mentors make a difference sue taylor-foley south shore regional school board bridgewater, nova...
TRANSCRIPT
Mentors Make A Difference
Sue Taylor-FoleySouth Shore Regional School Board
Bridgewater, Nova ScotiaCanada
Workshop Outcomesfor Mentors Make A Difference
• Understanding of what mentoring is and is not
• How initiatives can be linked through mentoring
• How one Board developed a Literacy/Technology Mentor program from K-12
• Effective supports for Mentors
• Mentors Matter- making a difference in teaching and student achievement
What is mentoring?
• P.D. strategy designed to improve teaching and learning through a close professional relationship between or among teachers
• By engaging in thoughtful dialogues, teachers are able to reflect on their own practices and become more independent and self-directed practitioners
What is Mentoring?
Is…A confidential collegial
relationship.An opportunity to give/receive
feedback and problem solve to help improve professional practices.
A way to guide and support a learning partner with their educational journey.
Beneficial for both the mentor and the teacher
Is Not…..• Judgmental• Part of a
performance review• A fix it strategy• A supervisory model• A substitute
Why mentoring?
• Studies of success rates of various teacher in-servicing components support the potential effectiveness of mentoring as a means of improving instructional practice.*
*NSELC
A comparison – Joyce & Showers
PD Component Skills Attained Transfer to Classroom
Presentation of Theory
10-20% 5-10%
Demonstration 30-35% 5-10%
Practice 60-70% 5-10%
Feedback 70-80% 10-20%
Mentoring 80-90% 80-90%
Mentoring• Affects school culture by promoting
stronger collegial relationships• Supports significant educational
change• Promotes reflection and decision
making by providing time, space and encouragement
• Leads to increase student achievement
Toll, 2005
Initiatives
• RCH• PEBS• IEIE• AYR• AR• WIA• PPT• PATHS• O2
• A4L• SIP• HPS• CGP• PLC• NLC• PSP• Accreditation• NSE
Natural Links
• Cuts across all subject areas and grade levels
• Constructivist tools• Writing• Reading • Authentic publishing• Product creation• Accomplishment of outcomes using
current methodology
Building Better Instruction*
• Thematic Instruction • Identifying Similarities and Differences • Summarizing and Note Taking • Reinforcing Effort • Homework and Practice • Non-linguistic Representation • Cooperative Grouping • Setting Objectives • Providing Feedback • Generating and Testing Hypotheses • Simulations and Games • Cues, Questions, and Advance Organizers
The Development of Literacy/Technology Mentoring
• Build on prior success• Formalized training• Formalized expectations• Provided each school with dedicated mentor
staffing allocation• More support within the school and therefore
less pull out time away from school• More directed focus on teacher identified need
Mentor Qualifications• Strong curriculum background
knowledge
• Successful teaching experience
• Practical application in the classroom
• Training NSELC Module 12
• Interpersonal skills
• Credibility and respect of staff
Supports for Mentors
• Technology- laptop, webcam, headset, software
• Moodle Portal• Video conferencing platform• Print materials• Dedicated time • Release days• Consultant – Meta Mentor
Things to consider
• How might a Mentor support teachers in your school(s)?
• How will we train our mentors?
• How to introduce mentoring to staff members?
• How can an administrator support mentoring?
• How to effectively schedule a mentor?
• Stable funding to support the program
• Respecting the role of the mentor
Website
• http://ssrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca/mentorsmatter
–Resources
–Sample Materials
–This presentation