Mentoring the beginning teacher: developing professional autonomy through critical reflection on practice

Abstract

The authors draw on the work of Maudsley and Scrivens (2000) to explore the elusive but crucial concept of critical thinking in terms of the extent to which it is reflective practice that joins discussion of critical thinking with experiential learning’. We present some of our evidence base derived from a sequences of formal professional review meetings between induction tutors (mentors) and their newly qualified teachers (NQT) (mentees). We describe the frameworks used for analyses for examination of critical questioning by mentors and the resulting articulation of practice by mentees, and for locating any shifts in the mentoring styles adopted by the mentors in the course of the year of study. We show that the adoption of particular reflective practice strategies, and/or associated interventions, are clearly linked to changes in ways of working by both mentor and mentee and which illustrate, in several instances to an increase in professional independence on the part of the NQT. Finally we present some emerging issues for a range of stakeholders including those involved in mentor training, school managers and policy makers, and the mentors themselves.