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This article was downloaded by: [University of Kiel]On: 06 November 2014, At: 11:33Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: MortimerHouse, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
Kappa Delta Pi RecordPublication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ukdr20
Mentoring to Develop and Retain New TeachersFlorence MonsourPublished online: 13 Jul 2012.
To cite this article: Florence Monsour (2003) Mentoring to Develop and Retain New Teachers, Kappa Delta Pi Record, 39:3,134-135, DOI: 10.1080/00228958.2003.10516393
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00228958.2003.10516393
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134 Kappa Delta Pi Record • Spring 2003
Gateways to Experience
Florence Monsour is Professor ofEducation at the University ofWisconsin–River Falls and Directorof the Wisconsin Partnership inService Learning. A specialist inmentoring and service learning, shealso has research interest inresiliency in college-aged youths.
Mentoring to Develop and Retain New Teachersby Florence Monsour
The first year of teaching iscritical for success and long-
term retention in the profession.No matter how effective teachereducation and student teachinghave been, the new teacher can feelisolated and unequipped to handlethe many issues that arise. Amongthe approaches to support,develop, and maintain newteachers, peer mentoring showsparticular promise in making adecisive difference in whether a newteacher continues in the profession(Odell and Ferraro 1992). Experi-enced teacher mentors can help newteachers survive “the shock of class-room reality” (Huling-Austin 1992).
Successful Mentoring ProgramThe Beginning Teacher
Assistance Program, started at theUniversity of Wisconsin–River Fallsin northwestern Wisconsin, createda mentoring project in 1991, withinitial funding from an internalgrant. The university found theprogram to be a good fit with itsmission to develop partnershipswith local school districts and otherentities. Using the expertise of localteaching practitioners and univer-sity faculty members, experiencedteachers were trained to mentorbeginning teachers. The programprovided opportunities for new
teachers to discuss teachingconcerns with experiencedcolleagues and university facultymembers, as well as get specializedinstruction on topics crucial to newteachers—topics generated byneeds assessment and research(Wildman, Magliaro, Niles, andNiles 1992). The program operatedfor five years, sustaining itself onsmall fees charged for workshops,and proved successful, both byanecdotal information and bynumbers of participants.
Particularly revealing was theanecdotal information gleaned fromworkshop evaluations, journals,surveys, and taped interviews.Primary data came from interviewresponses, provided by 10 pairs ofteachers—mentors and protégés—from elementary and secondaryschools in rural Wisconsin.
What Makes Mentoring WorkIn successful mentoring
relationships, mentors and protégésmet on a weekly or daily basis andhad frequent telephone or mailcontact. Monthly contact appearedto be the minimum for sustainingthe relationship.
Aside from frequent contact,successful mentor relationshipswere characterized by trust,openness, and confidentiality.Successful mentors were flexibleand nonjudgmental; successfulprotégés, open and ready to learn.Though mentors and protégés wereformally paired, an assumption offriendship also proved crucial.
Mentors and protégés devel-oped personal relationships bystructuring time to share ideas in
addition to attending monthlyworkshops on topics such asclassroom management, parentconferences, and special educationreferrals. Time spent drivingtogether proved invaluable, as wellas prep and break times. Protégésneeded assistance in classroomdiscipline, daily routines, officeprocedures, communication withparents, grading, and evaluation.
Commitment to the TheoryThe individuals who formed
successful pairs could be charac-terized as strongly committed tothe theory—the idea of mentoring,the program, and its process andorganization. The program’s initialorientation, as well as its trainingsessions and monthly workshops,strengthened this commitment.
From Protégé to PeerThough the focus of mentoring
is on the development of theprotégé, mentors also benefited bysharing ideas and information anddeveloping new strategies whileproblem solving with protégés. Inaddition, mentors reported that theprogram benefited them byrequiring them to be more orga-nized, review teaching process andpractices, and improve communica-tions and unity with other teachersworking at the same grade level.
The dynamic of a successfulmentoring relationship developsthe protégé into a true peer. Asprotégés “graduate” from the role,having ongoing access to mentorsis important. When mentors andtheir protégés had the opportunityto serve on committees as col-
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Kappa Delta Pi Record • Spring 2003 135
leagues, they were able, publicly, topractice being peers.
