Mentor Focus |
"Relationship is surely the mirror in which you discover yourself" |
Purpose: Philosophy, attitude, and style that a person brings to the task of teaching.
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Connect
Self-Assessment Resources: VIA Character Strengths FREE Survey Gallup Strengths Finder (purchase option) Educational Philosophy Quiz and Scoring Guide |
Content: Static Content (what) is the curriculum that teachers are responsible for teaching. It is static because it does not change from day to day with the mood of the students or events in the school environment.
Dynamic Content (how) is the knowledge and skills about teaching that a teacher uses to do the teaching. This can change at any time based on what is happening in the immediate environment. A teacher must know how to monitor and adjust throughout the day as well as know the procedure for presenting a lesson.
Mentor Observation Activity: Choosing Observation Techniques Review the various observation techniques and tools provided on the Assist site. A PDF version of the tools is located below under resources.
Content Focused Mentor Resources: Pre-observation Tool Observation Tools Mentors as Collaborative Coaches |
The most important factor impacting student success "is the knowledge and skills of that child's teacher" (Schmoker, 2011, p.51). Schmoker (2011) offers a refresher course for effective lesson planning. Effective lessons should include:
Glickman et al. (2014) provides multiple ways a mentor can work to assess the individual needs of a mentee:
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Communication Skills: Teachers must be prepared to communicate effectively with four very different audiences: students, colleagues, parents, and the community at large.
Communication Focused Resources: Tips for Giving/Receiving Feedback |
Understand Communication Filters: "Communication filters distort the clarity of a message...they operate at both the transmission and reception points" affecting "how you say what you and how I hear it" (Crane, 2014, p.146).
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Professional Development: Teachers are lifelong learners. They do additional coursework in their discipline, take classes in other areas of interest, mentor new teachers, and take part in research activities.
Professional Conception of Teaching:
In Hargreaves and Fullans' (2009) text Change Wars, Darling Hammond discusses the professional conception of teaching as "knowledge-based and client-oriented" (p. 49).
"The results of investments in teacher knowledge and skill have been demonstrated not only at the individual teacher level, but at the levels of the school, district, state, and nation" (Darling-Hammond, 2009, p. 51). |
“Improved practice and student achievement are accompanied by a strong professional learning component” (Darling-Hammond, 2009, p. 55) "Sustained and intensive professional development for teachers is related to student achievement gains" (Darling-Hammond et al., 2009).
Professional Development Should:
Mentor Professional Development Resources: Mentoring as Professional Development Using Mentoring as a Form of Professional Learning Open Education Training Courses Teacher Vision Thirteen Must Know Websites for Professional Development Professional Learning in the Learning Profession |