To Make A Difference For Every Student, Give Every New Teacher A Mentor

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To make a difference for every student, give every new teacher a mentor

By Sharron Helmke

Categories: Implementation, Instructional materials/curriculum, Learning designs, Mentoring & induction, School leadership, System leadership

I still cringe when I remember my first year as a special education teacher at a suburban high school. I met my assigned mentor during the whirlwind week of meetings leading up to the start of school and learned that she was also mentoring two other teachers in addition to having a full teaching schedule of her own. In those early weeks, her time was stretched thin, and I was lucky to get a five-minute conversation with her during hall breaks. As fall wore on, I saw even less of her, and by Halloween, my mentoring was effectively over. On my own, without guidance, I struggled just to get through each day. That was not a recipe for successful instruction, and it left no opportunity

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Learning Forward’s Mentoring Academy

Learning Forward offers its instructionally focused mentoring program in a variety of formats to meet the needs of districts large and small.

We can come to your school or district with a custom-designed mentor training program and mentoring support specifically designed to meet your needs, fit into your existing professional learning structure, and enhance the growth of your novice teachers.

If you are in Louisiana or Texas, we offer state-approved mentor preparation programs that can be facilitated virtually or in your district. Ask us about the options to meet your state’s requirements.

Do you have only a few mentors or want to experience the difference for yourself? Try our open enrollment, virtual mentoring course that brings together mentors from across districts and states.

Read more about the Learning Forward approach to mentoring at services.learningforward.org/services/mentor-teacher-academy.

For more information, contact Sharron Helmke, vice president of professional services, at 800-727-7288 or sharron.helmke@learningforward.org.

References

Killion, J. & Harrison, C. (2017). Taking the lead: New roles for school-based leaders and coaches. Learning Forward.

Learning Forward. (2022). Standards for Professional Learning. Author.

Learning Forward. (2020, December). Mentors matter. The Learning Professional, 41(6), 68. learningforward.org/journal/building-the-pipeline/louisianas-mentor-program-by-the-numbers/

Louisiana Department of Education. (n.d.). Louisiana mentor teachers. www.louisianabelieves.com/teaching/louisiana-mentor-teachers

Manning, T. (2018, June 28). Louisiana is taking the lead in mentoring new teachers. learningforward.org/2018/06/28/louisiana-is-taking-the-lead-in-mentoring-new-teachers/

Manning, T. & Bouffard, S. (2020, December). Mentors make a difference. The Learning Professional, 41(6), 20-23. learningforward.org/journal/building-the-pipeline/mentors-make-a-difference/

Muhammad, A. (2009). Transforming school culture: How to overcome staff division. Solution Tree.

Oregon Department of Education. (n.d.). Characteristics of a quality mentor teacher. www.oregon.gov/ode/schools-and-districts/grants/mentoring/Documents/characteristics_of_a_quality_mentor_teacher.pdf

Sharron Helmke

Senior Vice President, Professional Services at Learning Forward | + posts

Sharron Helmke, senior vice president of professional services at Learning Forward, designs and manages the organization’s consulting service programs that support state, regional, and local organizations in translating their improvement and learning goals into custom-designed high-quality professional learning programs that result in scalable and sustainable change. During her twenty-plus years in education she has served in a variety of roles at the campus and district levels, including teacher, instructional coach, and district-based program administrator. She is an international coaching federation certified professional coach, a Gestalt professional coach, and a trauma-informed care provider, all of which inform her approach to supporting educators. She is the author of numerous professional articles, including “To make a difference for every student, give every new teacher a mentor” in the August 2022 issue of The Learning Journal.