Perspectives Of Mentors Research Articles

International experiences during United States ophthalmology residency training: Current structure of international experiences and perspectives of faculty mentors at United States training institutions.

BackgroundThere is a high level of interest in international experiences during United States (U.S.) ophthalmology residency training among both program directors and trainees.MethodsAn electronic invitation to a 26-question survey was sent to all 114 U.S. ophthalmology residency program directors. The invitation requested that the survey be completed by the one faculty member who was most involved in overseeing the international experiences for the residents. The survey consisted of multiple choice and Likert-type scale questions. The Mann-Whitney U test was used for analysis of demographic data and Friedman’s test and Wilcoxon-Signed Rank test were used to analyze ranked responses.ResultsResponses were obtained from 70 faculty mentors representing unique programs, yielding a response rate of 61.4%. The majority of programs that responded (88.6%, n = 62) either offered international ophthalmology experiences for residents or supported residents finding their own experiences to go abroad. International experience participation rate among residents correlated with the number of years the experiences had been offered by the programs (p = 0.001). More than half of the respondents (55.0%, n = 33) felt that the residents benefited more than the hosts during these international experiences. Approximately half of the respondents (51.6%, n = 32) believed that additional training beyond what is covered in the standard curriculum to practice ophthalmology in the U.S. is necessary for practicing ophthalmology in an international setting.ConclusionsThere is high interest and participation in international experiences within U.S. ophthalmology residency programs. This high participation warrants further investigation into the long-term impact of these international experiences and how U.S. residency programs can structure these experiences to maximize the benefits to both the residents and the international host communities.

Mentor Perspectives on Mentoring New School Leaders

The purpose of this study was to understand the perspectives of recently retired principals who were mentors to new school leaders in a high-need urban school district. Mentors reflected on the mentoring needs and challenges faced by new school leaders while also reflecting on their own careers as school principals. This study was informed by the literature on mentoring as well as the reflective practice literature. We used focus groups as the primary method of collecting data. Data analysis followed the process of open coding and independently identifying relevant data followed by constant comparison to narrow down the list of codes. The findings point to the need for mentoring new school leaders and to focus on promoting confidence and a growth mind-set in principals. Additionally, the findings point to reflective mentoring as a possible mentor model to benefit and support mentor self-learning as well as supporting principals.

Predecessor CEO Retention as Board Chair in Family and Nonfamily Firms

We challenge the negative view that predecessor retention – the appointment of outgoing CEOs as board chairs – deteriorates post-succession firm performance. We posit that predecessor retention improves post-succession performance in family firms since predecessors are more likely to act as mentors to their successors whereas their counterparts in nonfamily firms tend to behave opportunistically. Exploring variance among family firms, we suggest that successor mentoring is most valuable under a heightened ability of the predecessor to mentor and a pronounced need of the successor for mentoring. Probing a matched sample of 305 CEO successions in S&P1500 firms between 2001 and 2013, our results complement CEO succession research by introducing a CEO mentoring perspective and by differentiating between family and nonfamily firms.

A race re-imaged, intersectional approach to academic mentoring: Exploring the perspectives and responses of womxn in science and engineering research

In academic mentoring research, there is a need to include empirical designs that consider more sociocultural perspectives. The purpose of this exploratory study was to race re-image academic mentoring by considering its sociocultural perspectives (i.e., intersectionality, tokenism, and awareness).For this, a qualitative-dominant, convergent mixed-methods approach was used to explore the perspectives and responses of twelve womxn graduate students and faculty involved in science and engineering research. Using multi-modal approaches that included two structured interviews and electrodermal activity (EDA) sensors, participants were asked to respond to case studies of achievement-, race-, and gender-equity through an academic mentoring lens.Our qualitative findings suggested that across the interviews, issues of power, communication strategies, and awareness are predominant themes and needs of academic mentoring in their respective disciplines. Furthermore, our quantitative findings supported the notion that throughout the interviews, varying forms of identities (e.g., social, institutional, discourse) appeared to predominate or interact throughout the cases explored. Together, the data points to the complex racial- and gender- influenced sociocultural perspectives of academic mentoring in science and engineering.

