scholarly journals Critiquing the “National Standards for School-based Initial Teacher Training Mentors” in England

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 121-135 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee Jerome ◽  
Victoria Brook
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Training ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
National Standards ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Initial Teacher Training ◽  
School Based ◽  
Comparison Approach

Purpose In 2016, the National Standards for School-based Initial Teacher Training (ITT) Mentors were published in England. The purpose of this paper is to critique these standards through a comparison of how others have framed and defined the role of the mentor, drawing on equivalent standards already published in nursing (2008) and social work (2012). Design/methodology/approach An analysis of three sets of professional standards was conducted by adapting the “constant comparison” approach in which the researchers sought to combine a form of inductive coding with comparison across the texts. This enabled the identification of a number of common themes and omissions across the three sets of standards. Findings The analysis revealed the ITT mentor standards provide a comparatively limited account of the role of the mentor, particularly in relation to the process of assessment, the power dynamics between mentors and student teachers, and the school as an institutional site for professional learning. Originality/value The study’s originality lies in the inter-professional comparative analysis, which revealed a number of potentially contentious issues not immediately apparent from a close textual analysis of the ITT mentor standards.

National Standards for school-based mentors: the potential to recognise the “Cinderella” role of mentoring?

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Murtagh ◽  
Louisa Dawes
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Training Model ◽  
National Standards ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Initial Teacher Training ◽  
Qualitative Survey ◽  
School Based ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Potential Use

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore school-based mentors' perceptions of the non-statutory National Standards for school-based initial teacher training (ITT) mentors in England.Design/methodology/approachTaking the form of a qualitative survey, the paper explores the views of mentors in relation to the potential use of the National Standards in supporting the mentoring role and in enhancing the experiences of pre-service teachers during school placements.FindingsThe paper reports that the National Standards have the potential to support the role of mentoring in ITT if used in ways that support mentor recognition and reward.Practical implicationsIn the absence of any common training model for mentors in England, there is potential that the National Standards could offer mentors some guidance for the role to support more equitable experiences for pre-service teachers.Originality/valueThe paper contributes to the field since it accesses mentor voices about matters that involve them. The paper draws attention to the impoverished representation of mentoring in the National Standards, whilst paradoxically noting that in the absence of any common mentoring framework, mentors perceive that the standards could offer some support for mentors and mentees alike.

scholarly journals Beginning teachers’ perceptions of mentors and access to communities of practice

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 317-331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha Shields ◽  
Megan Murray
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Training ◽  
Communities Of Practice ◽  
Beginning Teachers ◽  
Initial Teacher Education ◽  
Legitimate Peripheral Participation ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
School Based

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore beginning teachers’ perceptions of the role of the mentor in the early stages of developing a professional identity. The beginning teachers in the authors’ study are defined as having been awarded qualified teacher status at the end of an initial teacher education programme or having completed their first term as a new teacher with responsibility for a class of pupils. Design/methodology/approach The research design was a qualitative, inductive study. The concepts of communities of practice, legitimate peripheral participation and power dynamics within a community underpinned this study. The data set was collected over a period of 18 months, through six focus groups and 40 questionnaires with beginning teachers across 34 schools altogether. The data set was analysed using interpretive phenomenological analysis (IPA). Findings The findings indicated that the ways in which mentors use their power to recognise (or not) the legitimacy of beginning teachers as being part of the school community influences the development of beginning teachers’ professional identities. The thematic analysis of the data indicated the different types of support that mentors may provide: “belonging”, “emotional”, “pedagogical” and “space”. Research limitations/implications Further research into how mentors perceive their role in supporting new entrants into the profession is needed. Originality/value These findings are pertinent in England, as the increase in school-based initial teacher training provision will intensify the role of school mentors. These findings will be of value to other countries that are moving towards an increase in school-based teacher training.

