The purpose of the study was to identify the components of an effective workplace mentorship. Twenty-five panelists participated in a three-round Delphi study to reach a consensus on these components. The panelists were (1) local school-site teachers and school-to-work coordinators, (2) community college school-to-work coordinators, (3) directors of tech-prep consortia, and representatives from (4) business and industry, (5) labor and management, (6) corporate rsearch, and (7) federal government. A two-round pilot study was conducted to test the initial open-ended questions for round 1 and to test the survey instrument developed for round 2. Feedback from the pilot study was used to develop the open-ended questionnaire instrument in round 1 and the Likert scale used in round 2 of the study. Criteria of an effective workplace mentorship were retained in both rounds 2 and 3 if 80% of the respondents rated them "important" or "very important." The study produced 93 criteria in five categories necessary for an effective workplace mentorship. The five categories were: (1) program structure; (2) recruitment, selection, and placement; (3) support activities; (4) program outcomes and evaluation; and (5) ethics. A sixth category, barriers and obstacles to an effective workplace mentorship, was included in the survey and contained four responses. These four responses were summarized along with the 93 criteria of an effective workplace mentorship. A checklist of criteria is included for the assessment of existing programs or to aid those implementing new programs. / Ed. D.

Using a staff development approach, this doctor of nursing practice project addressed the preparation of nurses who serve in the role of mentors. Developed and carried out in an American Nurses Credentialing Center Magnet-designated hospital, the primary aim of the project was to develop and implement a staff education program for mentors focusing on best-practice strategies for mentoring new nurses. The secondary purpose was to conduct a literature review on evidence-based practice strategies for mentoring new nurses. This project was guided by Knowles' adult learning theory and Benner's novice to expert model. A 2-hour education program was attended by 16 registered nurses, including 2 assistant nurse managers, 12 clinical nurses, and 2 unit-educators. A program evaluation was completed showing 2 RNs indicating interest in initiating a unit-based mentorship program. Two nursing units reported current mentorship programs already in place. Evaluation results were summarized and reported to the education council chair. Improvements in knowledge scores on mentorship was ascertained from the results of a posttest that were higher (average score of 83.125%) than the scores noted on the pretest (average score of 70%). Potential implications of the project include improving the morale of mentors who would be well equipped through organized mentorship education programs with tools for preparing, training, and developing new nurses. The findings of this project have the potential to positively influence social change by assisting in achieving higher nurse retention rates leading to improved patient outcomes.

The thesis "Identification of characteristics mentoring relationship in doctoral education" is divided into several main areas. The theoretical part of the thesis defines the basic concepts and theories for solving the problems defined dissertation and also deals with the issue of doctoral studies at universities. Based on theoretical assumptions, the research questions, which focused on the evaluation of doctoral studies. Rating is based on the student doctoral program because, as indicated resources are an important component of innovative ideas and have to some degree a significant impact on the level doktorskéhého efficiency program in the Czech Republic. The aim of this study was to identify the characteristics of the mentoring relationship and consider how they appear from the perspective of the student's doctoral program in a relationship with his trainer, focusing on arts fields of study. In the empirical part was gathered by interviewing primary data, personal interviews and electronic questionnaires. The data were processed using multivariate methods (correspondence analysis, factor analysis), multinomial regression and multiple regression. Based on the above statistical methods were found to have significant dependence between the observed variables and also were overall evaluated factors that are sensitive to the needs of the student's doctoral program depending on the set of predictors. The results of the dissertation was based on a synthesis of knowledge embedded in the context of previous research with potential for further expansion in theoretical and practical.

