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What is an Educational Coordinator?

T. Webster
T. Webster

Educational coordinators are professionals that use administrative and teaching skills to develop, evaluate, and coordinate education programs. This may include designing the courses for the program. Depending on his or her role in an organization, an educational coordinator may serve as a liaison or "point person" between teachers, administrators, parents, and community members.

Often, educational coordinators serve in an academic setting such as pre-kindergarten, grades kindergarten through 12, colleges, and adult education programs. They also work for hospitals and other industries that have a need for ongoing, specialized training. A hospital, for example, may employ a nurse as an educational coordinator for its trauma division. Being an educational coordinator requires experience in one's field, as well as the ability to keep up-to-date on the latest trends and developments. This knowledge is used to supplement required coursework.

An educational coordinator may work in hospitals that require ongoing, specialized training.
An educational coordinator may work in hospitals that require ongoing, specialized training.

Educational coordinators must understand effective teaching techniques and how to design a curriculum or series of courses on a particular topic. In an academic setting, they design courses with local, regional, and national requirements in mind. These requirements spell out what must be taught. A course that fails to do this will not teach students what they are expected to know. It could also be found non-compliant with certain regulations, which could lead to sanctions from any overseeing agencies.

An educational coordinator is responsible for developing, evaluating, and coordinating education programs.
An educational coordinator is responsible for developing, evaluating, and coordinating education programs.

After a curriculum is in place, the educational coordinator can evaluate whether it is effective. This will be based on a desired outcome, such increasing skills in a specific area or raising test scores. Data about the course may be compiled into a report for review by the coordinator and other administrators. Based on the report and other considerations, the course may be kept as-is, or it may be altered. The educational coordinator may also watch and evaluate teachers to offer feedback on teaching techniques.

Educational coordinators can work in public school settings, including kindergarten.
Educational coordinators can work in public school settings, including kindergarten.

An ability to work with administrators, teachers, and the public is another important skill for an education coordinator. A coordinator for a gifted and talented program, for example, may work with other teachers to coordinate student schedules and get information on student performance. A gifted and talented coordinator may also be responsible for deciding who is enrolled the program. For that reason, a mixture of tact and compassion is required when dealing with parents.

Educational coordinators must understand effective teaching techniques for students of varying ages.
Educational coordinators must understand effective teaching techniques for students of varying ages.

An educational coordinator is someone with the experience and ability to oversee an entire education program. An educational coordinator must also meet licensing or degree requirements needed to perform his or her role. This can range from a bachelor's degree to a master's degree or even a Ph.D.

Discussion Comments

mutsy

@Comfyshoes - I think that education careers that serve large amounts of children like this are really rewarding because you are making positive changes in the school system by your recommendations.

I think that if I was in the field of education I would like a consultative position like this because I am always intrigued about why one particular curriculum is more effective than others. This is something that is measurable and quantifiable which makes it easier to convince the administration that the programs are worthy of consideration.

Once a program has been proven to be successful elsewhere it is easier for an educational coordinator to suggest the superior curriculum.

comfyshoes

@Latte31 - I know what you mean. Many schools are hiring people for educational coordinator jobs in order to raise the reading and math scores, and a lot of schools have been moving towards Singapore Math.

Singapore Math is a math curriculum designed by the Ministry of Education in Singapore. Since Singapore outperforms all nations with respect to math it is understandable that many educational coordinators would consider this curriculum.

It is a mastery approach to mathematics and it becomes a bit more abstract than a typical American math program like Saxon.

Students that have used this curriculum have demonstrated a solid foundation in basic mathematical operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Many schools using this program have boosted their math competencies from a 30% average percentile to a 75% percentile rating which means that they scored better than 75% of similarly situated students. The results have been promising.

latte31

I know that a lot of private schools have educational coordinators in order to evaluate the results of the curriculum. My children’s private school changed their math curriculum five years ago because they wanted a comprehensive program that would allow the students to score well on standardize tests.

They decided to go with Saxon Math because it is comprehensive and can be adjusted to make the course work more rigorous. Normally the number of the course denotes the grade level that it is designed for, however, Saxon can be accelerated a year which is what they do at my children’s school.

For example, a fourth grader would use Saxon 5 Intermediate which is a fifth grade math course instructed in the fourth grade.

I know that a lot of education coordinators look at math programs as well as reading and language arts programs because these are the most critical subjects for a school to teach and it is where students can make the biggest impact on their learning.

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    • An educational coordinator may work in hospitals that require ongoing, specialized training.
      By: wellphoto
      An educational coordinator may work in hospitals that require ongoing, specialized training.
    • An educational coordinator is responsible for developing, evaluating, and coordinating education programs.
      By: Andres Rodriguez
      An educational coordinator is responsible for developing, evaluating, and coordinating education programs.
    • Educational coordinators can work in public school settings, including kindergarten.
      By: micromonkey
      Educational coordinators can work in public school settings, including kindergarten.
    • Educational coordinators must understand effective teaching techniques for students of varying ages.
      By: Petro Feketa
      Educational coordinators must understand effective teaching techniques for students of varying ages.
    • Educational coordinators may decide which supplies are useful to a child's success in the classroom.
      By: jillchen
      Educational coordinators may decide which supplies are useful to a child's success in the classroom.