The experiences of school-based educators as mentors of pre-service student teachers: a case study.

Abstract

Mentoring is a learning experience through the partnership co-created by the mentor and the mentee. The role of the mentor in this partnership has always been regarded as of paramount importance for the development of pre-service student teachers. This study focused on the experiences of school-based educators as mentors of pre-service student educators enrolled in the Bachelor of Education degree programme. In an attempt to conceptualize the mentoring of selected school-based mentors, this study explored mentoring as part of the broader phenomenon of induction. The mentoring experiences provided by the school-based mentors were explored through international trends in induction and mentoring, then by contextualizing mentoring within the South African policy terrain. The interpretive paradigm was used, and a qualitative case study design was adopted. Holistic understanding was explored within the school context through conversations with participants undertaken through semi-structured interviews. Participants also created collages aimed at triggering them to put multiple realities into context when reflecting on their mentoring experiences. Document analysis was used to develop a chronology of mentoring events at the school. This study analysed mentoring practices by school-based mentors using the cognitive apprenticeship model as the conceptual framework. The findings of this study indicate that school-based mentors perform many different mentoring roles on top of their normal teaching loads. Mentors need to integrate conceptually anchored and practically anchored knowledge to provide pre-service student teachers with pedagogical competence in the real context. Furthermore, school-based mentors need to provide emotional support, constructive feedback, and modelling of good practice to create appropriate professional identities for pre-service student teachers. School-based mentors face a variety of challenges within and outside the school context. Considering that mentors need to be properly trained, the partnership between the school, university and the Department of Education needs to be improved. There should be greater clarity on the who, what and how of mentoring during teaching practice to enhance its quality and implementation. Schools need to create environments that foster professional development opportunities through the quality management system, with its focus on mentoring and coaching. The findings of this study may have implications for other programmes that use work-integrated learning in preparing pre-service student teachers.