Different schools of thoughts concerning the conceptualization of the role of the mentor point at different dimensions within the role. It is suggested that assumptions and beliefs about the nature of teaching and learning provide the rationale for the mentors’ approaches. The notion of idiosyncrasy of mentoring and the complexity of the mentor-mentee relationship has challenged the study of 15 pairs of student teachers and their mentors’ perceptions on the role of the mentor.  The study identifies types of relationships that transpire within pairs. The study was conducted in a pre-service teachers’ programme in a teacher education college. The impetus for this study emerged out of mixed voices of student teachers and mentors who expressed their concerns about their experiences. 

Thus the questions that the study sought to answer are:

1) What do mentors think of their role and what do students think of the mentor’s role?    
 Do they have similar or different perceptions?

2) What sort of relationships can be identified between the mentor and the student?

The assumption was that gaining more insights on these issues would help to facilitate the mentoring experience of student teachers and their mentors in the practicum.

Theoretical perspectives

 The mentoring process in the practicum of student teachers constitutes a critical factor in their professional development. Student teachers view the process  as the best way to acquire professional knowledge and competence as a teacher (Hascher, Cocard, & Moser, 2004; He, 2010). It also serves as a protected opportunity for experimentation and socialization within the profession (Hascher et al., 2004). Mentoring is idiosyncratic in the sense that mentors and student teachers bring into the mentoring process a diversity of beliefs and concerns that lead to complex interactions and complicated dynamics ( Hawkey,1997). Wang (2001) extends this view and indicates that the different perceptions can affect the relationship and the learning process that develops for both mentor and student by influencing how they communicate and what advice is given. Similarly, different conceptualizations of teaching imply different views of the processes of learning to teach and a different vision of the role of the mentor (Maynard & Furlong, 1993). Young et al. (2005) conclude that mentoring could be seen as perplexing and challenging due to contradictions in the way it is described by different mentoring studies and the actors involved in the mentoring process. In a recent study analyzing mentors’ needs from 12 European countries the data reflect a high range of perspectives partly due to the diversity of educational systems in which they are embedded (Jones, 2009). The idiosyncrasy of mentoring and the fact that no generalizations can be made, might lead practitioners to the conclusion that “anything goes” (Cain, 2009). This mind-set might affect the quality of mentoring.

  According to Elliot and Calder- head (1993, 179) “assumptions about the very nature of teaching and how learning occurs provide part of the rationale for the mentors' approaches”.  Some student teachers report on negative experiences when they perceive their mentor as having dissimilar attitudes beliefs and values from their own (Eby et al., 2000). It is suggested therefore that mentors need to be informed about the needs of their mentees in order to establish an effective mentoring relationship (Iancu-Haddad & Oplatka, 2009). Russell and Russell (2011) quoting Tauer (2002) support this notion and state that the most successful mentoring relationships are based on shared values, goals and understandings and in order to understand the dynamics of mentoring, it is useful to gain the mentor’s perspective on the mentoring relationship. Thus the perceptual gaps under which mentoring and learning to teach take place are complex.

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