Nurses in management and clinical positions in all areas of the country are experiencing role changes due to restructuring within the health care industry. Nurses have an opportunity to embrace and enhance these changes as the trend toward Patient Focused Care continues which entails a restructuring of care delivery at all levels.Oncology nurses are specifically encouraged by the Oncology Nursing Society to mentor other nurses. The purpose of this study was to examine the concept of mentoring as related to oncology nurses who have experienced role changes due to redesigns in the health care delivery systems. The theoretical framework used in this study was Benner's "From Novice to Expert."A convenience sample of 88 oncology nurses were surveyed. The Darling Measuring Mentoring Potential Scale (MMP), a demographic questionnaire, and a cover letter were mailed. Respondent confidentiality was maintained and the procedures for protection of human subjects were followed. A descriptive correlational design was used. The research questions were analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis. Means and standard deviation of mentoring characteristics were also obtained on the clustered scores. Findings of the study indicated a small, but significant difference between levels of education, role changes and mentoring potential. Levels of education and role changes accounted for 15% of the differences in mentoring potential scores. However, the mean scores for both the clustered basic and supporting mentoring characteristics were below the suggested scores as suggested for a substantial mentoring relationship.Conclusions from the study were that the concept of mentoring is still not prevalent among oncology nurses and does not play an important role in the professional lives of the respondents. The concept of mentoring needs to be formally addressed in nursing education as well as in hospital staff education and leadership programs. There needs to be continuing research regarding the concept of mentoring within the nursing profession in order to promote the benefits of this concept so that nurses may join with those in other professions to enjoy the products of mentoring. / School of Nursing

Learning communities (LCs) have increasingly been incorporated into undergraduate medical education at a number of medical schools in the United States over the past decade. In an Association of Medical Colleges survey of 140 medical schools, 102 schools indicated that they had LC (described as colleges or mentorship groups; https://www.aamc.org/initiatives/cir/425510/19a.html). LCs share an overarching principle of establishing longitudinal relationships with students and faculty, but differ in the emphasis on specific components that may include curriculum delivery, advising/mentoring, student wellness, and community. The creation of LCs requires institutional commitment to reorganize educational processes to become more student centered. LCs are beginning to show positive outcomes for students including benefits related to clinical skills development, advising, and student wellness, in addition to positive outcomes for LC faculty.

Due to teacher shortages, school districts have offered incentives and alternative licensure programs. Recently, however, school districts have shifted the focus from recruitment to one of teacher retention which places an emphasis upon beginning teacher induction programs. These programs help teachers improve in their craft of teaching, help teachers remain satisfied with their jobs, help teachers enculturate into the districts in which they work, and help to improve student achievement. This quantitative study examined fifth year teachers’ perceptions of their induction programs in terms of teacher retention. The 280 eligible teachers from three different school districts were asked to participate by completing an electronic survey, which asked questions regarding their experiences and perceptions of their induction program, and by participating in a focus group session. No statistical significance was shown between the different components of the induction program and teacher retention. However, by examining the means of responses given and the frequencies, reviewers may be able to glean information, indicating which components were more positively perceived by teachers. Findings suggest that learning styles, attitudes, and professional growth needs have more of an impact upon teacher perception of the value of the different components. In order to retain good teachers in the classroom, staff developers need to offer a wide range of professional growth opportunities. For the staff developer, designing an induction program which meets the needs and learning styles of all beginning teachers becomes problematic.

M.Cur. / It has been demonstrated that mentoring improves outcomes at both the individual and organizational level. The shortage of skilled human resources in nursing has indicated the need for mentoring. However, no formalized framework exists on how mentoring in the context of nurse unit managers should occur, despite mentoring being a legal requirement (South Africa, 2004:26). The intention of this study was to develop a mentoring strategy for nurse unit managers in private hospitals in Gauteng. The mentoring needs of nurse unit managers in private hospitals in Gauteng were determined and conceptualized and a framework developed on which the development of a mentoring strategy could be based. A quantitative descriptive research design was followed to develop a mentoring strategy for Nurse Unit managers in private hospitals in Gauteng. Probability sampling was employed (Burns & Grove, 2005:348). A clustered sample (Burns & Grove, 2005:348) of private hospitals within the three regions of Tshwane, Johannesburg Central and Ekurhuleni was drawn. From these a random sample of nurse unit managers in private hospitals within the clusters was drawn. A self-developed closed-ended questionnaire (see Annexure 1) was utilized to collect data on the mentoring needs of nurse unit managers. Data was analysed using the Statistical Package of Social Sciences (SPSS), and a statistician at the University of Johannesburg was consulted. Descriptive statistics were employed to analyse data (Burns & Grove, 2005:442). Content validity was ensured and the instrument piloted to ensure its reliability. An external statistician was consulted to ensure the credibility or validity of the data analysis and interpretation. Ethical approval was sought and measures implemented to ensure the ethical nature of the study. The descriptive data that was analysed included the biographical data – age, gender, race, home language, highest level of qualification, employment status, length of service, length of position, clinical area and the number of work hours of nurse unit managers.The ANOVA statistical results revealed a moderate need for mentoring of nurse unit managers in all of the management dimensions. Recommendations for further research were outlined and a conclusion on the need for nurse unit managers to be mentored was drawn.The researcher noted from reviews of the numerous literature sources, mentoring improves the quality of patient care and cost-effectiveness, and ensures the competitiveness of private hospitals. What this study provides is insight into the mentoring needs and management functions of nurse unit managers working in private hospitals.

This qualitative case study was designed to explore how mentors in a formal mentoring program perceive their experience. The study is based upon the following assumptions: (1) mentors have experienced challenges; (2) mentors have had positive experiences in a mentoring dyad; (3) mentors will share their experiences; (4) the organization evaluates mentoring efforts by analyzing the mentees’ outcomes only; and (5) the organization offers support to the mentor. The site for the study was a global retailer located in New York, New York that had a formal mentoring program. The primary sources of data were: in-depth interviews with 19 former mentors, a focus group, and a document review. Mezirow (1990) proposed a process that one undergoes in a transformative learning event. In his model, individuals must have a dialogue with trusted others for support as they examine their prior roles. Therefore, it can be assumed that having a mentor could be instrumental in one’s transformative learning experience (Brookfield, 1987). Daloz (2000) proposed that for a transformative learning event to occur, there must be “the presence of the other, reflective discourse, a mentoring community, and opportunities for committed action” (p. 112). These concepts provided a construct for analysis and synthesis of the research findings. Although this study sought to examine how mentors perceived their role, a key finding revealed that participants were motivated by the desire to gain visibility. This impetus shaped their experience greatly. Further, the findings identified three categories of mentors: (1) those who accepted the role to appease management and possessed no desire to be a mentor, hence termed the Disgruntled: (2) those who were invested to the organization and had a desire to help others, and thus are Believers; and (3) those that were invested in the relationship, but had personal agendas for being in the role, called the Politicos. The primary recommendation from this study is that human resources need to be thoughtful in how they structure and monitor the mentoring dyad. This includes allowing participation in the program to be voluntary, providing training, and checking in with each member throughout the duration of the engagement.

This research explored the experiences of mentors mentoring institutionalised children under the auspices of Big Brothers Big Sisters of South Africa (BBBSSA). Children who become wards of the state and are placed in Children’s Homes may have had a number of their emotional needs unmet during developmental stages, manifesting in a variety of ways not least of which might be the development of an institutionalised mentality. These children are disadvantaged at age 18 when they enter the world with limited resources, infrastructure or the ability to be self-reliant. Mentoring may represent a means of ameliorating these repercussions and this qualitative research included exploring whether mentors engaged in any strategies to empower their protégé to reduce the effects of an institutionalised mentality, the successes achieved through the mentoring process as well as encountered challenges. The sample was purposively chosen and the seven participants had mentored for longer than a year at a Children’s Home. The data was gathered from them via semi-structured interviews. Data was analysed in light of the research questions, research tool and any subsequent themes that emerged. Mentoring through a programme appeared to enhance relationship longevity because of the structure it created. While growing themselves through the process, mentors reflected that preparing their protégé for adulthood was a concern. The mentors discussed that while not familiar with the concept of an institutionalised mentality per se, they recognised this as a challenge their protégés faced and described their attempts to empower them on mental, emotional and physical levels reporting small successes in often challenging circumstances. The study concludes that mentoring programmes offer a valuable tool in the preparation of institutionalised children for their emancipation from State care and should be capitalised on. Recommendations are made for policy makers, BBBSSA and the Children’s Home in light of these experiences.

