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The mentoring mindset: a constructivist perspective?Jan Millwater a & Allan Yarrow ba School of Professional Studies, Queensland University of Technologyb School of Professional Studies, Queensland University of Technology, ProfessionalExperience UnitPublished online: 29 Sep 2006.

To cite this article: Jan Millwater & Allan Yarrow (1997) The mentoring mindset: a constructivist perspective?, Mentoring &Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 5:1, 14-24, DOI: 10.1080/0968465970050102

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The mentoringmindset:

a constructivistperspective?

Jan Millwater andAllan Yarrow

Jan Millwater

School of Professional Studies, Queensland

University of Technology

Allan Yarrow

Director, Professional Experience Unit,

School of Professional Studies, Queensland

University of Technology

Address for correspondence:

Jan Millwater, School of Professional

Studies, Kelvin Grove Campus,

Queensland University of Technology,

Locked Bag No 2, Red Hill. Qld, 4059.

Australia.

AbstractInternships have been explored aspotentially valuable routes for extendingteacher education. However, the ways inwhich the beliefs, values and attitudes(platform) of the mentor interacting withthat of the associate teacher shape theinternship, have not been investigated.Even though particular emphasis here ison the role of the mentor, becausementors are in the situation of workingwith many associate teachers, theplatforms of both mentors and associateswere considered as important inconstructing the professional learningenvironment and the outcomes ofprofessional development achieved. Theplatform, which is the basis of practice, istherefore also nominated here as amindset. As the mentoring mindset israrely explicit then the mentoringpractice often is a revelation. Theseconcepts are illustrated through the useof cases and conclusions drawnregarding the constructivist perspectiveof the mentoring mindset.

BackgroundInternships have been explored by otherresearchers (Booth, Furlong and Wilkin,1990; Mc Cullough and Fidler, 1994) aspotentially valuable routes for extendingteacher education. However, the ways inwhich the beliefs, values and attitudes(platform) of the mentor interacting withthat of the associate teacher shapes theinternship, have not been investigated.Even though particular emphasis here ison the role of the mentor, becausementors are in the situation of workingwith many associate teachers, theplatforms of both mentors and associateswere considered as important in giving

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shape to the professional learningenvironment and the outcomes ofprofessional development achieved.

The analyses of the platforms of mentorsand associate teachers alike are based onthe suggestion by Sergiovanni andStarratt (1992, p.142) that the themes tobe examined are those of the 'purposeand goal' of the mentoring (e.g., somewould have the goals of a human growthand empowerment model) and the'preferred process' of mentoring (e.g.,some would adhere to the eclectic modelof responding to the contingencies of thesituation). The platform, which is thebasis of practice, is therefore alsonominated here as a mindset.

Within this context, mindset refers to theholistic structure of attitudes, values andbeliefs about teaching and learningthrough which professional knowledge isfiltered and from which action/practiceissues. This concept of mindset differsfrom ideas advanced by Morine-Dershimer (1990) and Glaser (1984),who favoured cognitive structures andschema as repositories for professionalknowledge. Mindset occurs with theintersection of schema theory andconstructivism. The theory ofconstructivism advances the belief thatlearning is a constructive process inwhich understanding arises from theindividual interacting with his/herenvironment (Bodner, 1989). Thisconstructivist view is that the knowledgeis constructed by humans and is heavilylaced with their values, attitudes andbeliefs. This proposes that an individual'sunderstanding consists of sets of ideasthat are in constant state of flux and

revision as a result of experiences(Bruffee, 1986; Guba and Lincoln, 1989;Kelly, 1955). The mindset of thementors/learners therefore should be ofactive involvement in the construction ofmeaning especially while concerned withpractice.

