An Innovative Mentoring Approach to Prepare Holistic Educators for the 21st Century

• In Event: Holistic Education as Practical Transcendentalism

Abstract

This paper reports on an innovative model of reflective mentoring (Dyson, 2002) developed within a regional campus of Monash University. The model was originally developed in 2002 but has evolved over the last 9 years to become the underpinning philosophical and procedural approach used within teacher education programs at Monash. The process of reflective mentoring was specifically influenced by Korthagen’s (1995) ALACT model of teacher reflection, Bauman’s (2001) theory of tertiary learning and Arendt’s (1990) social interaction theory. Pre service teachers and their mentors are introduced to the process of reflective mentoring through a range of approaches. This research illustrates that continual engagement with professional learning, relating to this form of mentoring, improves the chance of becoming an holistic educator.

Authors

• Michael Dominic Dyson, Monash University

• Margaret M. Plunkett, Monash University