Mentoring is a crucial aspect of entrepreneurial training and education (Sullivan, 2000; Regis, Falk, & Dias, 2007) and it is entrepreneurial education that is perceived as the solution that will turn South Africans from job-seekers into job creators (North, 2002). It is also hoped that entrepreneurship education will contribute to the ideal of empowering as many people as possible in order to unleash the previously stifled human potential of all South Africans (Hanekom,1995). Unfortunately, South Africans suffer from a ‘dearth of entrepreneurial acumen’, and this has resulted in the frequent lack of growth and high failure rates of businesses (Nieman, 2006; van Aardt & van Aardt, 1997). In order to measure the relationship between mentoring and entrepreneurial self-efficacy, an online questionnaire was sent out to Jewish entrepreneurs who are clients of ORT JET, a non-profit organisation that offers mentoring to entrepreneurs of the South African Jewish community. This study found that while mentoring does not have a positive perceived effect on the entrepreneurial self-efficacy of entrepreneurs, other factors-such as GSE and a supportive community-may have more of a positive impact on entrepreneurial self-efficacy.

Coaching has been identified as a primary means of enabling growth, development, retention and change amongst those employed in organisations. Executive and external coaching are the primary means of delivering this coaching, and, as a result, coaching often only reaches those at the most senior levels of the organisation. The use of the manager-coach in South African organisations is not widespread but coaching has been identified as a key component of effective leadership in the 21st century and it has been suggested that it is a key leadership style. This research therefore explores the roles that manager-coaches can play in an organisation as well as the skills required to optimise this role. This research therefore took place in an organisation that is implementing a manager-coach approach. Coupled with this was the concept of work-life balance and the realities that working women face in attempting to achieve work-life balance, with the primary objective of the research being to identify the roles and skills needed by the manager-coach to optimise the work-life balance of working women. The data was gathered through face-to-face interviews and contact with a representative focus group and analysed by means of content and thematic analysis. A detailed literature review covering the areas of coaching, and in particular manager-coaching, what optimal work-life balance is as well as the realities facing working women in attempting to achieve work-life balance was also conducted. The findings show that, to optimise work-life balance in working women, the manager-coach plays a critical role in communicating with working women and optimising flexibility and choice for these women. In addition to this, the findings showed that the manager-coach plays a role in facilitating the growth and development of the women who report to them, as well as enabling their performance and providing recognition. The findings showed that these roles are enabled by manager-coach skills such as empathy, support and effective communication. The research concludes by reflecting that the manager-coach has an important role to play in enabling choice and flexibility and the growth and development of working women and it is anticipated that this has a direct impact on both the work-life balance and the retention of these women in the workplace.

Wong Sing-Leung, Philip. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 54-62). / Abstract and questionnare in English and Chinese. / Abstract --- p.4-5 / Introduction --- p.6-15 / The pilot interviews --- p.16-21 / The survey / Chapter ´Ø --- Method --- p.22 -29 / Chapter ´Ø --- Results --- p.50 -35 / Chapter ´Ø --- Discussion --- p.36 -53 / References --- p.54 -61 / Tables and Figures --- p.63 -87 / Appendices --- p.88-117