Examining the implementation of teaching and learning interactions of transition cultural competence through a qualitative study of Taiwan mentors untaking the postgraduate nursing program

BackgroundCultural competency has been identified as an essential curricular element in undergraduate and graduate nursing programmes. Supporting successful transition to practice is essential for retaining graduate nurses in the workforce and meeting the demand for cultural diversity in health care services. ObjectivesThis study aimed to explore the teaching and learning interactions of transition cultural competence from the perspective of mentors of newly graduated nurses in a Taiwanese postgraduate nursing programme. DesignA qualitative design that utilised focus group interviews was adopted for this study. A framework approach—a content and thematic analysis strategy—was used to analyse the interviews. SettingThe study setting consisted of two hospitals in northern Taiwan. ParticipantsThe study participants consisted of 24 new graduate nurse mentors. MethodsThree focus group sessions were conducted (two at a medical centre and one at a district hospital), where the participants were interviewed. ResultsFour themes were derived from the data—transition process, teaching strategies according to the transition stage, learning after overcoming clinical stress, and awareness of cultural diversity among new graduate nurses. The clinical routine and physical stress of caring for patients did not allow the newly graduated nurses to appropriately demonstrate cultural competence in the first three months. Mentors were only able to provide resources for new graduate nurses when they first started to care for patients in cultural groups. The point of catalysis was when learners finally gained awareness of cultural differences, and, consequently, they could encounter the teaching and learning process. ConclusionThe different learning stages and teaching strategies illustrated the interactive process between new nurses and educators. Facilitating the cultural awareness of learners is a challenge for teachers who provide cultural competence training. This model could serve as a reference for curriculum and clinical training programmes.

ZNACZENIE PRAKTYK W ROZWIJANIU KOMPETENCJI NAUCZYCIELSKIEJ – PERSPEKTYWA PRAKTYKANTA I MENTORA

Teaching practice is an important stage in prospective foreign language teacher development. It is an opportunity for reflection on the teaching process as well as for (self) evaluation of one’s teaching competence. Trainees approaching their practicum should be prepared by their educa-tional institutions for the challenges they may face in a real school con-text. In the article we report on two studies undertaken to obtain an in-sight into the practicum from the trainee perspective and from the school-based mentor perspective in the hope of identifying areas which require improvement. Descriptions of the design of the two studies and the analyses of their results are preceded by a discussion of the im-portance of reflection on foreign language teacher competence and the place of practicum in the development of competence.

Determinants of scholarly project completion in a paediatric resident program in Canada.

The primary aims of this study were to: 1) assess barriers and facilitators of completing scholarly projects from residents and faculty mentor perspectives, 2) determine the perceived value of new initiatives designed to support resident scholarly projects and 3) determine if these initiatives led to changes in resident publications. Between June and September 2014, we surveyed 18 paediatric residents and 41 faculty mentors regarding barriers to resident scholarly project completion and the value of new initiatives to support scholarly activity. We also tracked scientific publications by residents before and after implementation of these initiatives. The primary perceived barriers to research for residents and faculty were lack of protected time (64.3% versus 68.6%, respectively), lack of resident interest in scholarly activity (50.0% versus 60.0%, respectively) and lack of mentor motivation. Mentors and residents did not agree that lack of proper training in research (29% versus 54%, respectively) and faculty motivation (29% versus 17%, respectively) were barriers to completing a project. A dedicated research coordinator (71.4% versus 70.6%, respectively), a revised research curriculum (71.4% versus 41.2%, respectively) and works in progress sessions (50.0% versus 61.8%, respectively) were perceived as valuable initiatives to the program. These initiatives were not associated with changes in annual resident publication rates. Lack of time and competing clinical training are primary barriers to scholarly project completion for residents in addition to a lack of motivation on the part of faculty members. Improving program support was perceived as positive changes to address these barriers but did not increase resident publication rates. The information provided here could be used to tailor future resident research programs and highlight the value of gathering input from resident and faculty when designing initiatives to enhance resident research productivity.

Newcomers’ Barriers. . . Is That All? An Analysis of Mentors’ and Newcomers’ Barriers in OSS Projects

Newcomers’ seamless onboarding is important for open collaboration communities, particularly those that leverage outsiders’ contributions to remain sustainable. Nevertheless, previous work shows that OSS newcomers often face several barriers to contribute, which lead them to lose motivation and even give up on contributing. A well-known way to help newcomers overcome initial contribution barriers is mentoring. This strategy has proven effective in offline and online communities, and to some extent has been employed in OSS projects. Studying mentors’ perspectives on the barriers that newcomers face play a vital role in improving onboarding processes; yet, OSS mentors face their own barriers, which hinder the effectiveness of the strategy. Since little is known about the barriers mentors face, in this paper, we investigate the barriers that affect mentors and their newcomer mentees. We interviewed mentors from OSS projects and qualitatively analyzed their answers. We found 44 barriers: 19 that affect mentors; and 34 that affect newcomers (9 affect both newcomers and mentors). Interestingly, most of the barriers we identified (66%) have a social nature. Additionally, we identified 10 strategies that mentors indicated to potentially alleviate some of the barriers. Since gender-related challenges emerged in our analysis, we conducted nine follow-up structured interviews to further explore this perspective. The contributions of this paper include: identifying the barriers mentors face; bringing the unique perspective of mentors on barriers faced by newcomers; unveiling strategies that can be used by mentors to support newcomers; and investigating gender-specific challenges in OSS mentorship. Mentors, newcomers, online communities, and educators can leverage this knowledge to foster new contributors to OSS projects.

