Mentoring for Teacher Empowerment- Irish Teachers’ Perspectives

Author(s):

Teresa O'Doherty

Conference:

ECER 2009

Network:

1. Continuing Professional Development: Learning for Individuals, Leaders, and Organisations

Format:

Paper

Session Information

01 SES 07 B, Novice Teachers and Mentors

Paper Session

Time:

2009-09-29

15:30-17:00

Room:

NIG, HS II

Chair:

Anne Rath

Contribution

Teaching has deep, traditional roots in Irish society, and enjoys high social status and regard (Coolahan, 2003). Thus teacher retention does not cause concern with most teachers remaining in the system for life. Induction support, used internationally as a means of promoting retention (Guarino, Santibañez & Daley, 2006; Kelly, 2004), remains under-developed in Ireland. A small-scale pilot project on induction has been established, but presently fewer than 10% of newly qualified teachers (NTs) have formal support. This paper explores the values and perceptions of Irish mentor teachers who have been involved in mentoring novice teachers. While situating this research within the historical context of the teaching profession in the ROI, the paper chronicles the establishment National Pilot Project on Teacher Induction and reports on a survey of 100 teachers who are mentoring newly qualified teachers in Irish schools. The paper illustrates that respondents gained personally from the mentoring process and recognized its potential to be a transformative agent within Irish schools, creating a framework for professional dialogue and supporting extended learning communities within staffs. The research reveals the teachers’ desire to be ‘Mentors, not models: supporting teachers to be empowered’. Respondents’ primary concerns were for the emotional, aesthetic and personal development of NTs. They balance systemic needs, promoting the effectiveness of NTs in classrooms, with their perceptions of a ‘good mentor’, one who supports the holistic development of a colleague, within educational-communities.

Method

This research was undertaken as part of the EU project Teacher Induction: Supporting the Supporters of Novice Teachers (TISSNTE). Using the Needs Analysis instrument generated by the TISSNTE group, and while subscribing to the larger aims of the project, a localised questionnaire was designed to develop an understanding of respondents' perception of the role of the mentor and to identify the aspects of a mentor professional development programme that were most valued by them. The questionnaire was piloted by six Irish mentors and was subsequently was posted to a randomly selected 100 mentors. The response rate was 42%. The questionnaire included closed questions, a number of questions based on likert scales, as well as open-ended questions where qualitative responses were sought. Participants commented generously to these prompts and their qualitative responses have enriched the findings.

Expected Outcomes

This paper supports the development of a mentor programme enabling teachers to critically discuss teaching and to translate their knowledge of practice and culture into the language of mentoring (Orland-Barak, 2005) and concludes by examining the potential implications of these findings for policy and practice in new mentoring programmes.

References

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Author Information

Teresa O'Doherty

Mary Immaculate College, University of Limerick

Faculty of Education

Limerick

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