Stories of Change from New York City’s Teacher Incentive Fund Program
September 2014
“I always remember that I’m a peer, that I need to treat people with dignity… Folks knew I was working with Karen, and I could tell they thought it was not going to change anything about her practice, but her practice has changed based on the feedback and our work together. The impossible happened. That is what this work—this coaching—is all about.”
“Stories of Change” is a series of case narratives developed by Eskolta for the NYC Department of Education’s Office of Teacher Recruitment and Quality. The report provides five distinct stories of professional growth experienced by both teacher-leaders involved in the Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) Program and the colleagues they coached.
The examples in the report are drawn from interviews conducted at six middle schools participating in the TIF Program in the latter half of the 2013–14 school year. The narratives detail key elements of the program that shaped and improved teacher practice, including approaches to intervisitations, data inquiry protocols, and principles of instructional coaching. One case, for instance, examines the ways a committed teacher-leader was able to reach a jaded and resistant teacher with 25 years of experience and help her reexamine her instructional habits through reflection and collaboration.