) - Early Achievers: System actors’ perspectives and thoughts for next steps

Abstract

In this study, a sequential exploratory design was applied to inquire about the ontological aspects of coaching and its role in the state of Washington early learning Quality Rating Improvement System (QRIS) - Early Achievers. Researchers in the past have demonstrated positive child level outcomes of instructional coaching and professional development for teachers on certain academic domains yet the link between coaching and QRIS systematic outcomes are still unclear. There is a need to operationalize the definition of coaching and its role in the QRIS system. By conducting a descriptive analysis using a set of secondary data captured from the state Web-based Early Learning System (WELS) of 2,757 site records on coaching objectives followed by general inductive analysis of six interviews of Early Achievers implementation partners, several perspectives on how Early Achievers could reflect measuring success driven by coaching activities are presented in this paper. The following research questions will be addressed in this study: ● RQ1: What is the overall state of the coaching workforce in the Washington State Early Learning system including the number of coaches, caseloads, and the characteristics? ● RQ2: What are the characteristics of coaching activities reported on the statewide Web-based Early Learning System? ● RQ3: In what ways do the perspectives from Early Achievers partners explain the quantitative results reported on the statewide WELS database? ● RQ4: What are perspectives from QRIS implementation partners for improving the current system for supporting coaches? Findings suggest the current caseload among Early Achievers coaches are significantly higher than results from other studies; types of coaching activities reported on statewide database varied across program type; perspectives from system actors reflected hopes for the upcoming revision of the WA QRIS, and more than ever, there’s a need to build trust and sense of belonging among all stakeholders including families, practitioners, and implementation network partners that multiple coaching approaches are valued in the system.