Develop your practice

Published 26/08/2024.  Last updated 02/09/2026

Whether you are new to coaching or building on existing experience, these resources will support you to deepen your understanding, develop your practice and reflect on the contribution coaching can make to professional learning, leadership and improvement.

Coaching in Education is an open access resource designed to support all educators to learn about the far-reaching benefits of coaching which can have a significant impact on how we learn and develop within Scottish education.

This resource is designed to support those working in education to:

  • build an understanding of coaching in education and how it can benefit our workforce
  • build skills in using a coaching approach across different contexts
  • develop an understanding of how a coaching approach can be applied in education.

These self-directed professional learning activities (PLAs) are designed to support you to use a coaching approach and to learn and develop your coaching practice.

1. Introduction to Coaching in Education

This resource will introduce you to the practice of coaching in education and will support you to reflect on how coaching has the potential to impact you in your role.

2. Coaching Skills: Building the Coaching Relationship

Explore how to build effective and supportive coaching relationships through developing key coaching skills such as contracting, listening, and questioning.

3. Coaching Models and Tools

Explore tools and techniques to support you to use a coaching approach in your education setting.

A key feature of these professional learning activities is reflective learning and applying learning to practice. We have developed a reflective journal to accompany these self-directed professional learning activities that you may find helpful.

Coaching in Education – Reflective Journal

Before accessing the PLAs, you may wish to check out our guide to creating an account on our website.

We have designed this Reflective Journal (Word) to be used with the Coaching in Education self-directed learning activities. It is intended as an optional support and is not for submission.

Please note there are corresponding workshops on these topics that can be used to facilitate professional learning in your setting.

Coaching and Professional Standards

The Coaching in Education open access learning resource will support and challenge you to become confident in using coaching in your context and to develop against your professional standards.

The CLD Standards Council Scotland Competence Framework brings together the knowledge, skills and personal characteristics that make up competence in CLD practice. The Framework is used by practitioners, training providers and employers to reflect on, develop and strengthen practice.

Competence B: Build and maintain relationships with individuals and groups describes how CLD is built upon the interactions between people, be they community members, activists or those working with organisations offering support. These relationships provide the basis to support learning and engage people in action to support change within their communities.

Coaching approaches support competent practitioners to build and maintain relationships with individuals and groups and can support with working towards the resolution of conflict (B7) and in decision making processes (B8).

ELC Practitioners may use one of the following standards to support reflections on their professional learning:

  • The 2015 Standard for Childhood Practice Revised - Scottish Social Services Council (sssc.uk.com) describes how managers/lead practitioners value themselves and others by taking responsibility for their own professional learning and development and that of the workers for whom they are responsible (2), engage in professional reflection for continuing improvement (18) and take responsibility for identifying and supporting the learning and professional development needs of workers for whom they are responsible and for supporting students learning in and through the workplace.
  • Social Services | Children and Young People | SCQF 7 | National Occupational Standards (NOS) Navigator (sssc.uk.com) – Practitioner: Pre-school services or education provision section and in particular Core unit HSC 033 - Develop your practice through reflection and learning which outlines how practitioners use learning opportunities effectively to improve your knowledge and practice, including learning from day –to- day experiences.

The General Teaching Council for Scotland’s (GTCS) Professional Standards have been developed to support self-evaluation within professional learning.

The Professional Standards outline what it means to become, to be and to grow as a teacher in Scotland. A commitment to the professional values of social justice, trust and respect and integrity are at the heart of the Professional Standards and underpin our relationships, thinking and professional practice in Scotland (GTCS 2021).

The GTCS Professional Standards can be used to identify, plan, and develop professional learning needs, ensure continuing development of professional practice as part of the ongoing engagement in the Professional Review and Development (PRD) process.

This professional learning conversation is underpinned by coaching approaches which aim to both support and challenge professional thinking and practice and to help identify next steps in professional learning.

The GTC Scotland Unlocking the Potential of Professional Review and Development guidance and resources offer further support.

