ESL (English as a Second Language) Mentor Teachers’ Practices: Challenging the Status Quo for Multilingual Learners

• In Event: Saturday Roundtable 7:45 am
  In Roundtable Session: K–12 Mentoring in Rural Settings (Table 3)

Abstract

This study explores how English as a Second Language (ESL) mentor teachers make meaning of their mentoring practices and how they enact them “in action.” I draw on data from semi-structured interviews, class observations, and observations of planning and debriefing meetings between mentors and pre-service teachers. My analysis suggests that ESL mentoring is a process in which mentors and pre-service teachers engage in critical reflection and actively challenge the system and disrupt the status quo of school policies that act as barriers to multilingual student learning and a practice that aims at disclosing “the real deal” to pre-service teachers. These findings have implications for developing a deeper understanding of mentoring in the field of ESL and collaboration with content-area teachers.

Author

• Maria Guzman Antelo, Rhode Island College