Mentoring Counselor Education Students: A Delphi Study with Leaders in the Field

ABSTRACTMentoring is a professional leadership contribution of counselor educators resulting in personal and vocational benefits for students. A need to understand research-informed mentoring from the mentor perspective exists as much of the literature is informed by the mentee perspective. In this study, an expert panel of counselor educator mentoring award recipients completed three questionnaire rounds for the purpose of identifying mentoring components. Consensus was reached on 141 items. Recommendations for implementation and training are discussed.

Perceived value of internship experience: a try before you leap

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how internship value is manifested in the context of a business school. The authors have examined the internship experience in terms of experiential learning and employability. Specifically, the authors investigate the factors that determine internship at four phases: design, conduct, evaluation and feedback.Design/methodology/approachThe authors have applied a mixed method approach. In all, 110 students of a busines school were first surveyed on their expectation, motivation and level of preparation through a self-administered questionnaire before internship. Based on the survey result, eight of these students were interviewed in details about internship expectations from industry, the selection process for internship, communications or exchanges between intern and companies prior to internship and perceived industry expectation from interns. At the next phase, authors used a qualitative research approach by conducting semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 14 interns and their mentors after internship period. They were interviewed on design, conduct, evaluation and feedback process of the internship. Interviews tried capture what kind of leader-member exchange led to satisfactory internship experience and outcome from view of both inter and mentor.FindingsThe authors find that at various stages of internship program quality of mentor – intern exchanges (as defined by leadership exchange theory), and task characteristics as indicated by autonomy, task variety, task significance and performance feedback determine intern’s performance. An intern’s performance is antecedent to an intern’s and a mentor’s satisfaction and overall internship value. The authors also found that intrinsic capability of intern such as critical thinking ability and learning orientation result in enhanced value of internship experience. The proposed models, postulate that at designing stage, lower the level of communication from employers, higher the feeling of ambiguity and lower the perceived internship value in terms of experiential learning and perceived employability. Feeling of ambiguity is moderated by existence of prior work experience of interns. At conduction stage, mentor-intern exchange is directly related to flexibility in structure of the program and inversely related to dependency on peer learning. Mentor-intern exchange also related to mentor and intern’s learning value. However, the learning value is moderated by learning orientation of the intern.Originality/valueThe authors have tried the summer internship experience from the perspective of interns and mentors. This is the uniqueness of the research.

“A paradigm of possibility”: Community mentors and teacher preparation

In this paper, we investigate mentor perspectives of their roles as de facto “teacher educators.” Drawing upon three years of qualitative data, we argue that community voices and knowledge should be reflected in decisions regarding what and how children are taught. We assert that, by broadening the definition of “teacher educator” beyond university faculty to include community members, we create spaces through which the development of culturally responsive teaching can more authentically emerge. The larger study from which this paper is derived examines the innovative practices of a teacher preparation program at a Midwestern university in the United States of America, wherein majority White, female, middle-class candidates are paired with mentor families in a low-income African-American neighborhood. This program of cultural immersion builds relational ties between community members, and mentors facilitate candidates’ movement beyond deficit perspectives of communities of color and simplistic notions of celebration to see cultural affirmation and contextual knowledge of children’s lived experiences as critical to student success. In the present study, we challenge neoliberal “commonsense” in the preparation of teachers by privileging community voices and highlighting how mentors perceive their respective roles as teacher educators.

A University-Community Partnership in Teacher Education From the Perspectives of Community-Based Teacher Educators

This article examines the experiences of a group of nine community-based mentors of teacher candidates who partnered for several years through a local, community-based organization with the graduate elementary and secondary teacher education programs at a research university in the Pacific Northwest. Following a brief discussion of the history of partnerships between teacher education programs and local communities, we report the findings of a study of the perspectives of these community mentors on their work with teacher candidates and university teacher educators.