Develop your practice

Published 26/08/2024.  Last updated 02/09/2026

Whether you are new to coaching or building on existing experience, these resources will support you to deepen your understanding, develop your practice and reflect on the contribution coaching can make to professional learning, leadership and improvement.

Coaching in Education is an open access resource designed to support all educators to learn about the far-reaching benefits of coaching which can have a significant impact on how we learn and develop within Scottish education.

This resource is designed to support those working in education to:

  • build an understanding of coaching in education and how it can benefit our workforce
  • build skills in using a coaching approach across different contexts
  • develop an understanding of how a coaching approach can be applied in education.

These self-directed professional learning activities (PLAs) are designed to support you to use a coaching approach and to learn and develop your coaching practice.

1. Introduction to Coaching in Education

This resource will introduce you to the practice of coaching in education and will support you to reflect on how coaching has the potential to impact you in your role.

2. Coaching Skills: Building the Coaching Relationship

Explore how to build effective and supportive coaching relationships through developing key coaching skills such as contracting, listening, and questioning.

3. Coaching Models and Tools

Explore tools and techniques to support you to use a coaching approach in your education setting.

A key feature of these professional learning activities is reflective learning and applying learning to practice. We have developed a reflective journal to accompany these self-directed professional learning activities that you may find helpful.

Coaching in Education – Reflective Journal

Before accessing the PLAs, you may wish to check out our guide to creating an account on our website.

We have designed this Reflective Journal (Word) to be used with the Coaching in Education self-directed learning activities. It is intended as an optional support and is not for submission.

Please note there are corresponding workshops on these topics that can be used to facilitate professional learning in your setting.

Coaching and Professional Standards

The Coaching in Education open access learning resource will support and challenge you to become confident in using coaching in your context and to develop against your professional standards.

The CLD Standards Council Scotland Competence Framework brings together the knowledge, skills and personal characteristics that make up competence in CLD practice. The Framework is used by practitioners, training providers and employers to reflect on, develop and strengthen practice.

Competence B: Build and maintain relationships with individuals and groups describes how CLD is built upon the interactions between people, be they community members, activists or those working with organisations offering support. These relationships provide the basis to support learning and engage people in action to support change within their communities.

Coaching approaches support competent practitioners to build and maintain relationships with individuals and groups and can support with working towards the resolution of conflict (B7) and in decision making processes (B8).

ELC Practitioners may use one of the following standards to support reflections on their professional learning:

  • The 2015 Standard for Childhood Practice Revised - Scottish Social Services Council (sssc.uk.com) describes how managers/lead practitioners value themselves and others by taking responsibility for their own professional learning and development and that of the workers for whom they are responsible (2), engage in professional reflection for continuing improvement (18) and take responsibility for identifying and supporting the learning and professional development needs of workers for whom they are responsible and for supporting students learning in and through the workplace.
  • Social Services | Children and Young People | SCQF 7 | National Occupational Standards (NOS) Navigator (sssc.uk.com) – Practitioner: Pre-school services or education provision section and in particular Core unit HSC 033 - Develop your practice through reflection and learning which outlines how practitioners use learning opportunities effectively to improve your knowledge and practice, including learning from day –to- day experiences.

The General Teaching Council for Scotland’s (GTCS) Professional Standards have been developed to support self-evaluation within professional learning.

The Professional Standards outline what it means to become, to be and to grow as a teacher in Scotland. A commitment to the professional values of social justice, trust and respect and integrity are at the heart of the Professional Standards and underpin our relationships, thinking and professional practice in Scotland (GTCS 2021).

The GTCS Professional Standards can be used to identify, plan, and develop professional learning needs, ensure continuing development of professional practice as part of the ongoing engagement in the Professional Review and Development (PRD) process.

This professional learning conversation is underpinned by coaching approaches which aim to both support and challenge professional thinking and practice and to help identify next steps in professional learning.

The GTC Scotland Unlocking the Potential of Professional Review and Development guidance and resources offer further support.