Critical Reflection
I did the peer coaching session with Chelsea Onyango, and the blog we reviewed was a post for one of the learning activities in Unit 3.
Before the session, I read her post several times and wrote down the ideas and thoughts for Chelsea’s post, including the questions I wanted to ask her in the session. Then I organized my thoughts and put them in sequence to talk about in the session. In the session, confirming the connection quality of our zoom meeting was the first thing I addressed as there were several times that the zoom meeting stopped due to the power issue or other problems. Before discussing my opinions towards her post, I appreciated her writing and made sure she understood that all the opinions were not personal; she could also keep her thoughts or discuss them with me when she had a different opinion. I think coaches must recognize the ideas and perspectives held by learners and encourage them to share. Then, I gave her the opinions for connecting paragraphs so that they would not simply look like responding to different questions. Also, I suggested she add more of her understanding in her post to make it a better learning experience for herself, such as restating the definition in her own words, making examples of how she would apply it to her context, and reflecting on how she understood. Coaches need to make every learning moment meaningful for learners and help them build their understanding and go through the learning process in a way they are willing to learn. At last, I sought feedback from Chelsea and her thoughts. It is important to acknowledge her ideas and feelings in the coaching process, and she mentioned that all the opinions I gave her were useful and constructive.
Reflecting on my coaching session, I think I have addressed most of the critical points in the coaching. However, I should prepare more questions or maybe make a list in a word or note to make it clear for learners to see the suggestions. Also, offering follow-up coaching for learners if needed to make sure they gain enough support in their learning would be constructive.