This post is part of the Reflective Teaching Blogging Challenge hosted by Terry at Te@ch Thought. While the original challenge is a year-old already I thought it would be the perfect thing to keep me on track over the next little while.
DAY 6 - Explain: What does a good mentor do? I'm glad that this question was included as part of the challenge because I often say that I am trying to create a classroom that sees "teacher as mentor" as opposed to "teacher as expert"... but what does that really mean? To me, a good mentor is someone who: - is encouraging and supportive of their mentee(s) - helps the mentee feel safe enough to take risks - maintains a positive attitude - is knowledgeable in their field
- listens to their mentee(s) - is willing to learn and develop alongside their mentee(s) - is enthusiastic/passionate about their field - can provide specific and effective feedback to help the mentee's development - is flexible in their approach - recognizes and values differences in opinions - encourages forward development
Here is a short video about mentoring that I enjoyed.