Hi Peter,Dianne, Kerry and Sarah,
Just to give you a short overview of my research into the role of the mentor
on a one year PGCE University based course. I initially worked on an
exploratory study of 3 very contrasting HEI Partnerships from England ( i.e.
not just the Midlands!) over one academic year. I then studied one HEI
Partnership for 18 months- 2 years.
Please could you remind us of how many PGCE courses you looked at and how
big your sample was in each one with regard to exploring the espoused and
in-use adult learning theories you came across? How many times did you
return to your sample - did mentors' choice of adult learning theories
change over time? Did their theories develop over time?
I used several method tools to collect my data - questionnaire, focus
group, interviews and analysis of HEI and Government documents. The
questionnaires were only sent to student teachers in one subject taught in
all HEI's asking their expectations of their mentors prior to beginning
their PGCE course. I then held a focus group of Student teachers (
volunteers from the questionnaire). I then met with the Mentors at all the
mentor training sessions at all three HEI's. I observed just 4 Mentors from
each HEI conducting a Mentors meeting. I also observed 2 mentors from each
of the HEI's (they were part of the 4 observed at Mentor meetings) observing
their Student teachers teaching. I then interviewed 4 mentors from each HEI
twice. As you can imagine I accrued a LOT of data!
Some Mentors theories developed over time particularly if as some began MA
courses. Others found certain theories were utilised several times as they
were found 'to work for them'
How have you arrived at the conviction that role playing would assist in
enabling all PGCE mentors not just in your sample but in general in the UK
to adopt adult learning theories?
Having observed some role play sessions at mentor training I perceived there
to be a buzz and a willingness to share experiences beyond the role play in
question and this led to question and answer sessions. I have also
conducted role play sessions on MA courses myself and found all members of
the group to be enlightened by at least one aspect- the use of a practical
tip, a spiral model that helped the professional relate to a scenario shared
from their classroom...
I am also of the opinion that many of us learn theoretical aspects of any
subject if they can bring it to the fore through visual, oral kinaesthetic
ways?
My reasoning that the UK PGCE HEI Partnerships should adopt ALT's is because
we are looking at mentoring between 2 adults ( which as we know is not
always the case in a mentoring relationship and certainly not as per the
ancient one of 'Menter and Telemachus') here and so it seems apposite that
we should look to learning theories appropriate to an adult. Literature
also supports this view.
Do you, on the basis of your research, have evidence that some adult
learning theories are more/less useful in assisting novice teachers and
their mentors to develop professionally?
I certainly evidenced some ALT's to be more usefully engaged at say the
early part of a TP than to say the latter part of it. I also evidenced the
overlapping of certain ALT's principles throughout the mentoring role.
What evidence did you come across & what evidence have you contributed that
knowledge of adult learning theories contributes to improving over time the
quality of teacher education?
I evidenced repetition of use of ALT's - and that many mentors agreed how
useful the supporting information was and as I stated earlier several took
up MA's in Teaching and Learning and found the mentoring module to be highly
informative and useful to them in their role. I noted the quality of
mentoring changing only over a 2 and a half year period. I could not state
whether there was an improvement over this time explicitly as I considered
the sample too small and not generalisable but I did feel that for those
mentors not experienced in teaching or not creative or not good at how to
reflect, the inclusion of ALT's I considered enhanced not detracted from the
programme.
Did you come across mentors using Transactional Analysis and Game Theory as
a form of adult learning theory? (This model was used when I was a PGCE
tutor at Bath University).
Interestingly I did not come across the use of Transactional Analysis or
Game Theory as a form of ALT from my sample. I would like to hear more
about these ALT's though Sarah?
Re a comment I made earlier regarding mentor training being largely focussed
on the administrative side. I think I may have generalised rather too much
here but consider no University it would appear has a large enough budget to
provide the comprehensive developmental sessions that our mentors deserve.
I believe that most HEI 's do their very best to provide what the mentors
ask for. I just would hope for what I believe is a very important finding
that ALT does underpin the instructional design for mentoring between two
adults so it should be included somehow!
I am really enjoying this discussion too. It is helping me to think through
the paper I am about to begin very soon on this very subject!
Best wishes
Rosalind
P.S. This is not short - as I state at the beginning of my e-mail -
apologies!
----- Original Message -----
From: "Peter Stopp" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 8:47 PM
Subject: Re: E-seminar:Theme Three: If mentors develop their own learning
theories to inform their practice, is this sufficient?
Hi!
I do largely agree with you, Rosalind - it is needed and would be good, and
role-play would be useful in that. I don't know what happens at Nottingham
Uni but all the others do more than the briefing sessions you refer to - by
having lead mentors for each school who do receive at least one full day's
(usually 2) mentoring inputs and several take up the further work of TLA
recognition and Master's level modules as well. We have also done a little
in the east midlands through the PDS initiative over the past three years
(though Nottingham University decline to take part in our joint work so
their mentors have not gained from that) but it is a drop in the ocean as,
for example, we at BG work with about 1000 mentors each year, and that
needs multiplying by the different institutions in the E Midlands. Our EM
website is another adjunct to that work and we are still developing that so
any feedback for that would be much appreciated (www.emac.org.uk). The good
thing is that mentoring/coaching is gradually being recognised in schools as
a valuable means of CPD so skills and theoretical underpinnings might grow
through those routes and then support ITT mentoring.
In you research did you explore whether there is any relationship between
levels of theoretical understanding and actual mentoring practice?
