Discussion: Next Generation STEM Mentoring: An Important Lever in Elevating the Profession
In this facilitated discussion, we will explore importance of mentorship in the STEM teaching profession. We invite your participation! (This discussion is now closed.)
I struggle each year with making sure that my interactions with mentees are not something else...yet another obligation. I don't want to be a burden, I want to be helpful. Open to advice or words of wisdom. Thank you, Jenn
Time is such a precious commodity during the school day and year. Each day folks need to prioritize and practice separating the urgent and the important. That's not an easy task, especially for new teachers. My approach is to be there and not push for change. Rather ask reflective questions including some of the open-ended questions we ask students. Often mentees will ask you for a suggestion... a quick fix. That is an important moment. Don't try to solve their problem as tempting as that may be. Instead, stay with some reflective questions, such as. 'what you would like to see?' 'what might that look like' 'how might you know if you're on target,' "what are some things that have helped you in the past', 'what are some resources we might consider' if they don't know where to start, get permission to offer suggestions and then offer two or three ideas to choose from, then go back to getting them to think about how they might implement. Continue to work on the strategy they chose and stick with open ended (non-evaluative) planning & reflective questions. Then trust the process. Be there, be there, be there. That process of helping them think and be in the driver's seat will make your time together valuable and not just one more thing. Overtime that relationship will get stronger and they will seek you out as a thought partner because you will make them feel capable and successful. You're not a burden, you are a gift they may not yet understand what do with. But be there, to help them lift themselves up and you'll be their favorite, trusted resource. I hope that's helpful. ~Suzanne
Just adding to the already excellent advice that Suzanne gave: making your mentees feel empowered will give them the confidence to not only build their teaching self-efficacy but also encourage them to turn to you more frequently for advice. As Suzanne said, once they feel that they're in the driver's seat and have autonomy over their own decisions, you'll find that they'll be coming more to you rather than you always checkin in on them. Practically speaking, I would suggest an early initial check in with your mentee where you ask them to evaluate and assess their own teaching and allow them to set their own agenda. It may take a lot of flexibility on your end, but I've found that being flexible is what mentees appreciate the most.
Thanks for a great conversation with many practical resources! I participated in Ambitious Science Teaching book study/chat led by Suzanne as a new retiree. What I’ve learned has been a great help as I continue to contribute to small science projects. I like this image from https://kappanonline.org/cheung-reinhardt-stone-little-defining-teacher-leadership-a-framework/
The panel presentation offered a ton of practical advice and resources - thank you!
As I take it all in, I wonder if anyone in the group has any specific suggestions on how I can best support two new middle school teachers that are joining our team. They are both first year teachers and I am a first year Department Chair.
What should I consider to help prioritize our time together and offer meaningful support?
Nuggets of Advice from a Once Novice Middle School Math Teacher
Hi Kathy,
Thank you for your question. I entered the profession as a middle school math teacher and here were the practical aspects I appreciated from my mentor teacher:
(1) observe classroom management and pedagogical content delivery from reputable master teachers - a couple times, my mentor teacher offered to have me observe her class during my prep period. If scheduling is an issue, perhaps logistics may be worked out with an administrator to help find coverage for classes, which I understand is already an issue in itself. I remember hearing from one administrator that they would cover teachers' classes for one class period to get an observation in, and I really appreciated that type of administrative support.
(2) sharing of practical resources - novice teachers do not have a lot to begin with. My mentor teacher not only shared math worksheets and classroom resources with me, but pulled items together from other teachers in the school as well. They weren't necessarily math resources either; she was able to request non-content related resources from teachers of other subjects that were still very valuable and helpful such as grading practices, instructional organization templates, etc.
(3) listen, celebrate, and reflect - last but not least, and something that I also mentioned in my response to your reply to my blog post is opportunity to listen to the novice teachers' needs, celebrate their successes no matter how small, and reflect upon challenges. I appreciated sessions where I just came in to vent before the school day ended. I hated having to bring the emotional stress of work home, but having the opportunity at the end of the day to just reflect with my mentor helped me get that stress and frustration out before I left campus.
I hope you've found this information helpful, and I'd be glad to discuss other details if you have any further questions.
I want to highlight thework of Jason Crean and Kristen Rademaker. I attended their session at NSELA and I know right now as an adult learner that I want to take part in one of their professional learning opportunites. The storylines are freely available from the link I will share . https://ilscience.org/Storyline. I also want to share a video they made and shared with the National Congress of Science Education in 2018. .
Comments
Not being one more thing...
