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Cognitive Coaching: A Foundation for Renaissance Schools
In this greatly expanded and extensively updated edition of a widely popular resource you see how teachers' individual and collective capacities for continuing self-improvement are strengthened over time through Cognitive Coaching. You gain essential skills, protocols, guidance, research and resources to use when implementing Cognitive Coaching principles and values in your own school setting. Working toward the goals of making school better places where more students succeed and satisfaction in learning and teaching prevail, Costa and Garmston let you know about their own learning, and how new research and practice can support individuals and schools in reaching higher, more satisfying, and more holistic performance. Organized into four sections, the book clearly and effectively presents these concepts: the meanings of cognitive coaching; the basics of teaching excellence; strategies and tactics for engaging in coaching; and how to integrate Cognitive Coaching throughout the system.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published December 1, 1993
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About the author
Arthur L. Costa
53 books15 followersArthur L. Costa is professor emeritus of education at California State University, Sacramento. He has served as a classroom teacher, a curriculum consultant, and assistant superintendent for instruction, and the direction of educational programs for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 28, 2012
Remember when California banned smoking? Cognitive Coaching By Costa and Garmston
In April 1987 Beverley Hills banned smoking in restaurants and most enclosed public places; I remember the rest of the world looking on in bemusement at these far-out hippies: what was going on over there? In Scotland, where I was, the reaction was utter confusion as to why you would want to do that.
Scotland banned smoking in public places in 2006.
So Cognitive Coaching by two Californians, Arthur Costa and Robert Garmston seems wildly utopian on first reading. But it is already ten years old, and beginning to find roots in global educational culture, especially in progressive international schools like UWCSEA (product placement: another great Californian invention). I give Scotland another ten years to last out.
What I find interesting in this is the acknowledgement of Jung, who seems at the heart of so much educational thought, but usually tacitly so. Jung's models of individuation and the idea of an 'mandala' to represent a whole self, of integrated parts, is at the root of many educational visualisations, everything from the IB 'hexagon', to the DoE awards components, to Kath Murdoch's visual in my last post. The metaphor is about a self composed of strong and complementary parts and with a yearning for wholeness and fulfilment. For those, like me, whose motivation for teaching, in theory at least, is driven by the idea of 'self-actualisation', these are very compelling ideas with a strong emotional tug.
And just like Jung's hankering after myth and ritual in opposition to a world of industrial warfare, there is a feeling that some of the authors' ideals come as a perfectly legitimate reaction to the technocratic vision of education that is prevalent in other quarters, with 'high stakes accountability' for results measured numerically and out of context.
The text by Costa and Garmiston is certainly Jungian in its approach and processes. In essence it takes the techniques of self-actualisation practised in counselling and applies them to educational settings, where all members of the community develop five key states of thought.
The genius comes in the detail of how to practically achieve this. The conversation maps and prompts for counselling conversations are extremely effective. As are the distinctions between Cognitive Coaching, Collaborating, Consulting and Evaluating; and the text is very clearly about Coaching and 'mediative questioning'.
The text is also interesting in that an 'orthodoxy' of a kind is being established amongst a group of thinkers and educationalists. The Principals Training Centre for example seem to draw extensively on these ideas, and indeed Bill and Ochen Powell who work there are name checked in chapter 8. Likewise the Institute of Education (London), International School Widening Leadership course I recently attended included Cognitive Coaching sessions, which I found had a profound impact on my sense of purpose and clarity in my role within a school community.
Western adoption of Yoga, 90210, Apple computers, yoghurt health drinks, subscription gym membership, 'chairpeople', smoking bans and Cognitive Coaching. What seems trivial Californian eccentricity, soon becomes indispensable. I await the opening of the Glasgow Centre for Jungian Cognitive Coaching with eager anticipation.
In April 1987 Beverley Hills banned smoking in restaurants and most enclosed public places; I remember the rest of the world looking on in bemusement at these far-out hippies: what was going on over there? In Scotland, where I was, the reaction was utter confusion as to why you would want to do that.
Scotland banned smoking in public places in 2006.