The context of the studyThe internship trials which wereconducted at Queensland University ofTechnology in 1994 and 1995 provide thetesting base for this study. Internshipwithin this context generally aimed toenhance the growth of autonomousdecision-making; to increase accessing ofknowledge and appreciation of the totalworld of work of teachers, in schoolcommunities; to emphasis criticalreflectivity in order to enable greaterblending of theory/practice; create asmoother transition from the pre-serviceto induction phases of careerdevelopment; encourage closercollaboration between universities,schools, employers, unions, and to fostera partnership model of mentoring as anunderpinning for further professionalgrowth and development of all teachers.The involved teachers had been effectivepractice teaching supervisors and studentteachers had satisfactorily finished allother requirements of their Bachelor ofEducation course. It was a voluntaryexperience in a 6-week internship. Thestudents were called associate teachers asthey were to teach 50 percent of ateacher's load. The teachers were to becalled mentors and to share the class ofchildren with the associate teacher asthey would with a beginning teacher. Theroles of mentor and associate, the

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practicum curriculum and the evaluationand assessment of the associate teacherswere debated in partnership with auniversity facilitator. When mentorsvolunteered for the internship trials, theydid so from the knowledge that they werecompetent teachers and that being amentor would mean incorporating somedifferent ways of constructing a learningenvironment for the associate teachers.The different 'ways' were the underlyingprinciples of three educational theorieswhich were crucial to understanding theteaching function of being a mentor.

Internship and a constructivistperspectivePrinciples incorporated in the internshipwere to underpin the construction ofmeaning via the learner through thetheories of critical thinking, adultlearning and experiential learning. Theterm 'critical thinking' was used todescribe the process of thinking that wasguided by goals, reason and purposes. Italso encompassed the ability to evaluatethought processes - to have anunderstanding of decision-making factors(Halpern, 1989). The focus of criticalthinking was to challenge underlyingvalues and beliefs and assumptions aboutour own behaviour, which is a necessaryprerequisite in professional developmentFor example, an associate teacher ormentor who is a critical thinker will notadhere to stereotypic ideas about learnersor teachers but will flex with eachindividual, expecting to be challenged orextended within interactions.

Similarly, the most valuable contributionfrom Knowles (1984), was the emphasisthat adults learn best when the educative

process directly focuses on what thelearner wants to learn rather on what theteacher wants to teach. Applying thisassumption to the internship required thebalancing by negotiation of what theteachers wanted to learn and what wasrequired for the successfulimplementation of the internship throughprofessional work. In addition, theassociate teacher and mentors negotiatedlearning goals that furthered the learningof the children in the individualclassrooms. In this way the negotiationsensured that the learning of the associateteacher was highly valued by thementors.

Finally, emerging from the work of Kolb(1984), Schon (1983) and Dewey (1938),the field of experiential learningemphasises the role of reflection inexperience-based learning. The learneracts and generalises principles for furtheraction from an experience. Freedom andautonomy for the learner are at the basisof experience but must be tempered byresponsibility to consequences in actionin a school experience/internship setting.These premises were included in thatthey must be goals of collaboration andthat decision-making by the noviceteachers (associate teachers) should benegotiated with the expert teachers(mentors).

One implication of these principlesrelates the goals of the internship to theconstructivist reform in education and tomentors implementing constructiviststrategies in their teaching. Such reformdemands proactive participation ofstudents in the learning process (Doll,1993; Parawat, 1992; Tobin, 1993).

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When debating and discussing theseprinciples, the mentors claimed toalready incorporate them in theirpractice. Investigation into theirmentoring practices led to the discoveryof whether their mentoring mindset wasan authentic constructivist perspective.

Cases of MentoringBefore, during and after the internshipthe mentors' and associate teachers'conversations, discussions, interviewsand comments during meetings werenoted and drawn together as case studies.One section pertained to the experienceof mentoring and two such examples ofthe same mentors in 1994 and in 1995are provided here. The mindsets of boththe mentor and the associate teachersbecome visible through the eyes of thepartner. So that we may better understandthose who made good the mindsets thatthey chose to operationalise and to createa learning environment conducive toachieving professional developmentduring an internship, two case studies ofthe mentoring that occurred during theinternship are presented here. Thementors and associate teachers wereasked simply to tell of their mentoringexperience in interviews and data wasdrawn from journals.

Case 1.1 Adam - Anne. 1994Adam had a class of nine year olds andAnne had an excellent history of practiceteaching. Adam thought that theinternship program was a high priorityconcern for the university, as it was thefirst of its kind, and this was evidencedby the special attention given to it.However, he didn 't think that it was a

very big deal for the mentors at theschool. He would like to see universityexpectations of associate teachers moreformally written down so that allparticipants have common expectations.He observed that this has not happenedduring the internship, with two or threeof the mentors having quite differentexpectations to those apparently given tothe associates by the university.

