Coach Community

Supporting coaches to gain the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to make data-informed decisions!

On this page you can learn more about:

    • PBC-DIDM Coach and Lead Coach Competencies
    • Coach Community Meetings
    • PBC-DIDM Coach Learning Experiences 

What is a Coach Community?

A coach community provides an opportunity for coaches to access Practice-Based Coaching (PBC) and data-informed decision making support and guidance. The community is facilitated by a lead coach whose primary role is to support other coaches who work in the same or similar settings. Effective coach communities connect on a regular basis and can use any format that meets the needs of their members (e.g., live, video conference, hybrid).

People meeting at a table with computers

Why is a Coach Community important for PBC-DIDM?

When coaches’ efforts are supported, they are better able to implement PBC Cycles as intended, with positive effects on practitioners, children, and their families.

Coaches need initial and ongoing support to gain knowledge, skills, and dispositions related to PBC, effective practices, and data-informed decision-making. Coach community support is guided by the PBC-DIDM Implementation Profile priorities and goals identified by the coach community and leadership team. Two common forms of support are coach learning experiences and coach community meetings.

Initial or foundational coach learning experiences often focus on building coaches’ capacity to implement PBC, collect Sources of Effort and Effect Data, and situate their work within the PBC-DIDM Effort and Effect Cascade.

Once the foundation is in place, PLTA coach learning experiences enable coaches to engage in the Prepare, Look, Think, Act (PLTA) Process, building their data literacy knowledge and skills as they make data-informed decisions.

In addition to data-skills development provided through coach learning experiences, coaches receive regular “just-in-time” data-informed support and participate in resource sharing and problem-solving during ongoing coach community meetings.

How can we use this information in our program?

When a program is getting started with PBC-DIDM, the leadership team might need to:

      • hire or identify lead coaches or coaches,
      • support coaches to gain new skills related to effective practices, PBC, and PBC-DIDM, and
      • develop new procedures for how coaches engage and communicate with others.

Below are modules to support programs in establishing an effective coach community. This community uses the PLTA Process to make data-informed decisions about PBC and related learning experiences.

Coach and Lead Coach Competencies

PBC-DIDM coach and lead coach competencies describe the knowledge, skills, and dispositions coaches need to implement PBC-DIDM.
Coach community meetings and learning experiences are guided by the  PBC-DIDM Coach and Lead Coach Competencies and help coaches focus on developing knowledge, skills, and dispositions aligned with program goals and priorities. Use this module to learn more about considerations for hiring, identifying, and supporting the success of coaches or a lead coach within programs implementing PBC-DIDM.
Go to Coach and Lead Coach Competencies Module

Coach Community Meetings

PBC-DIDM coach community meetings provide ongoing job-embedded support for coaches following their initial PBC workshop. These meetings are data-informed and are typically facilitated by the Lead Coach.
Coach community meetings provide regular opportunities for coaches to refine their PBC and effective practices knowledge and skills, and to receive “just-in-time” support from other coaches. Use this module to learn more about considerations for facilitating coach community meetings across all tiers of the PBC-DIDM Implementation Profile.
Photo of the Coach Community Meetings Module
Go to Coach Community Meetings Module

Foundational Coach Learning Experiences

Foundational coaching learning experiences help coaches develop tools and processes to implement and document their PBC efforts and practitioners’ use of effective practices that are the focus of PBC. These experiences are limited in number and focus on teaching specific data collection skills.

These experiences are for programs working toward goals aligned with the foundational tier of the PBC-DIDM Implementation Profile. Use this module to learn more about considerations for implementing foundational coach learning experiences.

Go to Foundational Coach Learning Experiences Module

PLTA Process Coach Learning Experiences

The PLTA Process coach learning experiences help coaches examine Sources of Effort and Effect Data to make data-informed decisions about PBC and related professional learning experiences. These experiences are limited in number and focus on teaching specific data-literacy skills.

This module is designed for programs working toward goals aligned with the initial, mid, or advanced tiers of the PBC-DIDM Implementation Profile. Use this module to learn more about considerations for supporting your coach community as they engage in the PLTA Process.

Go to PLTA Coach Learning Experiences Module

What Coach Community resources are available?

For teams just getting started with PBC-DIDM, download the PBC-DIDM Guides below related to establishing and supporting the Coach Community.

Download PBC-DIDM Guide - Establishing a Coach Community
Download PBC-DIDM Guide - Planning for and Facilitating a Coach Learning Experiences

To learn more about the knowledge, skills, and dispositions of PBC-DIDM coaches and lead coaches, download the PBC-DIDM Coach and Lead Coach Competencies.

Download PBC-DIDM Coach and Lead Coach Competencies

Lead coaches support other coaches in their programs in implementing PBC coaching strategies with fidelity, as intended, through PBC Cycles. To learn more about this parallel coaching process – and a key source of coaching data check out the PBC Cycles page on this website.

Lead coaches can download the commonly used coach community meeting checklists and planning forms below.

Download PBC-DIDM Coach Community Meeting Checklist
Download PBC-DIDM Coach Learning Experience Planning Form

To learn more about preparing for and facilitating coach learning experiences and coach community meetings, visit the Resource Library. You can filter by roles to view all the “Lead Coach” or “Coach” tools and resources.

Check out this 5-minute video to see Coach Learning Experiences in action!

What other resources are available?

The coach community plays a key role in all parts of the PBC-DIDM Model. To learn more about the model’s parts, see the PBC-DIDM model page on this website.

To learn more about how the lead coach serves as a liaison between the leadership team and the coach community, visit the Leadership Teams and Lead Coaches page on this website.

PBC-DIDM Logo - PBC cycle and the letters DIDM plotted in a graph

“New information takes time to digest and collaboration in the meeting was helpful in making sense of it. The PLTA Process is a concept that I have already embedded within coaching, trainings, and the like. I think it is invaluable.”

Coach, Early Intervention

“I appreciated having the consistency of the meetings and the focused content. It was helpful to practice hands-on organizing the data. The PLTA Process is great! I like the visual chart and the way that most anyone can utilize it because it’s so user friendly. I plan to use it frequently.”

Coach, Public PreK Education

“The PLTA Process has been the most helpful. I am making better, more informed decisions about how to proceed with my coaching in regard to frequency, area of focus, and tracking progress over time. This framework inspired me.”

Coach, Early Intervention