09 Sep An SML Approach to Coaching

Feedback on the Network Seminar held on 12th April

This workshop, attended by twelve network members in April, was led by Ben Bennett and Graham Dawes at the University of North London Business School.

Coaching skills are becoming increasingly important in business today, and a pack developed by Graham, Ben and Ian Cunningham “Exercises for Developing Coaching Capability” has recently been published by the Institute of Personnel and Development.

Graham and Ben led a discussion on coaching and what it meant to the group and we all saw parallels to SML in the definition “assisting the leaner in their own learning”, as a set member of adviser might assist. We discussed a learning frame, with 3 levels – engaging in action, reflecting on learning activity and reflecting on learning approaches.

We then looked at what active learners do:

• take an active learning focus
• enhance both autonomy and co-operation
• question
• map for action
• set direction and goals
• take action/make things happen
• seek corrective feedback

After exploring some coaching strategies, we had the opportunity to participate in two of the excellent exercises from the pack and share our experiences of these as a group.

We all felt that we had gained a greater understanding of the coaching process and had learnt something that we could take away to use in assisting people to develop their capability.

Liz Barlow