Initial conflict with some mentors, inAnne's view, arose because of widelydifferent interpretations of expectations.She had arrived thinking that her mentorfully understood the purposes of theinternship, that daily plans would beacceptable, and that the mentor would behappy for her to operate as if the classwere her own, that her mentor would bedifferent from a prac supervisor, but thatdid not happen for her. She believed thathe would share his previous work withthe children with her. Instead, the attitudewas, 'No. it is my class. You are nothaving it. No, daily plans are not enough.We want to see lesson plans.' Thus, sheand her mentor had different agendasand there was conflict.

With regard to her mentor, Anne notes,'There has been no sense of partnership,of colleagues working together. None atall.' When she had visited prior to theinternship, she had arrived armed with anumber of questions. Can I have a lookat your planning? What are yourlearning outcomes for the term? Thementor was not able, or was unwilling, tosupply any of this information. Hewanted to tell her what to do. The samequestions were raised again by Anne inthe following weeks, but there was no

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response from the teacher. Even when shefelt she had planned and taught a goodactivity, no feedback was provided by thementor as to its worth or value. Sheinterpreted this to mean that her effortswere neither appreciated nor worthwhileand she found her usual confidenceslipping. Finally, Adam advised Annethat he thought her planning was notgood enough. He wanted detailed lessonplans similar to those expected of firstyear student teachers where almost everyword that is intended to be said is writtendown. As Anne noted, 'I thought I hadcome past that stage.' While she nowknew what her mentor wanted, Annerecounts that she still had difficulty inmeeting the demands adequately for,without the teacher's objectivesframework, she still had no idea where orhow her isolated lessons fitted into thewider scheme of the total curriculumprogram for the class.

Anne almost decided to resign from theinternship after her first report prior tothe September vacation - 'Basically, itwas all because every time I came toschool I got no support from my mentor,no encouragement, no feedback We justdidn 't get on and it is horrible to work inthat sort of situation.' However, thingsimproved somewhat after this. Adam didnot acknowledge that their relationshipwas in some difficulties. Anne openlystated that she and Adam did notcommunicate.

Adam seemed to like the semantic mapAnne produced for the integrated themeshe was to begin in her continuousteaching after the vacation. She designedher own sets of activities for each of the

contributing subject areas and then wrotegeneral and specific objectives to beachieved in her program.

Adam notes that he and other mentorshave been rather tense about keeping areflective journal. Personally, he doesn 'tlike writing secret notes, especially ifthey might in some way affect theassociate teacher's job chances, and sohe has adopted the practice of askingAnne to read and sign his notes abouther performance. However, he doesn'treally like the idea of the journal.

Anne doesn't believe the associateteachers' meetings with her universitysupervisors worked very well. While shedoesn't think that combined meetingswith the teacher mentors would workeither, the separate meetings often did notallow the associate teachers sufficienttime to say what they were feeling andthinking. As associate meetings followedthe meetings with mentors, theysometimes started late and then furthertime was taken to communicatesummaries of what the mentors weresaying. As schools are very politicalplaces, and 'the walls have ears 'Annesuggests that associate teacher meetingswith university supervisors may be betterif held back at the university and for alonger period of time. However, Annehad taken the opportunity to consult withher university supervisors independentlyabout her concerns and the work she wasdoing. She appreciated their recognitionand reinforcement that she was doingeverything that she could in a verydifficult situation. She only took thisaction after trying very hard to discussmatters with her own mentor, to no avail.

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Case 1.2 Adam and Anthony.1995Both mentor and associate teacher

perceived that they got on well together,

both personally and professionally.

Adam, the mentor, described himself as a

person who normally liked to teach on

his own; one who didn't even particularly

like to have parents in his classroom.

However, while he was not sure how

things would turn out if he had been

allocated another associate teacher with

whom he didn't get along personally, in

this instance, he noted that he got on

really well with Anthony, for he is

friendly and approachable. When he was

doing his continuous work, it was just

like 'having another teacher in the room.'

