Examining the Mentoring Process in Collaborative Project-based Learning of Preservice Instructional Technology Teachers

Abstract

The main purpose of this study was to investigate how special education knowledge and practice can be expanded through mentoring activities. In this respect, an interdisciplinary one-to-many mentorship study with Collaborative Project-based Learning (CPBL) was conducted. The mentors were Special Education faculty members who guided preservice teachers from the Instructional Technology department. During this guiding process, the preservice teachers developed animations for teaching daily life skills to students with intellectual disability (ID). The study followed a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design. This current study showed that mentoring with CPBL can be effective in equipping both mentors and mentees with a variety of skills. Specifically, mentoring can be an effective process for preservice teachers to construct context-specific knowledge in educating students with special needs. The study’s quantitative findings showed that the mentors were successful during the mentoring process.