Mentor Teachers’ Voices on Pre-Service English Teachers’ Professional Learning

Abstract

Various studies have demonstrated that the role of mentor teachers in helping pre-service English teachers (PSETs) develop their professional experiences in school-based practicum is undeniably fundamental. Considering that mentor voices are still underrepresented in studies, this study aims to investigate the mentor teachers' voices and beliefs to help the professional learning of pre-service English teachers (PSETs) in their school-based practicums. This is a qualitative study which involves seven mentor teachers who teach English in senior high schools in Indonesia. Data was gathered through questionnaires and unstructured interviews carried out in the participants' school setting and analysed using NVIVO 9 (qualitative data analysis software). The findings reveal the mentor teachers' beliefs in guiding PSETS during the school-based practicum. The mentor teachers viewed that PSETs need to learn and experience more fundamental aspects of teaching, namely interpersonal skills and emotional engagement in teaching, including their leadership. Implications for teacher education to improve the quality of relationship between PSETs and mentor teachers are addressed.

The Impact of Individual Student Mentoring for Teacher Professionalism in English Preservice Teacher Education

“…This finding is deemed valuable by the mentor teacher because learning about the student mentees softened her heart and humbled her. As a teacher or a teaching faculty member, she realized that subconsciously she had put herself in a higher position than the student's in terms of academic achievement as well as of life experience (Kuswandono, 2017). When she talked heart to heart with an individual student in this non-classical mentoring, however, she was humbled to admit that she "learned a lot from this younger, less academically abled, and inexperienced person".…”

“…Other research (Jacobi, 1991in Nora & Crisp, 2007 shared how colleges and universities implement mentoring in various ways, ranging from providing formal training for mentors-which implies that mentoring is taken seriously, to simply providing general guidelines for meeting times, locations and frequency of interactions. Another identified potential problem is the possible hierarchical relationship between mentor teacher and student, especially in a school-based practicum in pre-service teacher education where the mentor has a dual role as a mentor as well as a supervisor (Kuswandono, 2017). Publications about mentoring in pre-service teacher education in Indonesia usually reveal the cases where mentoring to students is implemented for the sake of a very specific purpose like completing a certain task, school-based practicum, micro teaching, or teaching practicum (Kuswandono, 2014;Kuswandono, 2017;Perry et al, 2007;Sulistiyo et al, 2017;Timperley, 2001).…”

“…Another identified potential problem is the possible hierarchical relationship between mentor teacher and student, especially in a school-based practicum in pre-service teacher education where the mentor has a dual role as a mentor as well as a supervisor (Kuswandono, 2017). Publications about mentoring in pre-service teacher education in Indonesia usually reveal the cases where mentoring to students is implemented for the sake of a very specific purpose like completing a certain task, school-based practicum, micro teaching, or teaching practicum (Kuswandono, 2014;Kuswandono, 2017;Perry et al, 2007;Sulistiyo et al, 2017;Timperley, 2001). Therefore, it is inferred that mentoring is structurally implemented only for and during a certain period of time.…”

“…Therefore, it is inferred that mentoring is structurally implemented only for and during a certain period of time. This preliminary study is inspired by the awareness of the potential multidimensional impact of mentoring for both the mentor and students if mentoring is implemented in such a way on more or less permanent basis (Izadinia, 2015;Kuswandono, 2017;Nora & Crisp, 2007;Richards, 2008;Wexler, 2019). This study argues that individual student mentoring in a pre-service teacher education by a mentor teacher can have impact for both involved parties' teaching professionalism.…”

First experiences in a school-based practicum: Pre-service teachers’ emotion and perceived benefits towards the program

“…Prior studies on school-based practicum have been conducted in various contexts, such as Vietnamese (Vo, Pang, & Lee, 2018), Turkish (Tülüce & Çeçen, 2016), Chinese (Teng, 2017;Zhang, Clarke & Lee, 2018), Austrian (Hascher & Hagenauer, 2016), and Indonesian (Sulistiyo, et. al., 2017;Kuswandono, 2017) context. By involving different groups of participants, such as the fourth-year students (Vo, et.…”