Teacher Mentoring: Teacher Mentoring: Helping New Teachers SurviveHelping New Teachers Survive

Teacher Mentoring: Teacher Mentoring: Helping New Teachers SurviveHelping New Teachers Survive

Mentoring Definitions

Jacobi (1991) – a one-to-one helping relationship or nurturing process

Christensen (1991) – guiding of a novice in professional development and the journeying together toward professional excellence

PURPOSESTATEMENT

  Research demonstrates that many novice teachers are denied necessary support in their beginning years. Too often, young teachers leave the profession before having the opportunity to become effective and confident. One in ten teachers who left the profession say the primary reason they left was inadequate support. And one-third of the teachers who have left the profession say that if a high quality-mentoring program had been in place, they would have likely continued teaching. (Source: NJEA Study of New Jersey Teachers Who Have Left the Profession, Sept. 2000).

Functions of Mentoring• To provide direct assistance• To provide emotional and psychological

support• To act as a role model• To give advice and guidance• To act as a coach• To develop and refine protégé’s

understanding of content and ability to teach content to a particular audience

How Did You Survive?Think back to your first couple of years as a

teacher:

•What do you remember about your first day, week, or month as a new teacher?•Did anyone help you? Who? Did you ask for help or was it offered?•Looking back, what information, materials or support might have been of help to you?•Do you have a chance for professional discussions/sharing? If so, what do the professionals in your building share and how is it shared?

Adults Learn Best When…

• They are originators of their own learning.• They are in a climate that encourages experimentation.• They are recognized and given increased responsibility for their

own learning.• They can experience and do rather than be told.• They see the results and get immediate and accurate

feedback.• They can individualize and adapt, rather than adopt.• They are placed in informal learning situations with extensive

social interactions.

(Woods and Thompson, 1980)

What a good Mentor does:1. Help your mentee with unwritten practices and policies2. Meet on a regular schedule to discuss the mentee’s concerns,

questions, progress and instructional practice3. Help with organization, materials, record keeping, classroom

management, unit plans, curriculum, lesson plans, assessments, etc.

4. Respond to specific requests by mentee5. Model/suggest techniques for parent communication6. Assure confidentiality when discussing mentee’s concerns7. Provide information about professional development8. Help mentee identify specific skills, competencies or strategies

which need improvement9. Invite mentee in to observe demo lessons with follow up

conference10.Offer to observe mentee’s class with pre/post conference

discussions11.Identify resource people in and out of the district12.Encourage mentee to try new ideas and plans

Expectations

• Mentor visitations of novice teacher• Mentee visitations of Mentor• Regularly scheduled formal meetings

(minimally 1 time per week for 1 hour)• Maintain an “electronic” log• CONTINUOUS COMMUNICATION

Suggested Topics Weekly Meetings

•CommunicationCommunication•Teacher wellnessTeacher wellness•Parent/Teacher Parent/Teacher conferencesconferences•ReflectionReflection•Classroom Classroom managementmanagement•CurriculumCurriculum

•Instructional Instructional StrategiesStrategies•AssessmentAssessment•Teaching Teaching StandardsStandards•Goal-settingGoal-setting•New TeacherNew Teacher Support PlanSupport Plan•PDP

Goal Setting

• Putting the pieces together

• Comments and Questions

Together we are a puzzleUnique pieces made to show,that when we work together,there’s no place we can’t go.