He had checked his opinion with the

children and they confirmed that they

also liked Anthony. His observations

reinforced this for he noted that the

children worked well for Anthony.

A good rapport between mentor and

associate teacher was obviously an

important issue for Adam, this time. He

noted that six weeks was a long time to

work with someone with whom you don't

get along, and expressed the view that it

would be valuable to make more active

efforts to match the associate teachers

with their classroom mentors. He

acknowledged that the meetings with the

university supervisors helped to sort out

some problems along the way and

presumed that, if the associate teachers

were handpicked for the program, they

should cope with a degree of

interpersonal conflict. However, if there

was a personality clash ... (the doubt

remains!)

Adam described his own mentoring style

as one in which he allows the associate

teacher a guided amount of professional

freedom. His main role was to give just

little points of advice. Adam didn't think

that his assessment role affected their

relationship. He thought that Anthony

believed his advice was generally sound.

Adam described the internship as a

professional development exercise for

himself for, while it was a lot more work

to have the associate teacher in the

classroom for a more extended time

period, there was also always something

going on and the mentor had to reflect

constantly about what he or she was

doing.

Adam believed there were mixed benefitsin having the associate teachers and theirmentors and other teachers sharing acommon staffroom, where they ate lunchtogether and engaged in generalconversation, for this enabled the former'to share a lot more as part of the school,not as outsiders coming in', whichseemed often to be the case withassociate teachers in a traditionalpracticum.

For his part, Anthony thought that the

terms used within the internship process

to refer to university students engaged in

the internship was an important issue. He

did not favour the term 'associate

teacher' and preferred 'visiting teachers'

or 'preservice teachers'. He recalled that

the Principal, on one occasion during

this internship, inadvertently referred to

the group publicly as student teachers',

but he couldn 't really complain, for other

teachers in the school and parents have

generally treated him more as a

professional teacher. Anthony described

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his professional relationship with hismentor as good. Adam mostly treated himas a colleague rather than as anassociate and he felt no inhibitions aboutraising questions with his mentor, all ofwhich have been answered. Anthonyperceived that he had been encouragedby his supervisor to try out a range oftechniques after consultation with Adamand, as a result of this professionalfreedom, 'I actually felt like I was ateacher.' He appreciated the positivefeedback and suggestions for subsequentaction provided by his mentor. Suchadvice was not seen as dictatorial ordemanding, and Anthony invariably sawthe common sense inherent in it.

Case 2.1 Eve and Evan. 1994This is a Year Six classroom where Eve isthe supervising teacher and Evan is thepre-service teacher. Eve had some initialconcerns about the internship as she hasa number of troublesome boys in theclass. They had given even experiencedteachers a hard time in the past and sheworried that they might try to set Evan upand this would not be fair to him.However, her concerns proved to beunfounded. Evan visited the classroom onseveral occasions prior to the internship.When he did, he brought interactiveactivities with him to work with thechildren so they never actually saw himjust sitting and observing. He spent thetwo days prior to the internship in theclassroom where he worked out newgroup arrangements. After checking thesewith his supervising teacher, Evanrearranged all the furniture for his officialcommencement on the first Monday.

Eve and Evan were successful in forging

a collaborative partnership. Everecounted that she thought it importantthat the children didn 't see Evan as anassociate teacher and herself as the realteacher. She therefore took care to ensurethe children saw them operate on anequal footing. In fact, she believed theywere underway working as a team evenbefore the internship started. From thebeginning, she had Evan really involvedwith the children and they 'felt thatsometimes' he would be teaching,sometimes I would be teaching and oftenwe were teaching together! Evan agreedthat his professional interactions withEve had been great - 'We 've got a goodrapport going.' They worked as a teamcomparing information and ideas,especially about behaviour management,routine management and the class itselfwhile Evan did his own planning, henoted that he and Eve taught togethertaking turns as lead and support teacher.