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No. of bitstreams: 3 license_text: 22064 bytes, checksum: ef48816a10f2d45f2e2fee2f478e2faf (MD5) license_rdf: 23148 bytes, checksum: 9da0b6dfac957114c6a7714714b86306 (MD5) 2015LucyAparecidaGutierrezdeAlcantara.pdf: 1526315 bytes, checksum: 666e98b85e3409195f8e9f77fab2b982 (MD5) / O presente trabalho é embasado em estudos sobre formação continuada de professores para a utilização das tecnologias. A investigação desenvolveu-se com duas professoras integrantes de um curso de formação continuada para a utilização de tablets nas aulas de Matemática. A proposta do curso, de uma formação ancorada na prática, incluiu não apenas as sessões presenciais, mas também um período considerável de integração do conhecimento teórico à prática de sala de aula das duas professoras. Essa ação apoiou-se no mentoring, apresentado por Amado (2007) como uma relação interpessoal, baseada na confiança e no apoio, que se desenvolveu por meio do acompanhamento da formadora/pesquisadora, tanto nas sessões do curso, quanto no planejamento e nas aulas em que as professoras utilizaram as tecnologias com os seus alunos. A sequência didática da formação embasou-se no modelo TPACK (Conhecimento Tecnológico e Pedagógico do Conteúdo), apresentado por Koehler e Mishra (2006, 2007, 2009) que consideram fundamental aos professores o desenvolvimento desse conhecimento para que possam integrar de modo eficiente as tecnologias nas suas aulas. Consistiu em uma tentativa de formação mais abrangente, que fosse além da instrução técnica e envolvesse o desenvolvimento individual, profissional e institucional da carreira docente. A pesquisa teve como objetivo verificar a trajetória de desenvolvimento das duas professoras na utilização das tecnologias e se desenvolveu por meio de uma abordagem qualitativa caracterizada como um estudo de caso. Com essa opção de pesquisa, pretendeu-se conhecer, de forma profunda e tão completa quanto possível, a trajetória de desenvolvimento das duas professoras no uso das tecnologias. Procurou-se, mediante a análise dos dois casos particulares, captar a densidade e a singularidade dos diferentes percursos, as situações específicas ocorridas durante a formação, que se supõem únicas em muitos aspectos. A opção metodológica e o objetivo da pesquisa levaram a estabelecer a coleta de dados por meio da observação participante, de entrevistas semiestruturadas, gravações e diário de bordo, que permitiram à pesquisadora estudar os fatos em seu ambiente natural. Os resultados apontaram que a proposta contribuiu no desenvolvimento profissional das duas professoras e que a estratégia de mentoring, ainda que produzindo reflexos diferenciados na trajetória de desenvolvimento de cada uma das professoras e no avanço do seu conhecimento tecnológico e pedagógico do conteúdo, foi decisiva para o progresso alcançado. / The present work is grounded in studies about continuing education for teachers on the use of technologies. The research study was developed with two teachers participants of a continuing education course for the use of tablets in Mathematics classes. The purpose of the course, a formation anchored on practice, included not only the attendance sessions, but also a considerable period of integration between the theoretical knowledge and the classroom practice of the teachers. This action was supported on mentoring, presented by Amado (2007) as an interpersonal relationship, based on trust and support, that was developed through the monitoring of the trainer/researcher, both in the sessions of the course and in the planning and classes where the teachers used the technology with their students. The didactic sequence of the formation was based on the TPACK framework (Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge), presented by Koehler and Mishra (2006, 2007, 2009), who consider essential to teachers the development of this kind of knowledge so that they can integrate efficiently the technologies in their classrooms. It consisted of an attempt to more broad formation, going beyond the technical instruction and involving the individual, professional and institutional development of the teacher career. The research aimed to determine the developmental trajectory of the two teachers in the use of technologies and evolved through a qualitative approach characterized as a case study. With this search option, it was intended to know, as deeply and thoroughly as possible, the developmental trajectories of the two teachers in the use of technologies. Through the analysis of two particular cases, the study sought to capture the density and the uniqueness of different trajectories and the specific situations occurred during the formation, which are supposed unique in many ways. The methodological option and the aim of the research led to establish the data collection through participant observation, semi-structured interviews, recordings and logbook, which allowed the researcher to study the facts in their natural environment. The results showed that the proposal contributed to the professional development of both teachers and that the mentoring strategy, although producing different effects on the development trajectory of each of the teachers and on the advancing of their technological knowledge, was decisive for the progress achieved.