Thai cooperating teachers' motivations and challenges in supervising student teachers during their internship program

In Thai teacher education, cooperating teachers play a vital role in educating student teachers during their internship for the fifth and final year of the students' Bachelor of Education program. This study sought to understand Thai cooperating teachers' motivations and challenges in supervising student teachers for the internship. Outcomes are reported from a dataset consisting of 171 responding cooperating teachers who took the Mentoring Perspectives Inventory. All quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The results indicated that cooperating teachers were significantly more motivated than challenged in this work. They were equally motivated by benefits to themselves and others and were equally challenged by interpersonal issues and systemic issues. Recognizing and understanding cooperating teachers' motivations and challenges can form the basis for reflecting upon and rethinking the components of teacher preparation programs in Thailand. Key outcomes from this study suggest: (1) empowering cooperating teachers; (2) designing professional learning for their mentoring practices; and (3) further investigating their thinking and reasoning in practicum settings.

Mentor perspectives on the place of undergraduate research mentoring in academic identity and career development: an analysis of award winning mentors

This study examines how Undergraduate Research (UR) mentoring fits into the career profile of award-winning UR mentors and the factors that motivate engagement as UR mentors. Twenty-four award-winning UR mentors in four countries were interviewed about their mentoring practices. Six themes emerged: (1) Academic Identity and Motivations; (2) Challenges to Academic Identity and Career Development; (3) Enhanced Research Productivity; (4) Recognition and Reward; (5) Institution Values Commitment and (6) Developing Other Mentors. The authors discuss these themes and how the findings can be utilized for academic development and identity formation for faculty.

Mentoring in Startup Ecosystems

Effective mentoring programs are very difficult to structure and execute, even with the best intentions and reasonable budget. In this report we conduct a multi-institution empirical analysis of mentoring in startup ecosystems to determine what helps entrepreneurial teams and mentors thrive in mentorship programs. We survey the perspectives of mentees, mentors and university and accelerator program administrators. Our empirical findings reveal that personality and the malleability of entrepreneurial skills among the mentee and the mentor matter. Further we find that university programs lag behind non-university accelerator programs along several important dimensions, when it comes to matching mentees to mentors and providing support during the program and following up after the completion of the program. We provide several prescriptive recommendations for students, startup founders, mentors and program administrators, and outline a research agenda for studying mentoring in entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Value of Near-Peer Mentorship from Protégé and Mentor Perspectives: A Strategy to Increase Physician Workforce Diversity

PurposeMentorship is a critical aspect of personal and professional development in academic medicine and helps to improve career satisfaction, productivity, and social networking. However, individuals from communities underrepresented in medicine (URiM) across the training continuum experience difficulty obtaining mentors, even prior to college. The value of near-peer mentorship is less well studied in medicine relative to other fields. The purpose of this mixed methods study is to explore the mentorship experiences of high school student protégés and their medical student mentors, as well as provide a description of the key features of the Doctors of Tomorrow (DOT) program. MethodsFrom November 2014 to September 2015, the authors used focus groups and critical incident narratives with 9th grade high school students as well as focus groups and semi-structured interviews with medical students to examine mentor-protégé experiences in the Doctors of Tomorrow (DOT) program. In 2016, thirty-one medical student mentors were asked to complete an online survey about their mentor experiences. Focus group and interview data were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. All data were coded using thematic analysis and recurring codes were organized into categories, then compared, scrutinized and arranged into broader themes by all authors. ResultsThe analysis of data from 70 medical students and 52 high school students revealed that mentors and protégés valued their mentor relationships based on regular in-person and electronic contact, shared common non-academic interests, and the anticipated prolonged nature of the relationship. Mentors also reported they initiated contact with their protégés every 2–3 weeks and monthly outside of program events, with email communication as the most common modality. ConclusionsNear-peer relationships between high school and medical students may be an innovative strategy to promote health care careers, increase access to mentorship and develop meaningful mentorship relationships for URiM high school students.

