Structured dialogue, grounded in self-study, has been used to improve teaching practice, but its effects on mentor practice have not been assessed. This article reports findings from an analysis of the effect of this approach toward teacher development on novice mentor’s coaching skills. Using a qualitative inductive thematic analysis using transcripts from audio-recorded mentoring rounds, e-mails, and journals, we found that engaging in structured dialogue enhanced the mentor teachers’ ability to ask questions, support novice teacher practice, focus on student learning, and become aware and respond to missed opportunities for coaching and teacher education. These results led us to systematize a holistic approach toward mentorship using mentoring rounds—a form of structured dialogue that explicitly focuses on coaching novice teachers and using self-study to reflect on mentor practice. The strategy used in this study can be utilized for professional development efforts aimed at promoting mentor training.
AckermanR.MackenzieS. V. (2006). Uncovering teacher leadership. Educational Leadership, 63, 66–70.
2.
BallD. L.CohenD. K. (1999). Developing practice, developing practitioners: Toward a practice-based theory of professional education. Teaching as the learning profession: Handbook of policy and practice, 1, 3–22.
BlakeR. R.MoutonJ. S.McCanseA. A. (1989). Change by design. New York: Prentice Hall.
5.
ChienC. (2015). Pre-service English teachers’ perceptions and practice of field experience and professional learning from expert teachers’ mentoring. Teachers and Teaching, 21, 328–345. doi:10.1080/13540602.2014.953817
DavisN. (2008). How may teacher learning be promoted for educational renewal with it? In VoogtJ.KnezekG. (Eds.), International handbook of information technology in primary and secondary education (pp. 507–519). Boston, MA: Springer.
8.
DawsonK. (2007). The role of teacher inquiry in helping prospective teachers untangle the complexities of technology use in classrooms. Journal of Computing in Teacher Education, 24, 5–12. doi:10.1080/10402454.2007.10784578
9.
DerventF. (2015). The effect of reflective thinking on the teaching practices of preservice physical education teachers. Issues in Educational Research, 25, 16.
10.
DeweyJ. (1933). How we think. Boston, MA: D.C. Health.
11.
DinklemanT. (2003). Self-study in teacher education: A means and ends tool for promoting reflective teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 54, 12.
12.
EilamB.PoyasY. (2006). Promoting awareness of the characteristics of classrooms’ complexity: A course curriculum in teacher education. Teaching and Teacher Education, 22, 337–351.
13.
Feiman-NemserS. (2001). Helping novices learn to teach: Lessons from an exemplary support teacher. Journal of Teacher Education, 52, 17–30.
14.
Feiman-NemserS. (2008). Teacher preparation: Structural and conceptual alternatives. In HoustonW. R. (Ed.), Handbook for research on teacher education (pp. 697–705). New York: Macmillan.
15.
FillippinoT. M.BarnettS.RoachS. (2008). Help! Do I have to advise college students, too?The Mentor: Innovative Scholarship on Academic Advising, 10.
16.
GhanizadehA. (2017). The interplay between reflective thinking, critical thinking, self-monitoring, and academic achievement in higher education. Higher Education, 74, 101–114. doi:10.1007/s10734-016-0031-y
17.
HallinanM. T. (2001). Sociological perspectives on Black-White inequalities in American schooling. Sociology of Education, 74, 50–70. doi:10.2307/2673253
18.
HamelF.MerzC. (2005). Reframing accountability: A preservice program wrestles with mandated reform. Journal of Teacher Education, 56, 157–167.
19.
HansenD. (1998). The moral is in the practice. Teaching and Teacher Education, 14, 643–655.
20.
HerseyP.BlanchardK. H.JohnsonD. E. (2001). Management of school behaviour: Leading human resources. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
21.
HiebertJ.MorrisA.BerkD.JansenA. (2007). Preparing teachers to learn from teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 58, 47–61.
22.
HollinsE. R. (2008). Culture in school learning: Revealing the deep meaning. New York: Routledge.
23.
HollinsE. R. (2011). Preparation for quality teaching. Journal of Teacher Education, 62, 13.
24.
IzadiniaM. (2015). Talking the talk and walking the walk: Pre-service teachers’ evaluation of their mentors. Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 23, 341–353. doi:10.1080/13611267.2015.1096550
25.
KrathwohlD. R. (2002). A revision of bloom’s taxonomy: An overview. Theory into Practice, 41, 212–218. doi:10.1207/s15430421tip4104_2
26.
KosterB.BrekelmansM.KirtgagebF.WabbelsT. (2005). Quality requirements for teacher educators. Teaching and Teacher Education, 21, 19.
LoughranJ.BerryA. (2005). Modeling by teacher educators. Teaching and Teacher Education, 21, 193–203.
29.
National Research Council. (2005). How students learn. Washington, DC: Library of Congress.
30.
NorthouseP. (2007). Leadership: Theory and practice. London, England: Sage.
31.
OsguthorpeR. (2008). On the reasons we want teachers of good disposition. Journal of Teacher Education, 59, 288–299.
32.
PattonM. (2005). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
33.
PerryC.CooperM. (2001). Metaphors are good mirrors: Reflecting on change for teacher educators. Reflective Practice, 2, 41–52. doi:10.1080/14623940120035514
34.
RosiekJ. (2003). Emotional scaffolding: An exploration of the teacher knowledge at the intersection of student and emotion and subject matter. Journal of Teacher Education, 54, 15.
35.
SheetsR. H. (2004). Preparation and development of teachers of color. International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 17, 163–166. doi:10.1080/09518390310001653844
36.
StanilusR. (2009). Intensive mentoring as a way to help beginning teachers develop balanced instruction. Journal of Teacher Education, 60, 10.
37.
TimperleyH. S. (2005). Distributed leadership: Developing theory from practice. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 37, 395–420. doi:10.1080/00220270500038545
38.
TollC. A.NierstheimerS. L.LenskiS. D.KolloffP. B. (2004). Washing our students clean: Internal conflicts in response to preservice teachers’ beliefs and practices. Journal of Teacher Education, 55, 164–176. doi:10.1177/0022487103261625
39.
ValliL.Rennert-ArievP. (2002). New standards and assessments? Curriculum transformation in teacher education. Journal of Curriculum Studies, 34, 24.
40.
WangJ.OdellS. (2002). Mentored learning to teach according to standards-based reform: A critical review. Review of Educational Research, 72, 481–546.
41.
YounheeK.SilverR. E. (2016). Provoking reflective thinking in post observation conversations. Journal of Teacher Education, 67, 17.
42.
ZeichnerK. (2005). Becoming a teacher educator: A personal perspective. Teacher and Teacher Educator, 21, 117–124.
