Coaching is a formal relationship between a coach (person with experience and skills) and the student. The coach has the ability and experience to help the individual develop the required skill set. The relationship will be formal and time-bound, ending when the objective has been achieved. The coach develops a plan using their skills to help the student develop because of which, coaching will be focused on specific needs.

You can also take a look at our Coaching and Mentoring CPD Course useful for Teachers and Trainers. This short  CPD course is designed on the same outlines of the Level 4 CET / Level 5 DET optional units on preparing for the coaching role and preparing for the mentoring role.  If you are looking for useful content on coaching and mentoring, especially in teaching and training context, the short CPD course mentioned above is ideal for you.

The coach must be skilled and experienced in the area they are working in. Good communication skills are critical, the ability to both listen and explain complex subjects. Therefore their written communication skills are important, they must be able to write detailed and comprehensive plans/reports on the progress of the relationships, draft agreements related to the coaching relationship and report and communicate with the coachee and other stakeholders. 

Coaching focuses on assisting an individual in specific areas of development. For instance, a football coach can help a player develop their football skills, more specifically something like improving tackling, or practicing penalty kicks, or passing between team players, or even different tactics/plays on the field. Therefore, the student(s) benefit from the greater experience of their coach.  Specific goals have been set and achieved at which point the relationship ends. 

Coaching in education and training is a detailed module offered along with the level 4 CET course as an optional unit which extensively talks about the ways to coach your learners for their professional career goals. The CPD course on coaching is designed on the same outline as the CET optional unit on coaching. The coaching CPD course discusses ground rules, legislations, ways to maintain relationships, building trust and giving positive feedback.

Coaching is a formal relationship that can help an individual develop specific skills. The teacher helps students gain new skills by passing on their knowledge. It is important not to confuse coaching with mentoring, see our article on Mentoring for more information.