Over the years, working with preservice teachers who will be teaching multilingual learners (MLLs) in general classrooms, I’ve noticed a familiar pattern: they complete coursework, pass exams, and demonstrate overall competency. Yet when it comes to supporting MLLs, a gap often remains.
Not long ago, one of my teacher candidates shared a worry I’ve heard many times: “I know the strategies, but I don’t know if I’ll actually use them when I’m teaching.” This kind of hesitation is common among teacher candidates. They can describe scaffolding, vocabulary support, or the use of visuals, but when they step into a classroom, the theory doesn’t always translate into practice.
This made me wonder: if in-service teachers benefit so much from coaching cycles such as those developed by Jim Knight and Margarita Calderón, why wouldn’t teacher candidates benefit from a similar model, adapted for preparation programs? That question led me to introduce a peer coaching cycle focused on practicing instructional strategies in my Sheltered English Immersion (SEI) courses as a tool to support collaborative learning in small groups (Cooper, 2021).
Preparing Students for Peer Coaching
Research confirms what I’ve seen in my own courses: peer mentoring in higher education, where students coach fellow students, can significantly enhance academic performance, retention, and wellbeing (Le, Sok, and Heng 2024). Still, teacher candidates are rarely given the chance to lead a structured coaching cycle. They need practice with pre-conferences, observations, and post-conference reflections.
Here’s how I help them get started:
Review the cycle. I walk students through the components of peer coaching pre-conference, observation, and post-conference and have them reflect on their own strengths and growth areas as coaches. Analyze a demonstration lesson. Together, we watch a short video lesson, practice asking questions, and reflect on what worked well and what could be improved. Model feedback. I run a mock post-conference where I show how to give specific, actionable, non-evaluative feedback. Then I invite students to practice. We emphasize that coaching is not about evaluation, but about growth.
What Peer Coaching Looks Like in SEI Courses
In my SEI courses, peer coaching is never about evaluation—it’s about collaboration, growth, and support. Teacher candidates work in small learning communities where they plan lessons together, observe one another, and exchange feedback. Clear protocols keep the process simple and safe, so students know what to expect and how to give constructive input.
The goal is simple: give candidates repeated chances to practice strategies for multilingual learners in a way that feels real and doable. Over time, I’ve seen candidates gain confidence, develop a toolkit of strategies, and begin to see feedback not as judgment but as a pathway to growth and reflection.
Peer Coaching Framework I Use with Teacher Candidates
Here’s the five-step framework I use with my students:
Create a learning community and set a SMART goal. Candidates form small groups of four or five and choose an area of focus—such as improving reading instruction or supporting academic writing. Each candidate identifies a goal tied to SEI strategies, such as “build word knowledge by pre-teaching key vocabulary” or “help students get the gist of a text using text structures.” Observe lesson demonstrations. In their groups, candidates watch short lesson clips where mentor teachers model specific strategies (e.g., vocabulary instruction or text structure). Design and deliver a short lesson. Each candidate designs and teaches a short mini-lesson, either live or recorded, aligned with their group’s goal. Provide peer feedback. Using observation notes, peers share what they noticed and give specific, supportive feedback. We use a simple feedback protocol, so the process stays safe and constructive. Reflect and revise. After receiving feedback, candidates reflect on what worked and what could be improved. With my guidance, they revise their lesson and reteach an improved version. This step reinforces that revision is a natural and essential part of teaching.
This framework gets candidates past just naming SEI strategies. They actually practice them, analyze them, and refine them through iteration.
Recommendations for Making Peer Coaching Work
Keep it short. Start with 5–10-minute lesson segments to keep the focus clear and manageable. Model feedback. Show candidates what actionable, constructive feedback looks like before they try it themselves. Normalize reflection. Emphasize that coaching is about growth, not judgment. Encourage language like “I noticed…” instead of “You should…” Rotate roles. Give every candidate the chance to be both coach and coachee. Each role builds valuable skills.
Closing Thoughts
Peer coaching has become one of the most effective ways I’ve found to help teacher candidates build confidence with SEI strategies. By working in small groups, setting clear goals, and offering structured feedback, my students are not only practicing strategies but also learning to see teaching as a collaborative and reflective profession from the very beginning.
The stakes are high for teacher preparation programs. Universities are working hard to bridge the gap between theory and practice. Peer coaching is one practical way to do this: it helps candidates apply what they’ve learned, gain confidence, and connect coursework to real classroom practice.
And this isn’t just for SEI courses. Faculty in any discipline can adapt the model; short lessons, clear protocols, and supportive feedback cycles give students a chance to apply strategies, reflect, and grow before stepping into their future classrooms.
Dr. Patricia Garcia is an Assistant Professor of Education at Lasell University and a former superintendent. She prepares teachers to support multilingual learners through Sheltered English Inclusive aligned practices, coaching cycles, and equity-centered program design. Her current work develops practical tools that help faculty integrate language development and culturally responsive pedagogy across teacher education.
References
Calderón, Margarita. Coaching for Multilingual Excellence. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, 2024.
Cooper, Ayanna. And Justice for ELs, CA: Corwin Press, 2021.
Knight, Jim. The Impact Cycle: What Instructional Coaches Should Do to Foster Powerful Improvements in Teaching. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, 2018.
Le, Huy, Samnang Sok, and Tony Heng. “The Benefits of Peer Mentoring in Higher Education: Findings from a Systematic Review.” Journal of Education and Learning 13, no. 1 (2024).
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