“I could see the impact coaching had on the way people were being really reflective and having an impact on student outcomes”
The first episode of Season 3 of the Coaching Outdoors Podcast comes all the way from Sydney, Australia.
Elle Smith met Anna-Marie whilst they were both doing triathlon’s in Sydney and has since also honed her outdoor coaching skills in a slightly different context – the Education sector.
As Senior Learning Coach at St Andrew’s Cathedral School, Elle and her team have not only introduced coaching as a form of development for the teachers, but also transformed the way they coach the teachers and students by taking the coaching conversations outdoors.
Elle uses the concept of Netwalking to coach groups outdoors, finding that getting outside the walls of their very busy school day helps increase creativity, gain deeper levels of reflection, brings about a sense of calm and ultimately improves student outcomes – which is always their goal.
This is a podcast with a difference and shows how outdoor coaching can have benefits in many different contexts.
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Our guest
Elle Smith is the Senior Learning Coach at St Andrew’s Cathedral School, Sydney NSW Australia. She is an accredited coach with Growth Coaching International and has been coaching for 7 years.
As the Senior Learning Coach, Elle is responsible for the strategic direction of GROWTH coaching across the school including the management and development of coaches. Elle has developed, delivered and conducted the ongoing review of coaching programs for new staff to the school, early career teachers, middle leaders, teacher collective efficacy and student growth learning plans.
As a PDHPE teacher, Elle believes that we do some of our best work when we are connected to the outdoor environment. Inspired by Anna Marie Watson, Elle developed a Netwalking model for staff collaborative professional development and encourages 1:1 coaching sessions to extend beyond the indoors and out into the city surrounds.
Elle sees that combining coaching with the outdoors truly allows people to disconnect from the busyness of working in a city school. Taking the coaching beyond the 4 walls creates an environment where both the coach and coachee and be fully present in the coaching conversation, allowing for deeper reflection and creativity.
