Consider these 13 ideas for providing TIME for mentoring

Providing TIME for Mentoring

13 OPTIONS FOR MENTORING RELEASED TIME:

NO RELEASED TIME?

Some mentoring programs do not provide any released time for the mentors and proteges who work in their program. When this is the case it is often because there are few expectations placed on the mentoring pair. Typically these programs only expect work on orientation and friendly support of the proteges.

If there are expectations for mentoring that go beyond orientation and friendship, then the program must provide the time during the school day for the mentoring pair to interact. You will not attain the results you desire if you do not provide the time to work toward those results. For example, how can instruction improve if there is no opportunity to view and provide feed back on actual instruction.

Certainly there are some other ways of collecting classroom data (as described below) besides actual, on-the-spot observation, which will limit the costs of teacher released time, but there will also be limited benefits captured by using only these means.

OTHER RELEASED TIME OPTIONS - require a financial commitment to some extent. The cost is worth it, however, because these options maximize the potential of mentoring for new teachers and the students in the classrooms of both the new and mentor teachers and MINIMIZE the disruption to instruction and students' learning. The approaches listed below ensure that, despite releasing a mentor and new teacher, the students still have one of their regular teachers providing the leadership and a continuity of instruction for students.

A. MENTOR & PROTEGE TEAM TEACHING:

Assign the new teacher and the mentor to one classroom with 30 students. or to two adjacent classrooms with 45 students. The two teachers coordinate their schedules and class planning, sometimes jointly teaching, or dividing to groups for instruction, or providing whole group instruction. The mentor is able to provide leadership, experience and modeling in both classrooms. The new teacher can work jointly with the mentor when learning new curriculum, strategies, etc, and can work independently when that is appropriate. Peer observation and coaching can be almost continuous. The mentor could be assigned to work with 2-4 other new teachers in addition and the new teacher in the original team can cover the full assignment.

B. ONE MENTOR & TWO PROTEGES IN TWO CLASSROOMS:

There are times when more than one new teacher is hired for a grade level or department. In this case a single mentor can be assigned as a third teacher in both of these two classrooms. Team and individual teaching, small group and combined classes are all possible instructional formats. When one or both new teachers need extended assistance, planning, observation and coaching, a substitute can be provided to help with supervision and the other new teacher can arrange to lead instruction and maintain continuity.

C. GRADE LEVEL OR DEPARTMENT TEAM MENTORING:

The mentoring of the new teacher in a department or grade level is assigned to the whole teacher team at that grade level or department. The individual experienced teachers discuss and volunteer for specific mentoring roles and tasks based on their strengths and the needs of the new teacher. If the new teacher establishes an especially close relationship with one or two of the team members they can assume greater roles by agreement. If released time is needed it can be easily arranged by the team covering the teaching assignment while the new teacher and one of the team observe and coach, visit a second classroom, or meet for long-term planning.

D. ONE CLASSROOM-TWO MENTORS:

One mentor teaches one half day in the morning, the other mentor teaches in the afternoon, both in the same classroom. Joint planning at lunch ensures continuity.

E. PROVIDE A SUB BUDGET:

Each mentoring pair is provided a specific number of days each year which they can use to access substitutes as they need for conferences, observation, joint staff development, and joint planning. Two half days a month is typical.

F. VIDEO TAPE THE LESSON:

This approach can save a lot of costs but should not be over used, or used to the exclusion of actual classroom observation. The teacher may set up a camera in the back or on the side of the classroom, and just leave it on for the appropriate time period to capture the teaching and student interactions. The tape can be viewed later by the protege, and by the mentoring pair to form the basis for their analysis of the lesson.

The limitations of this method are that the camera cannot zoom in on specific activities of students or the teacher so there will be events, writing, objects, facial expressions and other things which can not be seen on the finished tape. Also, the camera can not move to follow teacher or student activities. In other words the video is better for capturing static, up front teaching than a classroom where learners and teachers are active and engaged.

G. PROVIDE A COMMON PLAN PERIOD:

Although this is not always easy to do, making common planning periods a priority means that mentors and new teachers can do their work as a mentoring pair at a much reduced additional cost because the time for conferencing and joint planning is available daily. A great deal of mentoring and a great deal of growth and modeling will occur during that common time. The only remaining cost is trhe actual time to observe each other teaching.

H. PROVIDE A COMMON LUNCH PERIOD:

While not as desirable or helpful as a common planning period, a common lunch period can allow for some mentor-protege interaction on a routine basis, and that's good. The more opportunities the mentor and protege have to interact on a daily basis the more accelerated will be the protege's learning and professional growth. However, common periods are only useful fro some mentoring purposes. There are other mentoring purposes, such as observation of teaching, which still require some released time for the mentoring pair.

ADDITIONAL OPTIONS FOR SECONDARY MENTORING :

I. REDUCED TEACHING LOAD:

Some districts provide released time for mentoring by reducing the teaching load of the protege and mentor by one class, For maximum benefit this reduced class should be during the same class period or at least be on the supervision, planning or lunch period of the other member of the mentoring pair. in this way the actual taking of lunch or the planning can be shifted to a different period to create common mentoring time.

J. ALLOW MENTORING TO COUNT AS THE SUPERVISION PERIOD:

Some districts provide released time for mentoring by eliminating the requirement of a supervision period or a study hall supervision assignment. Such a change recognizes that mentoring is a contribution to the school community at least as important as hall or study hall supervision.

K. PROVIDE A COMMON SUPERVISION PERIOD

Although this is not as desirable as a release from supervision duty it is a help. It is not always easy to do either, but making common supervision periods a priority means that mentors and new teachers have some increased opportunities to do part of their work as a mentoring pair at no increased cost.

L. REDUCED NUMBER OF PREPARATIONS:

This option essentially trades reduced work for mentoring work. Usually the option reduces the "home" work required of both the new and mentor teacher during "beyond the school day" time by simplifying the teaching assignment of the two teachers. An example is changing a teachers schedule from 3 periods of US History, 2 periods of World History and 1 period of World Cultures, to 3 periods each of US History and World History, eliminating the extra preparation required for teaching World Cultures. This option should also include some released time for peer observations and coaching.

M. PROTECTION FROM EXCESSIVE NUMBERS OF CHALLENGING STUDENTS:

This approach is one way of limiting the time that a mentor will have to spend on dealing with the problems of routinely unruly students, such as attending staffings, making parent calls, parent conferences, and staying after to supervise detentions in the mentor's own classroom. This increases the ability of the mentor to meet with the new teacher and to do the mentoring.

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