So Cognitive Coaching by two Californians, Arthur Costa and Robert Garmston seems wildly utopian on first reading. But it is already ten years old, and beginning to find roots in global educational culture, especially in progressive international schools like UWCSEA (product placement: another great Californian invention). I give Scotland another ten years to last out.
What I find interesting in this is the acknowledgement of Jung, who seems at the heart of so much educational thought, but usually tacitly so. Jung's models of individuation and the idea of an 'mandala' to represent a whole self, of integrated parts, is at the root of many educational visualisations, everything from the IB 'hexagon', to the DoE awards components, to Kath Murdoch's visual in my last post. The metaphor is about a self composed of strong and complementary parts and with a yearning for wholeness and fulfilment. For those, like me, whose motivation for teaching, in theory at least, is driven by the idea of 'self-actualisation', these are very compelling ideas with a strong emotional tug.
And just like Jung's hankering after myth and ritual in opposition to a world of industrial warfare, there is a feeling that some of the authors' ideals come as a perfectly legitimate reaction to the technocratic vision of education that is prevalent in other quarters, with 'high stakes accountability' for results measured numerically and out of context.
The text by Costa and Garmiston is certainly Jungian in its approach and processes. In essence it takes the techniques of self-actualisation practised in counselling and applies them to educational settings, where all members of the community develop five key states of thought.
The genius comes in the detail of how to practically achieve this. The conversation maps and prompts for counselling conversations are extremely effective. As are the distinctions between Cognitive Coaching, Collaborating, Consulting and Evaluating; and the text is very clearly about Coaching and 'mediative questioning'.
The text is also interesting in that an 'orthodoxy' of a kind is being established amongst a group of thinkers and educationalists. The Principals Training Centre for example seem to draw extensively on these ideas, and indeed Bill and Ochen Powell who work there are name checked in chapter 8. Likewise the Institute of Education (London), International School Widening Leadership course I recently attended included Cognitive Coaching sessions, which I found had a profound impact on my sense of purpose and clarity in my role within a school community.
Western adoption of Yoga, 90210, Apple computers, yoghurt health drinks, subscription gym membership, 'chairpeople', smoking bans and Cognitive Coaching. What seems trivial Californian eccentricity, soon becomes indispensable. I await the opening of the Glasgow Centre for Jungian Cognitive Coaching with eager anticipation.
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June 21, 2022I FINALLY FINISHED THIS BOOK, AFTER TEN MONTHS! YAYYYY!!!
Denver Public Schools has a coaching system, with teachers helping support other teachers to support in development, curriculum delivery, and social-emotional skills. I wanted to be a coach, so I asked my coach if she had any recommended resources, which resulted in her handing this book off to me.
The research is well-grounded, but the edition I had, published in 1994, is definitely out of date. Nevertheless, I appreciated the research-based approach and enjoyed identifying those tricks and recommendations that my coach used on me during our coaching sessions. Overall, a well-written, informative book.
Denver Public Schools has a coaching system, with teachers helping support other teachers to support in development, curriculum delivery, and social-emotional skills. I wanted to be a coach, so I asked my coach if she had any recommended resources, which resulted in her handing this book off to me.
The research is well-grounded, but the edition I had, published in 1994, is definitely out of date. Nevertheless, I appreciated the research-based approach and enjoyed identifying those tricks and recommendations that my coach used on me during our coaching sessions. Overall, a well-written, informative book.
August 31, 2020
I learned many coaching techniques. Some I used, others I lacked courage to use--was afraid that the beautiful teachers would see it as a "put down."
February 24, 2013
Great content... but not really a page turner. I was fortunate enough to be trained as a coach with Art Costa and Bob Garmston during the writing of their book. Their styles were wonderfully engaging. It's a little sad that more of that did not come across in the book. It's more text-bookish than I might have hoped.
August 23, 2008
This is for my eMINTS program this year (PD4ETS - Professional Development For Education Technology Specialists). I think I will be bored to tears, but will force myself to finish / skim as much as possible. Wish me luck.
March 18, 2009
Part of my "Cognitive Coaching" training...
April 18, 2014
Very informative training, useful to my work as an Instructional Support Specialist, IT Coach in an educational setting
January 18, 2016
This book was a part of my doctoral study. The information is still current and useful to keep it as a reference.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews