The research on mentorship in the professoriate is extensive and substantial. New faculty benefit from having sustained and focused interactions with a more knowledgeable other who is able to shepherd them through the induction phase of their academic career. Professional support, collaboration, and sponsorship have always been critical, but this need is even more pronounced in the isolating times of the pandemic. During the 2020-2022 academic years, junior faculty were asked to navigate new spaces which would be exceedingly trying under normal circumstances, but even more so while under severe restrictions. This paper will examine the usefulness of alternative ways of mentoring that can assist incoming faculty. Strategies for administrators and senior faculty responsible for facilitating these connections will be explored.
Tag: Mentoring
The Co-Mentoring Project: Overview and Outcomes
The Co-mentoring Project matched developmental psychology students with older adult volunteers for an intergenerational learning experience. Students conducted a biopsychosocial life review to increase understanding of older adult development and the continuity in lifespan development. Each student developed a summary paper containing the older adult’s life history, a developmental analysis, and personal reflection. A project description, including the scholarship of teaching and learning, and an overview of its outcomes are presented. The project goal was accomplished; students positively evaluated learning outcomes and displayed a significant increase in knowledge about older adults and aging. Implications for college instructors are discussed.
Mentoring International Teaching Assistants: A Case Study of Improving Teaching Practices
While there exists a considerable body of research focusing on international teaching assistants’ (ITAs’) linguistic, sociocultural, and instructional challenges, less is known about the successful developmental trajectories of this group of international educators of American students. This research aims to fulfill this research gap using a case study approach (Yin, 2003). The study involved ITAs from STEM majors in six collaborative mentoring sessions prior and upon video recording of three lessons taught by the ITAs to undergraduate students. The mentoring sessions were designed to facilitate ITAs’ reflections on their teaching with the use of structured protocols to help guide the discussions. All the collected data were analyzed using content analysis (Miles & Huberman, 1994). The results highlight the incidents of professional growth exhibited by the participating ITAs during their actual teaching. This study also tracks the ITAs’ reflections on teaching through the mediational dialogues (Vygotsky, 1978) with the mentor. Finally, the paper discusses lessons learned through launching a mentoring project with a group of ITAs.