scholarly journals Effects of data feedback in the teacher training community

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-50
Author(s):  
Tamar Tas ◽  
Thoni Houtveen ◽  
Wim Van de Grift
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Training ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Learning Community ◽  
Professional Learning Community ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Teaching Quality ◽  
Teaching Skills ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Year

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to answer the question, what progress student teachers make during one academic year, while being trained in a professional learning community, using objective classroom observation, using lesson preparation templates that match their developmental stage and stage-focused mentor feedback. Design/methodology/approach The teaching skills of the student teachers (n=101) were measured at the start and at the end of the academic year. For the measurements, the standardized and psychometrically tested International Comparative Analysis of Learning and Teaching observation instrument is used. Findings The student teachers achieved a small growth on the basic teaching skills and a medium growth on two of the three advanced skills for teachers. Research limitations/implications Because of the lack of a control group, causal conclusions cannot be made. This research provides knowledge on the actual observed level of teaching skills of student teachers trained in a close collaborating professional learning community. Originality/value Little is known about the actual growth of observable teaching skills of student teachers in elementary education. Teacher training colleges and internship schools in the Netherlands are in search of better ways to collaborate more closely in order to improve the quality of teaching of their student teachers. These findings can inspire teacher training communities to improve their own teaching quality and the teaching quality of their student teachers.

scholarly journals The voice, text, and the visual as semiotic companions: an analysis of the materiality and meaning potential of multimodal screen feedback

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clare Tyrer
Keyword(s):  
Student Teachers ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Written Feedback ◽  
Feedback Process ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Initial Teacher Training ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Voice ◽  
Structured Video

AbstractThe gap between how learners interpret and act upon feedback has been widely documented in the research literature. What is less certain is the extent to which the modality and materiality of the feedback influence students’ and teachers’ perceptions. This article explores the semiotic potential of multimodal screen feedback to enhance written feedback. Guided by an “Inquiry Graphics” approach, situated within a semiotic theory of learning edusemiotic conceptual framework, constructions of meaning in relation to screencasting feedback were analysed to determine how and whether it could be incorporated into existing feedback practices. Semi-structured video elicitation interviews with student teachers were used to incorporate both micro and macro levels of analysis. The findings suggested that the relationship between the auditory, visual and textual elements in multimodal screen feedback enriched the feedback process, highlighting the importance of form in addition to content to aid understanding of written feedback. The constitutive role of design and material artefacts in feedback practices in initial teacher training pertinent to these findings is also discussed.

Exploring the impact of expert guidance from school-based mentors on student teachers’ professional learning

PRACTICE ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Colin Forster ◽  
Tracey Wire ◽  
Rachel Eperjesi ◽  
Ruth Hollier ◽  
Emma Howell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Student Teachers ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
School Based ◽  
The Impact

Israeli teacher trainees’ perceptions of the term moral resilience

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 193-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lea Baratz
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Training ◽  
Educational Process ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Internal Resources ◽  
Supportive Environment ◽  
Teacher Trainees ◽  
Teacher Training College ◽  
Study Questionnaire ◽  
Moral Resilience

Purpose – The aim of this study is to present an approach for creating an educational process that can affect teacher trainees’ moral resilience, while investigating the manner in which they – as teachers – perceive the concept of moral resilience. Design/methodology/approach – A study questionnaire, designed especially for the current study, was distributed online among trainees in a teacher-training college in Israel and was completed by 123 participants. Findings – Two major themes emerged in trainees’ conceptualizations of the notion of moral resilience: the role of the organisation in which the teaching takes place, and mechanisms that contribute to the development of moral fibre, which creates resilience. Research limitations/implications – The following points should be addressed early on in the teacher-training process: The teaching and acquisition of tools that are fundamental to the development of moral resilience, through cognitive and experiential processes, not only through theoretical study. The construction of a supportive environment will enable students to use their internal resources for coping with events that require mental resilience and which thus serve to develop moral resilience. Originality/value – This paper helps to establish a discourse and develop terminology to implement this subject.

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