Why Coaching Programs Fail | A Conversation with Gene Tavernetti

Instructional coaching should be a powerful engine for teacher development, yet so many school initiatives stall or backfire. Why? In this frank conversation, Dr. Gene Tavernetti joins Shane to dissect exactly where and how coaching programmes commonly fail. With over thirty years in education (as coach, teacher, counselor, administrator, and consultant), Gene pulls no punches on the systemic pitfalls, from treating coaching as a remedial tool to the crippling myth of total confidentiality. As author of Teach FAST and Maximizing the Impact of Coaching Cycles (John Catt Education) and co-founder of Total Educational Systems Support (TESS), Gene has spent nearly two decades training teachers and those who support them in providing the best instruction possible.

You'll learn why a mandatory, school-wide approach is often better than a voluntary one and how to strategically select your first teachers to coach to build credibility. Gene explains the critical difference between professional and personal relationships in coaching and why a shared, evidence-based focus is non-negotiable. Guided by his core belief that given the right environment and proper support, everyone can improve and succeed, Gene shares the practical, scar-tissue wisdom you need to avoid common mistakes and build a sustainable culture of improvement.

Resources & Links Mentioned:

Gene Tavernetti on LinkedIn

Jim Knight’s Instructional Coaching Group

Doug Lemov’s Teach Like a Champion

Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

John Kotter’s 8-Step Change Model

Episode Partners

International Curriculum Association

Teaching Walkthrus

Join Shane's Intensive Leadership Programme at educationleaders.co/intensive

Shane Leaning, an organisational coach based in Shanghai, supports school leaders globally. Passionate about empowment, he is the author of the best-selling 'Change Starts Here.' Shane is a leading educational voice in the UK, Asia and around the world.

You can find Shane on LinkedIn and Bluesky. or shaneleaning.com

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