How Cognitively Coached Teachers Design and Facilitate Self-Directed Learning in General Education Classrooms

Introduction

In the complex context of American educational reform, the last two decades have witnessed initiatives aiming at the creation of a secondary student which is characterized as a self-directed college and career ready critical thinker (Domenech, Sherman, & Brown, 2016; Hanover, 2015). The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) (NCLB, 2002), Race to the Top, CCSS and now ESSA have pinned teachers as the principal contributors for educational change leading students toward these goals. Studies have shown that a self-directed teacher is one of the best and most influential role models for their students (Akpan & Beard, 2016; Domenech et al., 2016). Cognitive Coaching^SM, and its foundations in self-directedness, has subsequently led teachers to be self-directed through reflection, metacognition, and collaborative PLC (Costa et al., 2016; Edwards, 2018a, 2018b; Kilburg, 2016). A self-directed teacher is defined as one that decides what knowledge or skills they need, what learning needs to take place, identifies the resources for their learning, and eventually evaluates their own learning (Edwards, 2018a, 2018b).

In the teaching-learning process, Cognitive Coaching^SM has become a foundational evidence-based instructional practice addressing key areas of 21^st century educational reform on an educator’s ability to self-direct their professional learning (Costa et al., 2016; Edwards, 2018a, 2018b). A gap in the literature was identified by Costa et al. (2016), Edwards (2018a, 2018b), and Levine (2016). Costa et al. (2016) which revealed that research on the cognitively coached teachers’ ability to design and provide lessons focusing on a student’s ability to self-monitor and self-direct their own learning was lacking. Edwards (2018a, 2018b) suggested future research on Cognitive Coaching^SM and self-directed learning (to) include a description of how cognitively coached teachers design instruction for self-directed learning in general education classrooms. Levine (2016) maintained that future empirical studies are needed which describe how teachers facilitate instruction for self-directed learning in actual classroom practice. It was not known how cognitively coached teachers design and facilitate instruction for self-directed learning in general education classrooms.

Thus, the purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to describe how cognitively coached teachers design and facilitate instruction for self-directed learning in general education classrooms of a suburban school district in the state of Connecticut. The study intended to add insight into how cognitively coached teachers design and facilitate instruction for self-directed learning in general education classrooms in an attempt to address 21^st century educational reform. A further intended benefit of this research was its support of the theoretical frameworks for Vygotsky’s (1978) seminal theory of ZPD and Bronfenbrenner’s (2005) theory of child development as the foundation for the design and facilitation of self-directedness.

The research questions helped to describe the phenomenon of Cognitive Coaching^SM and its ability to help teachers design instruction and facilitate opportunities for self-direction, self-management, self-modification, and self-monitoring in general education classrooms. The following research questions guided this qualitative descriptive study:

• RQ1: How does a cognitively coached teacher describe their instructional design for self-directed learning in general education classrooms?

• RQ2: How does a cognitively coached teacher describe their instructional facilitation for self-directed learning in general education classrooms?

The development of the research questions for this study were grounded in Vygotsky’s ZPD and Bronfenbrenner’s model of human development. Vygotsky’s Social Development Theory relies on a teacher's instructional pedagogy in guided learning, scaffolding, metacognition, and inquiry to recognize and monitor a student’s transition into the ZPD for self-directed learning to occur. Bronfenbrenner’s theory and model of human development informs learning through the identification of student attributes, foundational social relationships, and social systems that influence the social, emotional, and physical well-being of the individual. The first research question intended to describe the instructional design and pedagogical strategies or best practices developed by a cognitively coached teacher. Research question 2 addressed how a cognitively coached teacher facilitates, aids, or assists the instructional design to produce self-directed learning opportunities.