"It Was More Like a Partnership Than a Mentor and Mentee Kind of Relationship": Teacher Resident Experiences With Mentoring

• In Event: Moscone Center North Roundtable Session 7
  In Roundtable Session: Building a Mentoring Support System for In-Service Teachers

Abstract

A narrative case study was conducted to examine the mentoring activities teachers had access to and their evaluation of those activities. Participants included five in-service teachers prepared in an urban teacher residency program. This study demonstrates that both directive and educative mentorship resources are available to new teachers, although not every new teacher will have access to both types of support. It confirms prior research suggesting that novices are frequently drawn to directive mentorship, which frequently serves to address new teachers’ immediate needs. The findings support the notion that novice teachers can have positive relationships with mentors employing a more educative approach when this mentorship is well provided and seen by the mentee as relevant to their practice.

Author

• Danielle Sutherland, Michigan State University