In this episode of The Education Table, Dr. Katie Novak centers the powerful role instructional coaches play in helping schools shift from teacher-centered to learner-centered practice. She is clear from the start: coaching is not about fixing teachers. It is about partnering with skilled professionals who are committed to continual growth, refinement, and impact.

Drawing on research, real-world examples, and her own experiences, Dr. Novak explores what makes instructional coaching effective and why meaningful instructional shifts require more than good intentions. She emphasizes coaching as a collaborative, non-judgmental process grounded in trust, clarity, and shared goals. Coaches are positioned as partners, co-designers, and champions for change, not evaluators or compliance monitors.

Throughout the episode, Dr. Novak highlights how Universal Design for Learning provides a strong foundation for coaching conversations that lead to lasting change. By focusing on intentional goal-setting, reflective practice, and supportive accountability, instructional coaches can help educators make shifts that stick—without shame, pressure, or top-down mandates.

This episode is a clear affirmation of instructional coaches and a practical guide for using coaching as a lever for sustainable, learner-centered transformation.

Episode Transcript

Episode Webpage

In this episode of The Education Table, Dr. Katie Novak focuses on how faculty meeting time is often used for logistics, announcements, and information that could be shared asynchronously, rather than for the kind of collaborative learning that supports instructional improvement. The episode invites leaders to reconsider how this limited and valuable time is structured.

Dr. Novak explains how faculty meetings can be intentionally designed to support adult learning by clarifying instructional goals, engaging educators in shared problem-solving, and creating space for reflection and alignment. Drawing on principles of Universal Design for Learning, she highlights how the same design choices that support student learning such as clear purpose, meaningful engagement, and intentional use of time, also apply to adults.

Rather than adding more to educators’ plates, this episode emphasizes making better use of time leaders already have. When faculty meetings are aligned to instructional priorities and designed with intention, they can become a powerful lever for coherence, trust, and improved practice.

View episode transcript

View corresponding blog

In this episode of The Education Table, Dr. Katie Novak reframes the commonly cited “80% rule” in MTSS. Rather than treating it as a hard benchmark or accountability threshold, she positions it as a temperature check - one data point that helps leaders pause and ask better questions about Tier 1 instruction.

Dr. Novak explains that when a large percentage of students require intervention, the response should not automatically be to pull more students, add more programs, or intensify supports. Instead, it is an opportunity to examine how Tier 1 instruction is designed, how clearly goals are communicated, and how accessible learning is for students from the start. The focus shifts from fixing students to understanding instructional conditions.

The episode highlights how Universal Design for Learning focus areas support leaders and instructional coaches in noticing patterns across classrooms through non-evaluative, supportive walkthroughs. Used well, these tools help teams reflect, build shared understanding, and strengthen core instruction, creating conditions where fewer students need intervention because Tier 1 is doing more of the work.

View related blog

View episode transcript