What Do Mentors Learn? The Role of Protégé Role Behavior and Relationship Quality in Mentor Learning

Mentoring is defined as a reciprocal relationship between a less experienced individual (protégé) and a more experienced individual (mentor) that has consistent, regular contact over a period of time and is intended to promote mutual growth, learning, and development within the career context (Haggard, Dougherty, Turban & Wilbanks, 2011; Kram, 1985). Inherent in this definition of mentoring is that individuals learn, develop, and grow from their mentoring interactions. Despite this, limited research explores the learning that occurs from mentoring relationships. Drawing on the relational mentoring perspective (Ragins, 2012) and social learning theory (Bandura, 1971, 1977), the purpose of this study is to examine what mentors learn from mentoring experiences and how these experiences relate to mentor outcomes. The outcomes include mentoring self- efficacy, mentor learning, and mentor behavioral change intentions. We tested our assertions in a mixed methods study of 204 professor mentors. We found that mentors gained mentoring-specific, occupational-specific, and relational knowledge from mentoring their protégés. Additionally, mentors identified specific changes they wished to make to their mentoring behavior from their experiences with their protégés. Furthermore we found partial support for our mediated model which suggests that protégé role behaviors relate to mentor learning outcomes through mentor-protégé exchange.

Challenges in mammography education and training today: The perspectives of radiography teachers/mentors and students in five European countries

IntroductionThis study aims to explore current challenges in mammography education from the perspectives of radiography teachers, mentors and students. MethodsA qualitative study including two focus groups interviews, with radiography teachers/mentors (n = 5) and student radiographers (n = 5) exploring their perspectives on challenges in mammography education today. The content analysis methodology proposed by Graneheim and Lundman was applied to the interviews. ResultsThree main categories were identified, each with subcategories identified as: (1) Building Bridges; Applying Theoretical knowledge in Practice, Performing Mammograms, Communication and Quality Assessment (2) State of the Art in Mammography; Personal Attitudes and Skills, Quality Awareness and Patient Care (3) Exploring the Curriculum; Time Constraints, Capacity in Clinical Placement, Multidisciplinary Field and Elective Course. ConclusionThe short study period allocated to this discipline and lack of material resources were considered the main limitations in mammography education, both impacting on the development of students' skills. Breast positioning, patient communication and quality control were considered key factors affecting mammography performance, patient experience and diagnostic outcome and should therefore be the core focus in mammography education.

Paying it forward: Four-year analysis of the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma Mentoring Program.

Mentorship programs in surgery are used to overcome barriers to clinical and academic productivity, research success, and work-life balance. We sought to determine if the Eastern Association for the Surgery of Trauma (EAST) Mentoring Program has met its goals of fostering academic and personal growth in young acute care surgeons. We conducted a systematic program evaluation of EAST Mentoring Program's first 4 years. Demographic information was collected from EAST records, mentorship program applications, and mentee-mentor career development plans. We reviewed the career development plans for thematic commonalities and results of a structured, online questionnaire distributed since program inception. A mixed methods approach was used to better understand the program goals from both mentee and mentor perspectives, as well as attitudes and barriers regarding the perceived success of this career development program. During 2012 to 2015, 65 mentoring dyads were paired and 60 completed the program. Of 184 surveys distributed, 108 were returned (57% response rate). Respondents were evenly distributed between mentees and mentors (53 vs. 55, p = 0.768). In participant surveys, mentoring relationships were viewed to focus on research (45%), "sticky situations" (e.g., communication, work-life balance) (27%), education (18%), or administrative issues (10%). Mentees were more focused on research and education versus mentors (74% vs. 50%; p = 0.040). Mentees felt that goals were "always" or "usually" met versus mentors (89% vs. 77%; p = 0.096). Two barriers to successful mentorship included time and communication, with most pairs communicating by email. Most respondents (91%) planned to continue the relationship beyond the EAST Mentoring Program and recommended the experience to colleagues. Mentee satisfaction with the EAST Mentoring Program was high. Mentoring is a beneficial tool to promote success among EAST's young members, but differences exist between mentee and mentor perceptions. Revising communication expectations and time commitment to improve career development may help our young acute care surgeons.

Effective Practices for Mentoring Beginning Middle School Teachers: Mentor's Perspectives

ABSTRACTIn order to improve student achievement, school systems must provide new teachers with support to become effective teachers more quickly. Educators frequently use mentoring to support new teachers and reach the goals of improved classroom performance as well as teacher retention. The intention in this study was to provide insights into the mentoring of beginning teachers working in the middle grades. In this exploratory case study, three elements of a mentoring model deemed necessary for the implementation of effective mentoring for middle school teachers are presented. First, the mentor must forge a trusting relationship with the new teacher. Second, the mentor must support and guide the new teacher in creating a classroom environment that is supportive of learning. Third, the mentor must be able to support and guide the new teacher in instructional strategies appropriate to the content and context of the classroom. Furthermore, this research highlighted a need for mentors to receive ongoing training in classroom management, instructional practices, and relationship building in order to remain effective mentors. Without effective trained mentors programs will fail to meet their goals of improving instruction and retaining teachers past their induction year.