How do I ask someone to be a coach?

Asking someone to coach you is one of the highest compliments you can give. By requesting their help as a coach you are essentially saying that you respect their expertise as an interpreter and would like to benefit from the experience they have to share.

To assist you in explaining what you are asking them to do, you can print out the following information sheet.

The National Park Service Interpretive Development Program has developed a distance learning platform to provide all interpreters with an opportunity to develop their knowledge, skills and abilities. The distance learning platform consists of online courses that contain instructional material, interactive practice items and site based activities. By the completion of each online course, interpreters will have developed an interpretive product or service that is ready to be delivered at their site.

When developing interpretive products and services, guidance from experienced interpreters is extremely helpful. Each online course has been designed so that an interpretive coach can provide feedback to the interpreter on the site based activities. It takes about a total of 4 hours to provide feedback on the activities that create an interpretive product or service.

Because knowledge of the resource is an essential component of quality feedback, interpreters in the online courses are advised to invite an experienced interpreter at their site to serve as their coach.

There are two types of interpretive coach: informal and registered.

**

Informal coaches** use the scoring criteria provided in the activities and the coach’s manual located in the resources section of the course to provide feedback on the activities. They may or may not have received training in how to be a coach. Informal coaches receive the activities and send feedback via email or on a printed copy of the activity. No transcript of the coaching is created. A basic certificate of completion is awarded to those working with an informal coach, upon passing the final assessment for the course. (This certificate may also be obtained through completion of the course by self-study, without the services of a coach.)

**

Registered coaches have taken on online course in the basic principles of coaching and passed the assessment. They have also passed the assessment in the online course they are coaching. In addition, the first time they coach, they work with a coaching mentor to enhance their coaching abilities. Registered coaches use the scoring criteria and the coach’s manual located in the resources section of the course to provide feedback on the activities. Interpreters enrolled in a course with a registered coach submit their activities in the online learning environment. Then, registered coaches receive these activities and provide feedback through the same system. This creates a transcript of the coaching. An **advanced certificate of completion is awarded upon successful completion of the course activities with a registered coach.

To become a registered coach you must do the following:

1. Obtain a basic certificate of completion in the course you would like to coach by completing the course and passing the assessment.
2. Obtain an advanced certificate of completion in the Registered Coaches Course by completing the course, passing the assessment and submitting the feedback you prepare during your first coaching experience to the coaching mentor for review.

Once you have obtained the advanced certificate of completion in the Registered Coaches Course you are free to coach interpreters in the distance learning platform on your own.

To begin the process of becoming a coach by registering for an online course, please visit www.interptraining.org.

For further information you can review the Frequently Asked Questions section at www.interptraining.org or contact etshelp@eppley.org.

Alternatively, you can download a Microsoft Word version by clicking here.