an increased confidence of both language teacher and student in the classroom

evidence of increased and more effective use of the target language in the classroom and outside in the playground (and in other lessons!)

more willingness of students to volunteer responses in French

an increased number of students indicating they wish to continue with French next year

a greater understanding by students of the relevance of French in “their world”

How?

At my school there is:

Meaningful MentoringMerryl Wahlin

Languages Consultant K-12

AISNSW

Background

Aims

- Provide professional learning opportunities for experienced and early career language teachers

- To promote quality languages teaching and learning

Focus

- Mentoring relationship

- Languages pedagogy

Funded through Schools Language Program (SLP) and NALSSP

Run in 2010

Overview of the mentoring initiative

Pairing of mentors and protégés (10 pairs in 2010)

Range of languages

Metropolitan and regional schools

Committments

1 day PD

2 days visiting each other’s school

Regular contact between visits (email, phone)

1 day debriefing workshop

report

Protocols for mentors and protégés

Be punctual.

Dress appropriately for the school you are visiting.

Observe confidentiality.

Be genuinely present.

Demonstrate genuine commitment to the process.

Maintain the communication.

The mentoring experience is a finite one; any continuation of the relationship would be determined by the interest of each party.

Mentoring is…

Unobtrusive A negotiated set of professional experiences Sharing professional practice Stimulating professional growth Bringing good practice to the fore in realistic

context Observing the action, noting and synthesising

key insignts Possibly an opportunity for team teaching An opportunity for the enhancement of one’s

language skills

Mentoring isn’t… Intrusive. An opportunity for the protégé to feedback to the mentor. A place for making judgement about the other school. An audition for employment. The precursor to an ongoing relationship. An opportunity to obtain resources created by the other

person. An opportunity for someone else to teach your class. An opportunity for someone else to do your work. A place for sharing about colleagues. A place for personal disclosures. Delivering perfected lessons.

Mentor’s role (adapted from Fogarty 2001)

Experience: reveal depth of understanding; encourage and model metacognition

Expertise: share knowledge; demonstrate skills

Energy: collaborative efforts; maintain momentum

Empathy: listen; care

Encouragement: clarify goals – what teaching skills do you need to observe? Troubleshoot concerns; help set priorities

Enthusiasm: share stories; catch the teachable moments; cheer

Protégé’s Role

Experience: deepen understanding; become more metacognitive

Expertise: share knowledge; demonstrate skills

Energy: collaborative efforts; maintain momentum

Empathy: listen; care

Encouragement: clarify goals – what teaching skills do you need to demonstrate? Troubleshoot concerns; help set priorities

Enthusiasm: share stories; catch the teachable moments; cheer

Professional standards for accomplished teaching of languages and cultures

Educational theory and practice

Language and culture

Language and pedagogy

Ethics and responsibility

Professional Relationships

Awareness of wider context

Advocacy

Personal characteristics

Linking to “our” Professional Standards

• What does each standard mean? What does it look like in your classroom/school?

• Engage with the questions for reflection for each standard

• How do you rate your capability in each of the professional standards?

Goal setting

Using the professional standards, identify three goals on which you would like to focus during your mentoring experience.

At least one goal must be drawn from language pedagogy.

SLOTH goals vs ISMART goals

Setting goals

SLOTH Goals

S Somewhat vague

L Lack commitment

O Open ended

T Timid

H Hard to achieve

Source: Australian Growth Coaching 2009

Setting Goals

I SMART

I Inspiring

S Specific

M Measurable

A Achievable

R Results driven

T Time bound

Source: Australian Growth Coaching 2009

Practical procedures for observing a lesson

Unobtrusive positioning

Efficient note taking, no recording

Observe but not contribute unless clearly invited to do so

Avoid disrupting the lesson, e.g. mobile phone

It is a priviledge to be invited in to someone ‘s class

Feedback

The purpose of the feedback session is to clarify underlying strategies and issues

Opportunities for feedback should be made as often as possible during the two days of each visit

Periodic feedback, not detailed deconstruction

Good, clear questions can be prepared during observations

Both parties need to be succinct and focused on the purpose of the feedback

Effective feedback – honesty with sensitivity

Respectful and skillfully framed questions can help maximise gains from feedback.