The aim was to find out the experiences of mentoring and its introduction in social services. The object was achieved by interviewing experienced social worker who had a few years of work experience in social services. Our study was an attempt to understand how mentoring can be seen during the induction period for newly qualified social workers in social services. To get an understanding of the interviewees' perceptions of mentoring, we tooke help of a Human Resources perspective. In the study, we used a qualitative research with data collection based on semi-structured interviews. The sample consisted of a convenience sample of five experienced social workers in department’s financial assistance and child and youth care. According to the study result it is important to have a mentoring and a comprehensive introduction, since it benefits the entire organization. All respondents in the study felt that a mentoring provides security and a check for recent graduates. Based on the results we have seen that even if an organization has an elaborate mentoring program/introduction program it’s not guaranteed to be completed. / Syftet med studien var att undersöka erfarna socialsekreterares uppfattningar kring mentorskap samt den introduktion nyutexaminerade får inom socialtjänsten. Syftet uppnådes genom intervjuer med erfarna socialsekreterare som har arbetslivserfarenheter inom socialtjänsten. Studien kan ses som ett försök till att förstå hur mentorskap kan uppfattas under introduktionsperioden för nyutexaminerade socionomer inom socialtjänsten. För att få en förståelse för intervjupersonernas uppfattningar kring mentorskap har ett Human Resource (HR) perspektiv använts. Studien är kvalitativ och baserad på semistrukturerade intervjuer. Urvalet bestod av ett fem erfarna socialsekreterare inom avdelningarna ekonomiskt bistånd och barn- och ungdomsvården. Resultat påvisade vikten av att tillämpa ett mentorskap och en innehållsrik introduktion. Detta var något som gynnade hela organisationen. Mentorskapet upplevdes bidra till trygghet och kontroll för de nyutexaminerade. Utifrån resultatet har vi kunnat konstatera att även om en organisation har ett utarbetat mentorskapsprogram/introduktionsprogram är det inte garanterat att det fullföljs.

The theoretical part of the thesis consists of literary research focused on mentoring, mentoring relationship, goals and importance of mentoring, kinds and phases of mentoring, mentoring at the beginning of a teacher's career, mentoring in the course of his / her career, giving examples of implemented projects which were aimed at mentoring, and the relationship between the mentor and the learning organization. The main goal of the empirical part is to elaborate a model example for effective use of mentoring in nursery schools as a potential tool leading to the learning organization. Some necessary requirements and ideal conditions for implementing the internal mentoring in the nursery school are stated, the time schedule for implementing the internal mentoring has been elaborated, and both formal and content part for its implementation has been suggested, including some advice and recommendations. Three tools have been used in the empirical part of the thesis: research into mentoring in selected nursery schools, observations of the interaction between the mentor and the mentee with a specified goal of mentoring and observations of the cooperation between the mentor and the mentee in a selected nursery school during a controlled activity, analysis of internal mentoring materials in a selected...

Since South Africa’s democratic government was elected to power in 1994, much attention has been given to restructuring the country’s education system. Peer-mentoring is one approach to meet current challenges in education given high teacher:learner ratios, greater diversity in student population and majority of learners being taught in English, their second and even third language. This research examined the impact of a peermentoring reading intervention with second language Grade 9 learners. The study utilized a sample of Grade 9 learners (N = 173) from a school in Gauteng. Biographical information was obtained and these learners were pre-tested in Grade 8 and post-tested in Grade 9 2007, using the Stanford Diagnostic Reading Test (SDRT). The entire Grade 9 group received the reading intervention for three months and their results were compared to a comparison group from the previous year who received no intervention. Results of learners’ vocabulary, comprehension and academic achievement scores were compared. Although both the comparison and the experimental groups showed an improvement on their vocabulary and comprehension scores, the experimental group’s gains were significantly higher. Of the Grade 9 experimental group, 30 learners (mentees) received individual paired reading mentoring and their scores were examined to determine the extent of improvement. The mentees group showed similar significant gains in their vocabulary and comprehension scores, and showed an overall improvement in their academic marks. Challenges faced, limitations and recommendations for future study are discussed.

This thesis introduces a topic of mentoring of novice teachers in Finland. The main goal is to analyse a novice teachers peer-group mentoring model as a case study of project Paedeia Café and evaluate its advantages and disadvantages in comparison to dyadic form of mentoring. Further, to bring ideas for implementation of Finnish experiences into Czech context. In theoretical part, we define mentoring in teaching profession, then we briefly introduce specifics of Finnish education system, peer-group mentoring and Paedeia Café. The research part analyses interview with mentors, novice teachers and manager of the project as well as participating observations. The results of the study show that Paedeia Café is a project which connects experienced teachers and students in last years of their studies. The advantages of the project are financial savings and creation of a space for discussion about professional issues. Disadvantages are more difficult structure, confusion of mentor's roles and low support in academic literature. In the Czech Republic, we can be inspired by a connection of experienced teachers and students, also by a space for sharing teaching profession experience in informal atmosphere. This thesis is a contribution to a discussion about the teacher career system in the Czech Republic...