Peter
________________________________
From: BERA-MENTORING-COACHING on behalf of Rosalind Rice
Sent: Wed 17/09/2008 17:48
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: E-seminar:Theme Three: If mentors develop their own learning
theories to inform their practice, is this sufficient?
Hello Dianne,
Yes am sorry to say that UK University based PGCE courses re mentor
training are still being starved of theory since the 100 competences that
became standards that are now approximately 32/33 standards with subclauses
that must be met for QTS. Thus mentor training largely consists of ensuring
mentors are conversant with the administration of the course with some
discussion of models of mentoring included if time allows! I know this
sounds pretty damning but realistically when there are possibly only 2-3
twilight sessions held each year for mentors it does become rather
'reductionist and mechanistic'(Boreham, 2002) in content!
However, once back in the classroom many mentors provide the mentee with
resourceful advice from their own PCT's (Kelly, 1955) which then raises the
standard of mentoring cognitively speaking. Thus I really would like a
larger comparative case study to take place between several HEI Partnerships
here in the UK which might also include other variables that might well
impact on the findings such as gender, subject, mentors years of teaching
experience etc I would then hope more emphasis might be placed on the
theoretical underpinnings of mentoring i.e. Adult learning theories in
mentor training sessions.
Best wishes
Rosalind
----- Original Message -----
From: Dianne Allen <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Wednesday, September 17, 2008 7:10 AM
Subject: Re: E-seminar:Theme Three: If mentors develop their own learning
theories to inform their practice, is this sufficient?
Thanks Rosalind, this does explain your thinking so far, and is, in terms of
evidence, not much further advanced than some of my own thinking, and my
thinking is in part a reflection of (a) my experience and (b) the absence of
any good and clear indications in the literature that any one else has gone
much further into the practice of using role play in certain learning
situations and how to then work with the data in and from the role play
experience to go the next step to spell out the theory employed in practice,
let alone the longer and deeper task of examining that theory-in-use in
practice, to check it against any espousal of theory and congruence between
in-use and espoused (to use the terms that Argyris and Schon use).
I was hoping that you might have progressed further than I had reached.
Dianne
----- Original Message -----
From: Rosalind Rice <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tuesday, September 16, 2008 7:36 AM
Subject: Re: E-seminar:Theme Three: If mentors develop their own learning
theories to inform their practice, is this sufficient?
Dear Dianne, Peter, Sarah et al,
Re role play as a vehicle for mentors development I am keen that
Universities in various ITE Partnerships running one year PGCE or SCITT
courses look to actually balance the practicalities of the role of a mentor
with learning theories that literature tells us underpins the mentors role.
(Hansford et al 2003)
I consider that Mentors' should be allowed to reflect on their practice just
as student teachers are requested to whilst on their practicum in schools.
This I perceive would be ideally done through the use of scenarios provided
set up by the University tutors during mentor training. This might be
organised through a brain storming session with mentors providing the themes
for the scenarios or possibly through a form of mind mapping. I consider
the sessions should be set up with an underlying model/ adult learning
theory and then post-scenario a reflection and discussion session could then
take place and ideas pooled.
I found within my own recent case study that mentors practice reflected the
many theories underlying this mentoring relationship between 2 adults and
when mentors were asked to reflect (Schon,1987) on their practice or even
their own teaching practice they felt informed by this experiential learning
(Kolb, 1984) whether positive or negative. Thus the theory then informed
their practice through reflection.
I hope Dianne this helps explain some of my thinking at present.
Best wishes
Rosalind
----- Original Message -----
From: Dianne Allen <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Sunday, September 14, 2008 11:48 PM
Subject: Re: E-seminar:Theme Three: If mentors develop their own learning
theories to inform their practice, is this sufficient?
Rosalind, Peter and all,
Role play as a vehicle for developing theory-practice understanding
Rosalind, I am interested to understand some more of the way you are
thinking, and about using the role play to be a vehicle for helping mentors
know (or learn more of?) the theoretical that informs their practice .. or
perhaps you were meaning something else? Can you elaborate for me please?
Dianne
----- Original Message -----
From: Rosalind Rice <mailto:[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Sunday, September 14, 2008 9:58 PM
Subject: Re: E-seminar:Theme Three: If mentors develop their own learning
theories to inform their practice, is this sufficient?
Dear Peter, Dear All,
Thank you for your perspective on the Theory- Practice issue I perceive to
be an area to be re-addressed regarding the role of the mentor in ITT. I
look not only from a teacher researchers point of view but also from a
teacher practitioner in Primary, Secondary and FE and within these sectors
as a Mentor for Student Teachers, NQT's and fellow colleagues.
I understand what you say regarding the practicalities of training and am
not endorsing extra mentoring training for mentors( they are very busy
teachers and this is only a small part of their role as a teacher) even
though I realise that this would be a wonderful situation and as you say
would be what would happen in an ideal world!
What I am wishing is for more theory to be introduced into the present
mentor training in ways that will be facilitated by mentors more easily e.g.
role play. I also feel that some mentors may not be as creative or
reflective or experienced as others and so do not have their own learning to
draw upon and this would ensure all mentors would benefit from more
theoretical knowledge.
The learning theories I would be advocating would be those that would help
reinforce and endorse the mentors development at whatever stage they may
perceive they are at. Not all mentors are very experienced today even
though that is the ideal model, so thus to provide scenarios utilising
various learning theories would I believe be advantageous to the mentor. No
one theory provides the necessary support or challenge to the mentor at any
one time and so a widening of understanding of the various learning theories
is what is necessary for the University element of the ITT Partnership.
Best wishes
Rosalind
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