Eve believed that there was no conflict intheir expectations regarding mentoringand related aspects of the internship.They spent considerable time before andafter school discussing their mutualexpectations. They agreed there were tobe no hard and fast rules on Evan'splanning, as long as it was effective andtheir joint teaching was achieving theirpredetermined aims and objectives. Evannotes that Eve gave him free rein indetermining the ways he taught and howhe handled the class. He appreciated hehad been given this freedom, andcontrasts his own situation with that ofsome of the other associate teachers,where their mentors did not appear to beconversant with the internship guidelinesgiven to the associates by the university.

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Here, communication had broken downand early friction resulted.

Eve notes that she and Evan also sharedtheir journals. They agreed there were tobe no secrets between them and a lot oftime was spent before and after schooldiscussing their notes about how differentchildren had reacted to the learningexperiences provided. In her words,'From the first week, we felt as if we were

part of a team'. The feelings of mutualrespect were probably enhanced by Eve'sperception that she was also learningfrom Evan's experience. She notes, 'I'vealso learnt from his experiences. He'sbeen to other schools and done differentthings. That's why I think it's not just aone-way street. I learn from him and helearns from me.' She would be very happyto be a mentor in the internship again,although she added it may be different ifthere were to be a personality clash.

That he began to teach immediately was,in Evan's view, a significant factor inchildren accepting his equal partnershipwith his supervisor so well. He wasaware that he probably broke the rules,but it has worked out well for him. Onthe wider supervisory front, Evan foundthe school principal very considerate andhelpful. He believes he has learnt a lot inwatching closely how he operates, for hewas the most effective principal he hadseen. He had his finger on the pulse, wasastute, in touch with where changes ineducation were occurring, and gave hisstaff great support.

Case 2.2 Eve and Evonne. 1995Both mentor (Eve) and associate teacher(Evonne) thought there would be achance prior to the internship to matchup mentors with individual associateteachers. Evonne thought that this wouldhave provided her with an opportunity tobecome aware of particular strengths ofdifferent teachers and enable her tomatch up with a teacher strong inlanguage and literature, which were herparticular interests. However, forwhatever reasons, this was not the case,they were matched on different bases.Eve thought there would have been realproblems if there was to be a personalityclash between supervisor and associateteacher. In her own case, however, thisdid not occur and she and Evonne got onwell together personally, although theircurriculum strengths and interests aresomewhat different.

In planning, Evonne and Eve workedcollaboratively on a weekly programwhich was referenced from the SourceBooks within a longer-term planningframework. Evonne found thisparticularly helpful and noted, 'Mymentor has been extremely helpful insharing how she plans.'

Eve noted that Evonne readily asked foradvice whenever she feels she needed it.Eve also initiated the offering of advice,whenever she felt it appropriate, and shebelieved this was accepted by Evonne inthe spirit intended, and that it was notperceived by her as critical of herteaching in any personal way. Evonnewas in need of a partner who couldsuggest interesting and different thingstoo in the areas of Maths and inmanagement strategies, even though she

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was more confident in putting forward

her ideas in the areas she favoured. Eve

set aside a certain time each day to

discuss the things that needed change

and the others where they could share

new strategies.

Eve found that in this second experience

of working with an associate teacher that

Evonne needed more nurturing and more

direction than did her first associate

teacher. Eve found that many a time she

was stepping back from the leading

position to give Evonne the chance to

advance alternative ideas. "The problem

of dominating someone as nice and quiet

as Evonne is one that a mentor must be

aware of or you start to act like a

supervisor all over again.'

Eve had no difficulty with the final reportrequired of mentors by the university, forshe was able to apply the guidelines thaiwere provided. The fact that it gave theassociates a chance to express their ownideas about themselves was a plus in hereyes.

These two cases exemplify two verydifferent mentors as seen through theirown and the associates' eyes. The case ofAdam illustrates the extent to which hisactions indicated a mindset that wasrelated to a rigid, formal and authoritarianmodel rather than to a constructivistmodel. His actions were directive,atomistic in viewing the associate'steaching, analytic and with an objectivistorientation to the goals of the associateteachers learning the skills andknowledge through a set curriculum ofactivities. In the first year, the mindsetand actions clashed with those of theassociate who was therefore disappointed

and highly critical of the 'mentoring'experience. In the second year, theassociate conceded to the actions andmindset of Adam and so the partnershiphere was acceptable. In no way did eitherassociate feel empowered through afeeling of equality. These actions weremore indicative of a 'supervision'mindset, even though a change to thementoring mindset was occurring overtime.

