Teaching Students to Self Coach: A Proactive Classroom Management and Engagement Tool

Outline

Content and Engagement:
This session will present the concept of self-coaching as part of the Learning Mountain framework, focusing on metacognition, emotional regulation, and persistence. Participants will explore educator language stems, student coaching phrases, and cross-curricular applications through discussion, modeling, and reflection activities that mirror classroom practices for transferability.

Time Allocation:

For turbo talk:
Introduction and framework overview (5 minutes)
Modeling self-coachin strategies (5 minutes)
Interactive scenario analysis and track-switching (10 minutes)
Tool creation and planning for classroom integration (5 minutes)
Group Reflection and Discussion (5 minutes)

Model Lesson:
Introduction and framework overview (10 minutes)
Modeling self-coaching strategies (10 minutes)
Interactive scenario analysis and track-switching practice (15 minutes)
Tool creation and planning for classroom integration (15 minutes)
Group reflection and Discussion (10 minutes)

Process:
Participants will engage in peer-to-peer discussions, analyze student scenarios, and practice switching thought tracks using coaching phrases. They will create a personalized tool (e.g., a coaching phrase card or classroom prompt) and reflect on implementation strategies.

Outcomes

After this session, participants will be able to identify and model self-coaching language that promotes persistence and resilience. They will learn how to teach students to recognize and shift unhelpful thought patterns, integrate self-talk strategies across subject areas, and create personalized tools that support metacognition and emotional regulation in the classroom.

Supporting research

Pan, Y., Kim, H., Huang, Y., Hwang, G.-J., & Tu, Y.-F. (2025). Promoting students' metacognition and self-regulatory efficacy through metacognitive scaffolding in mobile technology-enhanced interactive classrooms: The moderating role of inner speech. Education and Information Technologies, 30(8), 10811–10836.

Jaleel, S., & Premachandran, P. (2016). A Study on the Metacognitive Awareness of Secondary School Students. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 4(1), 165–172.

Soto, C., Gutiérrez de Blume, A. P., Jacovina, M., McNamara, D., Benson, N., & Riffo, B. (2019). Reading comprehension and metacognition: The importance of inferential skills. Cogent Education, 6(1).

Vettori, G., Vezzani, C., Bigozzi, L., & Pinto, G. (2018). The mediating role of conceptions of learning in the relationship between metacognitive skills/strategies and academic outcomes among middle-school students. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1985.