1,720,994 research outputs found
Pre-lesson discussion, lesson observation and post-lesson discussions in mentoring beginning science teachers
No full textLesson observations of a beginning teacher and constructive feedback on that lesson are crucial for beginning teachers to develop as reflective teachers and to achieve the teacher standards that will enable them to acquire qualified teacher status (QTS). In this context, your mentoring role starts before the lesson observation. It does not end at the end of the lesson but continues (McNally, 2016) through discussion and feedback as part of a lesson and series of observed lessons. This is a cycle of pre-lesson discussion, lesson observation and post-lesson discussion, leading into the next cycle (note: post-lesson discussion is called lesson debrief in Chapters 7 and 9 in this book). Typically, mentoring discussions achieve more if they provide a safe space for dialogue (Bradley‐Levine, Lee & Mosier, 2016, p. 80) and when they focus on agreed areas for a beginning teachers’ development (Hudson, 2016b)
Supporting beginning teachers with lesson planning
Full text linkThe planning and teaching of lessons are integral to the role of a teacher. In our experience as teacher educators and school-based mentors, a series of lessons which are carefully planned and clearly articulated by the teacher are the ones that are most successful for pupils’ learning. Our experience aligns with the quote allegedly by Benjamin Franklin, ‘If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.’ However, as experienced teachers, we know that not all lessons go according to plan. As a mentor, you need to be resilient and accepting of the fact that a beginning teacher could ‘fail’ due to insufficient understanding of the long-term effect of planning on pupils’ learning. As a consequence, you need to have well developed strategies in place to support a beginning teacher to cultivate understanding of advanced practices of lesson planning. This chapter addresses issues that a beginning teacher might have with lesson planning. It draws on strands from Chapter 4 on reflective practices by adapting Kolb’s learning cycle (Kolb, 1984) to the planning process, exploring potential strategies that you can implement to support a beginning teacher. Using Daloz’s mentoring model (Daloz, 2012) (see Chapter 1) and Rogoff’s (1995) adapted model, this chapter explores when and how you can support and challenge a beginning teacher to become autonomous in planning for pupils’ learning. Additionally, using perspectives from cognitive psychology on learning, the chapter frames how you can facilitate a beginning teacher to plan lessons that support a long-term curriculum plan
Supporting beginning science teachers to teach and evaluate their lessons
Full text linkThis chapter aims to highlight some mentoring strategies when working with beginning teachers who are at different developmental stages of teaching. For example, a beginning teacher you are mentoring might be observing and practising some basic teaching skills, but not yet teaching a full lesson, or they might have started to incorporate a range of teaching strategies in lessons, but these strategies are not specifically focusing on promoting pupils’ learning and so on. Therefore, you should use your judgement and knowledge about the beginning teacher to identify the best mentoring strategy to use at any one time. The chapter starts with a brief description of the stages of development using Maynard and Furlong’s (1995) model of a beginning teacher’s development concerning basic teaching skills, teaching strategies and teaching styles. Next, some characteristic behaviours of an effective teacher are presented. A range of mentoring steps to support the beginning teacher’s journey of becoming an effective teacher, starting from ‘early idealism’ then ‘survival’, ‘recognising difficulties’, ‘hitting a plateau’ and finally to ‘moving on’ stages of development are then given. The chapter closes with a discussion on how to support a beginning teacher to self-evaluate their lessons by using lesson debriefs (called post lesson discussions in Chapter 8) and pupils’ feedback. Objectives At the end of this chapter you should be able to: 1. Recognise that it is a mentor’s responsibility to identify a beginning teacher’s stages of development and support them towards becoming an effective teacher; 2. Support a beginning teacher to develop the characteristic behaviours of an effective teacher; 3. Assist a beginning teacher to be able to identify and develop basic teaching skills, teaching strategies and a pupil-centred teaching style; 4. Encourage a beginning teacher to self-evaluate their lessons with the aid of lesson de-briefs and pupils’ feedback
Supporting beginning teachers to cope with contingencies
No full textThis chapter considers how mentors can introduce some pedagogical practices associated with developing scientific literacy to a beginning teacher. It considers how mentors can support them to embed scientific literacy in planning and teaching lessons by focusing on four dimensions – civic, personal, cultural and critical – of scientific literacy identified by N. W. Brickhouse. The chapter identifies some mentoring ideas, encompassing Brickhouse’s dimensions along with E. E Toth and M. S Graham’s scientific literacy elements. Once a beginning teacher is able to articulate the use of some pedagogical practices related to scientific literacy, the next step is to ask them to identify some scientific literacy-based teaching approaches from their own classroom practices and/or observed practices of other teachers. This could be achieved by asking beginning teacher to read, and then discussing with them, the article by Brickhouse. Learning outcomes need to exhibit a clear relationship with pupils learning. Mentors need to support beginning teacher in constructing specific, measurable and pupil-friendly learning outcomes
Mentoring Science Teachers in the Secondary School : A Practical Guide
Full text linkThis practical guide helps mentors of new science teachers in both developing their own mentoring skills and providing the essential guidance their trainees need as they navigate the rollercoaster of the first years in the classroom. Offering tried-and-tested strategies based on the best research, it covers the knowledge, skills and understanding every mentor needs and offers practical tools such as lesson plans and feedback guides, observation sheets, and examples of dialogue with trainees
Mentoring Science Teachers in the Secondary School: A Practical Guide
No full textThis practical guide helps mentors of new science teachers in both developing their own mentoring skills and providing the essential guidance their trainees need as they navigate the rollercoaster of the first years in the classroom. Offering tried-and-tested strategies based on the best research, it covers the knowledge, skills and understanding every mentor needs and offers practical tools such as lesson plans and feedback guides, observation sheets and examples of dialogue with trainees.
Together with analytical tools for self-evaluation, this book is a vital source of support and inspiration for all those involved in developing the next generation of outstanding science teachers. Key topics explained include:
• Roles and responsibilities of mentors
• Developing a mentor—mentee relationship
• Guiding beginning science teachers through the lesson planning, teaching and self-evaluation processes
• Observations and pre- and post-lesson discussions and regular mentoring meetings
• Supporting beginning teachers to enhance scientific knowledge and effective pedagogical practices
• Building confidence among beginning teachers to cope with pupils’ contingent questions and assess scientific knowledge and skills
• Supporting beginning teachers’ planning and teaching to enhance scientific literacy and inquiry among pupils
• Developing autonomous science teachers with an attitude to promote the learning of science for all the learners
Filled with tried-and-tested strategies based on the latest research, Mentoring Science Teachers in the Secondary School is a vital guide for mentors of science teachers, both trainee and newly qualified, with ready-to-use strategies that support and inspire both mentors and beginning teachers alike
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