The case of Eve has exemplified amentor with an appropriate mindset. Inboth cases she was flexible, facilitativeand responsive to the needs of theassociate, holistic in viewing teaching,reflective and with a constructivisticorientation to the associate teachers'exploration of strategies and ideasthrough a negotiated curriculum. Bothassociate teachers were conscious of anequality in the relationship and were bothnurtured and challenged within theexercising of this 'mentoring' mindset

DiscussionIn investigating the mentoring mindsetsof mentor/associate teacher partnershipsfrom which professional developmentresults (through these internship trials), alist of some of the noticeable commonelements of a mentoring mindset can becompiled. The mentor emerged as doingthese things

• earning the trust and therefore thefriendship and respect of the learner

tolerating the learning style of

learners

• accepting but challenging themistakes and differences of thelearner

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• accepting that there are times when

help is needed and doing this with a

minimum of fuss

• taking the learner from where theywere and developing the person fromthere

• responding to the needs of thelearner in both personal andprofessional areas

• taking every problem in their stridespending the time to talk about thepractices or preferred pedagogy thatthey were operationalising

• being dynamic and creative in theirteaching

• encouraging the initiation of sharedinnovation

• sharing confidences on the politicalatmosphere within the school

• reflecting together on the way thatthe school and the professionalcommunity impacted on their workas teachers.

These last three ways of workingcollaboratively together and empoweringeach other gave the impression that theseeds of constructivism may be sown.

One factor that was voiced by theassociate teachers in interview was theirfeeling of equality or lack of it. Thementor who established a trustingrelationship dialogued and debated withthe associate teachers about theirpractices and shared their own teachingstories, felt himself to be professionallyempowered. When it came to the finalassessment, which was to write their ownreport around the nominated goals and to

be rated either 'satisfactory' or'unsatisfactory', the associate teachersfelt that the mentors who gaveresponsibility and therefore encouragedautonomy, were the least threatening inassessment was considered a significantstep forward in the establishment ofcollegiality, democratisation and fairness.

It became evident that the experiences inworking with their peers thatsupervisors/mentors/school-based teachereducators have before and during theirteaching lives form the ways in whichthey believe one works with studentteachers/ associate teachers/ adultlearners within the context of theirclassroom. This is especially difficult forteachers of primary children and bringsto the school-based context the fact thatthey are not only teaching children butadults in the same classroom. Do theteaching platforms that mentors havebuilt during their lives work for both setsof learners?

For too long we have allowed teachers toteach adults as they have taught theirchildren in their classrooms. And this iswhat they do. If they have a constructivistclassroom then they will do these thingswith both adults and children.

It is a mistake to think that mentors whohad been good as practice teachingsupervisors will necessarily be good asmentors. But some were good at both. Itemerged from the data that as supervisorsthey had very different mindsets fromthose who became mentors.

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ConclusionWith the advent of school-based teachereducation through the avenue ofinternships there is obviously a paradigmshift from the practice teaching sessionsand a challenge to the old terms ofsupervising teacher and student teachertoo. The mindsets associated with theterms were out- dated and could not beused with the changes anticipated. Thiswas indeed indicated by the newexpectations that would breed newfunctions in the areas of relationships,program and a whole new mindset

From prior experiences of supervisingpractice teaching, platforms or mindsetsare shaped with regard to valuingspecific subject matter and the processesthrough which this should be conveyed tolearners. Therefore, exploration of thenature of knowledge (How knowledge iscreated and how it is acquired andunderstood by learners, Shuell, 1992)held by mentors as adult educators isessential. This appears especially true forthose learning to teach and thus gainingin professional development from withina dyad (mentor plus an associate teacher)during an internship.

Finally, with each new trial the wealth ofexperience of the participants and thenew research that is being done alsosuggests new parameters for thefacilitators of internship programs tofollow with mentorship preparation. Onepoint stands out - that the internship willalso be culturally sensitive andresponsive to the associate teachersundergoing the program as well asworking through the mentoring mindset

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