Ask open ended questions.

Ask questions that reflect active listening and synthesising for underlying meaning, e.g. ‘Are you saying that….’

Base questions on behaviours or events observed, e.g. ‘I noticed when you …. Was there a specific reason for that?’

Be succinct.

Limit the use of ‘why’ questions as they can evoke responses that are defensive or abbreviated. Consider:

- beginning the question with ‘What was the reason for…..’ or ‘What made you ….’

- framing the question as a statement such as ‘That was an interesting strategy you used when…’

Taking Action: Action Learning

Tools

Observation format

Sample goals

Action plan

Progress report (online survey)

Final report

Meaningful MentoringObservation ToolDate: Context:

Professional Standard(s) Related Questions:to be observed:

ISMART GOAL(S)

Key Elements to be observed

EvidenceSuggestions/

Comments/Follow up questions

Sample pedagogy goal

SLOTH Goal

I want my students to use better grammar

ISMART Goal

By the end of the year I design effective tasks that allow my Year 10 students to accurately apply the past tense in a variety of authentic contexts - both in writing and speaking

Action Plan

Element ActionsT/L experiences

EvidenceObservations

TimeframeDates in the

diary

Resourceseg websites,

readings,examples of strategies

Goal:

Feedback/EvaluationWhat was the most positive outcome for you as a result of participating in this

program?

- I gained confidence

- It reinvigorated my passion for teaching and learning languages

- It made feel part of the “language teaching community”

- It gave me the courage to advocate for languages in my school

- It made me value my own context

- It uplifted my status within the school- “Principal values me”

It gave me the opportunity to:

- Observe another language class in a different school context

- Reflect on my own practice

- Observe how to incorporate intercultural learning into my lessons

- Observe a range of teaching methodologies

Feedback… Overall, we both did a lot of thinking and discussing about what we do in the

classroom, why we do it (or why we don’t do some things) and this reflection on teaching practice was very beneficial to us both as sometimes in the hustle and bustle of teaching you don’t make time to reflect on your teaching as much as perhaps you should (mentor)

This program was invaluable and a very enriching experience for my teaching practice. I acquired new structures to use in class such as opening and closing sequences. I was able to experience first-hand just how effective a language program is, that is run entirely in the target language (protégé)

This has been a fabulous and enlightening experience for me, and the repercussions have been immense. The children in my classes are enjoying a greater creative freedom, I feel empowered with new teaching strategies and networks, and my passion for French teaching is burning bright. (protégé)

Feedback…I gained the following from participation in the Meaningful Mentoring

program:

Significantly increased confidence in the classroom and curriculum delivery

Greater understanding of language teaching pedagogy

Improved use of differentiation in class tasks and assessments

Regular and authentic inclusion of cultural understanding in every topic

Greater enthusiasm for the benefits of language learning and teaching

Much more professional and useful programs

More effective use of available resources

Better interaction with the students in lessons, more effective teaching and therefore more effective learning for my students (protégé)

Feedback…

By taking part in this program I had a new insight of my own ability and it has rejuvenated me.

I have uplifted the status of my subject / myself in my own school.

I have broadened my perception of the future development of Mandarin Chinese in Australia.

I felt more connected with teaching profession. (mentor)

I also learnt from my partner, as “One learns whilst one teaches”. Sharing knowledge/experience is a great way to progress.

Why did it work? Provision of time

Person to person

Teachers got to know each other and network during 2 PD days at AIS

Teachers were observed in “their” context

Establishment of a very supportive “we are all learning from each other” environment

Specific, achievable goals were set and addressed for each pair

Ongoing throughout year

Challenges- Future mentoring programs

How do we attract mentors?

For the MENTOR the experience was:

Affirming

Rejuvenating

Enriching

It enabled mentors and protégés to:

Take pride in their work

To consider for next time…

Need to “market” it to experienced teachers

Address Professional Leadership stage of NSW Institute of Teaching Standards

Is it possible to include mentoring of pre-service teachers?

Flexible timing - Perhaps program could run over 18 months?