Proceedings of the 7th International Academic Conference on Education, Teaching and Learning
Year: 2024
DOI:
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Mentoring Identity and Style Development in Initial Teacher Education
Dr. Katherine Littlewood, Assoc. Prof. Tricia McLauglin
ABSTRACT:
Teaching and learning in the 21st century is complex and the knowledge of experienced teachers is vital in ensuring the effectiveness of learning outcomes for students. School-based practicum is an important component of initial teacher education, highly valued by preservice teachers for providing practical classroom learning and linking theoretical university learning to applied classroom pedagogy. Experienced (Mentor) teachers are key in sharing their expertise with preservice teachers during the practicum experiences. Although mentoring is well-established in many professions, it is often undervalued professionally in initial teacher education. Using a qualitative narrative approach, this paper explores mentor teachers’ perceptions and experiences in developing their own mentoring identity and style. By comparing mentoring theory with participant experiences, this paper exposes deeper insights into mentoring practices. The findings indicate that mentors face exceptional identity challenges through insufficient recognition, support, and inadequate professional development. This paper highlights the need to establish professional mentoring as a vital professional teaching component, through improved support and acknowledgment for mentor teachers.
keywords: challenges, mentor teacher, perceptions, practicum, pre-service teacher