The purpose of this qualitative, narratological research was to gain a deeper understanding of the stories of three African American counselor educators who experienced research mentorship as counseling students and faculty members while working towards tenure. The three participants were employed as assistant professors in CACREP-accredited counselor education graduate programs provided their perspectives of research mentorship. The primary research question for my research was: How do pre-tenured African American female counselor educators perceive their research mentorship experiences? The foundation for my study was provided by the review of literature focused on critical race theory, marginalized groups in academe, mentorship among specific populations, and research mentorship Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. The transcribed interviews, vitas, and faculty profiles were analyzed by within-case and cross-case analysis. The findings indicated seven super-ordinate themes. 1) Benefits of Research Mentorship, 2) Social Racial Membership with Other Forms of Marginalization, 3) Professional Networking/Support, 4) Perceptions of Institutional Climate and Culture, 5) Perceptions of Research Mentoring Experiences, 6) Barriers of Research Mentorship, and 7) Behaviors that Foster Effective Research Mentoring. Implications for students and counselor educators along with recommendations for future research are presented. Personal reflections of the researcher are provided.

The inadequacy of entrepreneurial knowledge among 21-25 year olds in Nigeria with recent undergraduate degrees has led to youth unemployment after graduating from universities. The development of entrepreneurship skills through entrepreneurship education programs for the students in tertiary institutions in Nigeria may bridge the unemployment gap. Guided by the theory of planned behavior, the purpose of this exploratory multiple case study was to gain a robust common understanding of how undergraduates from 21-25 years old can obtain the entrepreneurial knowledge required for self-employment in Nigeria. Data collection involved semistructured interviews, field notes, and archived training documents, with a purposeful sample of 15 undergraduate degree holders over 21 years old, who had been self-employed, in different industries and possessed entrepreneurial knowledge and experiences. Using Yin's 5 step data analysis process, member checking, and triangulation resulted in the emergence of codes, themes, and categories. The key themes were knowledge of business management, identification of business opportunities, information from workshop and seminars, information from social media and customer service, information on innovation, and mentor and mentee relationship. The findings from this study provide the empirical evidence needed to support entrepreneurship education as well as insight on tertiary institutions' commitment to entrepreneurship education that may lead to the creation of employment and empowers entrepreneurs towards national growth and development. The implications for positive social change include reshaping the way undergraduates prepare for self-employment, leading to a reduction of unemployment among youths in Nigeria.

Registered nurses perceive the healthcare work environment as stressful. Stress can have a negative effect on patient care and nurses' attrition and health. In the literature, mentors have been identified as having a positive influence on nurses. This qualitative study was an examination of nurses in mentoring relationships in the early, middle, and late career stage and working in a hospital setting. Two research questions addressed mentoring relationship preferences and mentors' influence on perceived stress. Fourteen nurses were interviewed in the study. The conceptual framework was based on the career and psychosocial mentoring theory, the mentoring the adult learner theory, and the attachment theory. Data were analyzed electronically and manually into intuitively and inductively derived themes. The results of the study related to preferences showed nurses prefer mentors to be in the work setting, mentors to help nurses develop nursing competencies, and mentors to help nurses develop a positive self-concept. The difference among the nurses in the career stages was the type of competencies developed. The nurses identified that mentors had a positive influence on the perception of stress through the development of emotional intelligence and problem-solving skills with similarities and differences in the type of challenges nurses' experience. The implications for future research are studies with nurses working in other healthcare settings and quantitative studies to measure levels of stress with and without a mentor. Implications for practice are the development of mentoring programs where career stages and perception of stress are addressed. Limitations of this study were the setting and sample size. Implications for social change include the development of humanistic approaches to mentoring to address nurses' challenges and stressors in the healthcare work environment.