TEACHERS, INSTRUCTIONAL COACHES, AND THE PROCESS OF BUILDING TRUST: A CASE STUDY OF RELATIONSHIPS IN THE ELEMENTARY SETTING

Instructional coaches are utilized by educational agencies to provide support for teachers, staff, and students. This study explores the process instructional coaches use to build trusting relationships and credibility with teachers based on their sensemaking lens. As instructional coaches support teachers in the elementary school setting, they inherit the responsibility of providing model lessons, feedback, instructional support, and professional development. This study analyzes how instructional coaches build trust with teachers, how they maintain credibility, and the barriers or challenges they face throughout the process. The purpose of this study is to understand how instructional coaches establish trust and build relationships with teachers and what administrators can do to alleviate the barriers and challenges coaches face in their role. Recommendations and conclusions provide local education agencies, administrators, and schools with considerations to make in supporting coaches as they support teachers in the elementary school setting.