Cognitive Coaching^SM is a supervisory/peer coaching model that capitalizes upon and enhances cognitive processes. Art Costa and Bob Garmston, the founders of Cognitive Coaching^SM, define it as a set of strategies, a way of thinking and a way of working that invites self and others to shape and reshape their thinking and problem solving capacities. In other words, Cognitive Coaching^SM enables people to modify their capacity to modify themselves. The metaphor of a stagecoach is one used to understand what a coach does—convey a valued person from where s/he is to where s/he wants to be.

Cognitive Coaching^SM is based on the following four major propositions:

1. Thought and perception produce all behavior.
2. Teaching is constant decision-making.
3. To learn something new requires engagement and alteration in thought.
4. Humans continue to grow cognitively.

A coach is actually a mediator, one who figuratively stands between a person and his thinking to help him become more aware of what is going on inside his head. It is not enough for a person to behave in a certain way—what's important is the thinking that goes on behind the behavior. A large part of the role of a mediator is based on trust and rapport with the person being coached.

At the heart of Cognitive Coaching^SM is the concept that each of us has resources that enable us to grow and change from within. Costa and Garmston call these resources (also referred to as capacities or energy sources) "States of Mind." It is the States of Mind that the coach mediates, allowing the person to use her inner resources more effectively. There are five States of Mind: consciousness, efficacy, flexibility, craftsmanship and interdependence. When a person functions at her resourceful best, she is said to be holonomous. Holonomy is a term that was coined by the physicist, Arthur Koestler; it means to be simultaneously whole and part. A holonomous person is competent and confident as an individual in the organization, and at the same time critical to the effective functioning of the organization.

In Cognitive Coaching^SM, the person being coached, not the coach, evaluates what is good or poor, appropriate or inappropriate, effective or ineffective about his/her work. This is a powerful approach to enhancing performance and building learning organizations. It is not conventional evaluation or performance appraisal.

Overview of Cognitive Coaching^SM Training
Cognitive Coaching^SM training focuses on the maps and tools needed to mediate another’s thinking. The metaphor of maps and tools is used to indicate the dynamic, individualized way in which coaching takes place. A coach is equipped with maps and tools which s/he uses to assist the person being coached in "navigating" the territory of his/her thinking. Each coach uses the maps and tools in slightly different ways, but always focuses on mediating thinking.

The three maps of Cognitive Coaching^SM are: planning, reflecting and problem-resolving. Each map has identified elements, which are learned in the training. The three maps interact with each other. When a person reflects on something he has done, he often begins thinking about the next activity or event and begins planning, based on what he learned from reflecting on a previous experience. Problem-solving can come from a person feeling "stuck" or can be part of reflecting or planning. When a person is "stuck" in his thinking, it is usually one or more of the States of Mind that are causing the "stuckness."

The main tools of Cognitive Coaching^SM are: rapport, mediative questioning, response behaviors, pacing and leading. The training focuses on learning these tools and using them with the maps. A major focus of the training is trust and rapport.

Specifically, a person will do the following in Cognitive Coaching^SM training:

• build trust by developing physical and verbal rapport
• facilitate thinking through questioning and developing greater precision in language
• develop a person’s autonomy and sense of community by increasing their sense of efficacy and self-awareness
• distinguish between coaching and evaluation
• rehearse coaching interactions that are congruent with a variety of styles
• apply coaching skills which enhance the intellectual processes of performance