Mentor Training Wednesday, 21 November 2018 jonathan peel SGS 2008

Your role: Mentor: In Greek myth, Mentor was the name of a faithful old servant/teacher who was entrusted with protecting and educating Telemachus when Odysseus went to war in Troy. Our job – much the same! Guidance, advice and, occasionally protection – often from themselves! jonathan peel SGS 2008

Responsibilites To arrange a meeting every week for one hour. To give some form of training in these meetings. To help the trainee sort and organise their folders for assessment. To assist the trainees in any way possible to arrange suitable observations and activities to support their QTS claims. jonathan peel SGS 2008

RESOURCES The pro formas and other documents you will require are all on theVLE: http://vle.sloughgrammar.berks.sch.uk/cours e/view.php?id=320 The course is the Training school, found in the staff only zone. jonathan peel SGS 2008

Beginnings: You need to focus your mentee. Ensure that the INA is carried out. This will include a subject knowledge audit and an ICT audit. Forms are not on the VLE, but faculty heads should be able to pass them on. IN the event of your faculty not having a subject knowledge audit, it will be necessary to make one! At this stage you need to get a sound idea of the obvious areas of weakness. The trainee should be set the task of preparing these in the first week or so of placement. jonathan peel SGS 2008

Observing: Trainee Trainees should be encouraged to take the observation time they are given seriously. As a mentor you can help with this process by suggesting ways to focus their minds. If it is too early to be focusing on QTS standards, encourage them to find other foci - a simple tick box exercise for closed and open questions; a five minute break down of class activities; a similar exercise concentrating on the teacher position in the classroom. You can develop your own ideas. The vital thing is that they are focused… You might speak to the teachers who they are observing in the hope of getting them to share some experiences close to the time of visiting. jonathan peel SGS 2008

LOOK and LEARN Things to watch out for 1. Timing. What happens when? Does the lesson seem rushed, lazy or poorly planned? 2. Range of activities. What are the pupils expected to do and how successful are the different types of activity? 3. Behaviour. Who acts up, when do they do it and how does the teacher react to or pre-empt the behaviour? What relationship does the teacher have with the class? 4. Learning. How does the teacher assess whether or not pupils have reached the lesson aims? 5. What went well - or wrong. Remember that you can learn just as much from an unsuccessful lesson as an exemplary one, if you can spot what it was that inspired or destroyed a lesson. 6. Pace and challenge. Is the work too easy, too hard, or in the manner of Goldilocks, just right? Is there enough of it? jonathan peel SGS 2008

Observing: Mentor Observation is not an adversarial exercise. It is sad that we all associate observation with criticism and disruption. Carried out well, it should be the start of a two-way learning process. They will need encouragement foremost, and accurate, constructive criticism can follow. Try to find something positive to end on! You might want to glance at this document on the VLE: http://vle.sloughgrammar.berks.sch.uk/course/v iew.php?id=320 Look and Learn. jonathan peel SGS 2008

Feedback If you are observing, try to feedback at once. It is not fair to give a five minute summary. Trainees are here to learn from you. They must be encouraged to write up any observations swiftly, using their notes, whilst the impressions are fresh in their minds. They must be encouraged to write reflectively on their experiences. jonathan peel SGS 2008

Mentor-training in mentor sessions The buzzword is “subject-knowledge-for-learning”. This is more than simple knowledge but rather an attempt to introduce paedagogy into the mentor/trainee relationship. Thus some training must show a focus on techniques of teaching, rather than simply on issues of knowledge. Just as in teaching, open questions and scenario led activities can prove beneficial. It is pointless lecturing your trainees. You need to make them think for themselves. Try to give around 30 minutes of a session over to training. At first it might be discussions around more general issues (SEN/differentiation etc), but as your relationship develops, it should move towards targeted paedagogy. jonathan peel SGS 2008

Responsibility at a price… Being a mentor is more than an hour a week job. It will enhance your CPD, but you have a duty of care to your trainee. You will not get protected covers except for your hourly meeting. There is no recompense in financial terms. jonathan peel SGS 2008

YOUR SUPPORT Zelda, as head of the Training School, is your obvious source for all things mentory or just generally confusing. I, as Senior Mentor, will try to be available to sort queries on a day-to-day basis. In addition I may well be coming to see you in a month or so to check the basic paperwork is in order… If you are in trouble with the process or if your mentee reveals something out of the ordinary, please to not keep it to yourselves – share it. jonathan peel SGS 2008