Meeting ObstaclesEvaluation of the Beginning
Teacher Assistance Programrevealed problems and obstacles,resulting in a number of recom-mendations. One recommendationis that mentors be exemplary andrespected in their field. A minimumof three years’ teaching experienceshould be required; five-plus yearsare preferred (Wisconsin EducationAssociation Task Force 1990).
Clarity and consistency incommunicating expectations toboth mentors and protégés also isessential. Suggested expectationsinclude the following:
• commitment from pairs for aminimum of a year, to safeguardcontinuity;
• schedule of communicationand contact negotiated andstructured at the start; and
• site visit by the mentor to theprotégé’s classroom early in theyear, to move the relationshipbeyond the theoretical to the actual.
LogisticsAs with many programs that
call for busy professionals to addduties to their already full work-days, logistics are crucial to thesuccess of a mentoring program.Mentors and protégés should workin close proximity, preferablywithin the same building, tofacilitate frequent communication.
Relationships should beestablished before the school yearbegins; ideally, an orientationshould occur in August beforeteacher workshop days. Whenpossible, workshops should beplanned to coincide with whenissues arise in the school year,for greater relevance and imme-
diacy. For example, a parent-communication workshop shouldbe scheduled just before the newteacher imminently faces the task.
Larger Context of SupportThe support necessary to allow
mentoring relationships to succeedextends beyond the mentor-protégé pair to school and districtleadership. Program leaders shouldprovide materials to supportmentoring pairs. At orientation, ahandbook on mentoring—coveringtheory, mutual responsibilities, andsuggested activities—is desirable.
School Principal’s RoleTo succeed, a program must
secure support from schoolprincipals, including involvementin classroom-management training(Stallion and Zimpher 1991).Principals also should help create asupportive environment forprotégés, insulated from evaluation.For example, requiring a mentor toevaluate a protégé is never appro-priate, because this underminestrust and openness.
Principals also can supportmentoring in these ways:
• Openly commit to the idea ofmentoring as a priority in retainingquality teachers and providingongoing staff development.
• Attend the same training thatorients the mentors and protégésto the program, to gain an under-standing of processes and goals.
• Match mentors with protégéscarefully, taking into account suchfactors as learning style. Alsoanticipate the occasional mis-match, and facilitate a new match,making it known from the outsetthat protégés have the opportunityto request a different mentor.
• Schedule time for mentorand protégé to meet, such as
common lunch or prep time.• Provide release time for the
pair to attend training sessions andrequired workshops.
• Handle the logistics, early inthe school year, to allow the mentorto observe in the protégé’s class-room and the protégé to observe inthe mentor’s classroom. Be pre-pared, for example, to substitute inthe teacher’s classroom.
• Communicate to staff,community, and district adminis-trators the mentoring program’srationale and the activities andachievements of its participants.
• Provide public recognitionfor program participants, such asawards, a lunch, and articles in thelocal newspaper.
Fulfilling the PromiseDespite the demands and
potential problems inherent inestablishing and supporting a newteacher mentoring program,mentoring shows great promiseand proven results. When newteachers complete their first yearsuccessfully, children and commu-nities benefit. The entire educa-tional system is strengthened asfirst-time teachers launch theircareers successfully, connecting byexperience with the dream andhigh calling that led them toteaching in the first place.
ReferencesHuling-Austin, L. 1992. Research on learning to
teach: Implications for teacher induction andmentoring programs. Journal of TeacherEducation 43(3): 173–80.
Odell, S. J., and D. P. Ferraro. 1992. Teachermentoring and teacher retention. Journal ofTeacher Education 43(3): 200–04.
Stallion, B. K., and N. L. Zimpher. 1991. Classroommanagement intervention: The effects oftraining and mentoring on the inducteeteacher’s behavior. Action in TeacherEducation 13(1): 42–50.
Wildman, T. M., S. G. Magliaro, R. A. Niles, and J. A.Niles. 1992. Teacher mentoring: An analysis ofroles, activities, and conditions. Journal ofTeacher Education 43(3): 205–13.
Wisconsin Education Association Task Force. 1990.Blueprint for successful teacher induction.Madison: Wisconsin Education AssociationCouncil.
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