I struggle each year with making sure that my interactions with mentees are not something else...yet another obligation. I don't want to be a burden, I want to be helpful. Open to advice or words of wisdom. Thank you, Jenn
With, not to
Hi Jenn,
Time is such a precious commodity during the school day and year. Each day folks need to prioritize and practice separating the urgent and the important. That's not an easy task, especially for new teachers. My approach is to be there and not push for change. Rather ask reflective questions including some of the open-ended questions we ask students. Often mentees will ask you for a suggestion... a quick fix. That is an important moment. Don't try to solve their problem as tempting as that may be. Instead, stay with some reflective questions, such as. 'what you would like to see?' 'what might that look like' 'how might you know if you're on target,' "what are some things that have helped you in the past', 'what are some resources we might consider' if they don't know where to start, get permission to offer suggestions and then offer two or three ideas to choose from, then go back to getting them to think about how they might implement. Continue to work on the strategy they chose and stick with open ended (non-evaluative) planning & reflective questions. Then trust the process. Be there, be there, be there. That process of helping them think and be in the driver's seat will make your time together valuable and not just one more thing. Overtime that relationship will get stronger and they will seek you out as a thought partner because you will make them feel capable and successful. You're not a burden, you are a gift they may not yet understand what do with. But be there, to help them lift themselves up and you'll be their favorite, trusted resource. I hope that's helpful. ~Suzanne
Empowerment, Autonomy, and Flexibility
Hi Jenn,
Just adding to the already excellent advice that Suzanne gave: making your mentees feel empowered will give them the confidence to not only build their teaching self-efficacy but also encourage them to turn to you more frequently for advice. As Suzanne said, once they feel that they're in the driver's seat and have autonomy over their own decisions, you'll find that they'll be coming more to you rather than you always checkin in on them. Practically speaking, I would suggest an early initial check in with your mentee where you ask them to evaluate and assess their own teaching and allow them to set their own agenda. It may take a lot of flexibility on your end, but I've found that being flexible is what mentees appreciate the most.
I hope you find this helpful,
Richard
Resources shared
Thanks for a great conversation with many practical resources! I participated in Ambitious Science Teaching book study/chat led by Suzanne as a new retiree. What I’ve learned has been a great help as I continue to contribute to small science projects. I like this image from https://kappanonline.org/cheung-reinhardt-stone-little-defining-teacher-leadership-a-framework/
Resources Shared
Very nice!
Helpful resource!
Thanks Wanda - this looks like a helpful resource. I appreciate your ability to always offer a 'just right, just in time' resource.
Great Framework
Thanks for sharing!
Specific Advice for brand new science teachers
The panel presentation offered a ton of practical advice and resources - thank you!
As I take it all in, I wonder if anyone in the group has any specific suggestions on how I can best support two new middle school teachers that are joining our team. They are both first year teachers and I am a first year Department Chair.
What should I consider to help prioritize our time together and offer meaningful support?
Your insights are appreciated. ~Kathy
Nuggets of Advice from a Once Novice Middle School Math Teacher
Hi Kathy,
Thank you for your question. I entered the profession as a middle school math teacher and here were the practical aspects I appreciated from my mentor teacher:
(1) observe classroom management and pedagogical content delivery from reputable master teachers - a couple times, my mentor teacher offered to have me observe her class during my prep period. If scheduling is an issue, perhaps logistics may be worked out with an administrator to help find coverage for classes, which I understand is already an issue in itself. I remember hearing from one administrator that they would cover teachers' classes for one class period to get an observation in, and I really appreciated that type of administrative support.
(2) sharing of practical resources - novice teachers do not have a lot to begin with. My mentor teacher not only shared math worksheets and classroom resources with me, but pulled items together from other teachers in the school as well. They weren't necessarily math resources either; she was able to request non-content related resources from teachers of other subjects that were still very valuable and helpful such as grading practices, instructional organization templates, etc.
(3) listen, celebrate, and reflect - last but not least, and something that I also mentioned in my response to your reply to my blog post is opportunity to listen to the novice teachers' needs, celebrate their successes no matter how small, and reflect upon challenges. I appreciated sessions where I just came in to vent before the school day ended. I hated having to bring the emotional stress of work home, but having the opportunity at the end of the day to just reflect with my mentor helped me get that stress and frustration out before I left campus.
I hope you've found this information helpful, and I'd be glad to discuss other details if you have any further questions.
-Richard
Great Advice!
Wonderful insight, Richard. Thanks!
Webinar Websites
We shared a bunch of links in the webinar. I wanted to share them with you all here:
Life Science NGSS Biology Storylines
I want to highlight thework of Jason Crean and Kristen Rademaker. I attended their session at NSELA and I know right now as an adult learner that I want to take part in one of their professional learning opportunites. The storylines are freely available from the link I will share . https://ilscience.org/Storyline. I also want to share a video they made and shared with the National Congress of Science Education in 2018. .
Author Chat
Thanks for the information, Kathy! Loved the video of the author chat.
In other news, Kristen Rademaker was a panelist on the August 2021 chat called Rebooting the Science Classroom: Sensemaking and Phenomena-driven Instruction.