This study was conducted as part of the Scottish Teachers for a New Era project. It sets out to explore the perception of teachers and student teachers about mentoring in the classroom and the extent to which the mentoring relationships are collaborative. Literature review was done systematically to explore the state of research in mentoring as related to initial teacher education. Consequently, mentoring is described as a collaborative endeavour aimed at professional development of both supporter teachers and student teachers in the study. With the conception of mentoring as a collaborative endeavour between teachers and student teachers in the study, a critical constructivist theory was considered suitable to achieve the goals of collaborative mentoring in this study. A mixed methods approach involving quantitative and qualitative strategies was employed to collect and analyse data for the study. Questionnaires as quantitative instruments were used to collect data about mentoring experiences from B.Ed. 3 and B.Ed. 4 student teachers (n= 130) and their supporter teachers (n=145). Interviews and case studies were the main qualitative instruments used to understand and complement the quantitative results in this study. Interviews were conducted with the same cohorts of student teachers (n=7), their supporter teachers (n=6) and university tutors (n=6) involved in students’ placement supervision while case studies were conducted in 4 schools. Findings point to a range of mentoring situations, from apprenticeship to constructivist strands and that expectations of mentoring are also influenced by the apprenticeship and constructivist theories. From the data, it also became clear that the mentoring relationships enacted in this study are not entirely collaborative. Some of the challenges to collaborative mentoring include time, differences in teachers’ and tutors’ values, personality clashes inflexibility and difficulty with stepping back. However, the findings indicate that the challenges to collaborative mentoring are not insurmountable. Co-planning of lesson-ahead, active learning, better communication and reciprocal arrangements between university and schools and national policy among others, can facilitate the enactment of collaborative mentoring relationships in the classroom. Based on the findings, some implications for mentoring practice in the initial teacher education context are highlighted. For example, supporter teachers need to see mentoring as a process through which mutual learning can take place between them and student teachers for improvement in the professional practice. Also, student teachers need to be well-disposed to learning and internalising ideas from others either through feedback, co-planning or collaborative teaching with supporter teachers in the classroom. Key words: Collaborative mentoring, critical constructivism, mixed methods approach, supporter teachers and student teachers.

This study examines junior officers at the United States Naval Academy, and their commitment to mentor midshipmen. Survey data are reported from 148 Navy Lieutenants and Lieutenant Commanders and Marine Corps Captains and Majors, stationed on the Naval Academy yard. The purpose of this study was to better understand the mentoring experiences, dispositions, and motivations among junior officers at the Naval Academy and identify how previous mentorship experience, prosocial behaviors, and personal (versus instrumental) motives relate to junior officer willingness to mentor Naval Academy midshipmen. The study concludes that helping others and benefiting the organization appear to be the distinguishing sources of motivation for junior officers who choose to mentor. Additionally, it finds that a junior officer's willingness to mentor and their levels of other-oriented empathy are associated with whether or not they chose to mentor. Lastly, this study reports that junior officers who were familiar with mentorship, and had previously been mentored in the fleet chose to mentor midshipmen at a much higher rate than their peers who were never proteÌ geÌ s to a mentor.

This portfolio provides evidence of sustained activity, research and publications related to the broad area of professional learning. This research examined the construct of professional learning and the ways in which a number of factors can contribute to and assist this learning. The fundamental purpose of this body of work was to challenge current understandings of factors that contribute to professional learning and this research specifically argues that professional learning can be contributed to by a number of factors. The overall research focus for the studies was to explore the nature of the interrelationship between the factors of mentoring, reflection and portfolio development as key aspects of professional learning. Investigation into the practices of mentoring, reflection and portfolio development which underpinned the whole of this research led to the evolution of a conceptual framework. This framework captured the essence of professional learning and the processes that could assist beginning teachers in their learning. The research was set in authentic settings including the Bachelor of Education Primary Program at the University of Western Sydney, Nepean, the New South Wales Department of Education School Leadership Preparation Program and primary schools in Western Sydney. A number of data collection methods were utilised in the studies including document analysis, semi-structured interviews, focus questions, focus group meetings, self reflection and reflective writing and narratives. This research breaks ground by providing a conceptual framework that shows not only the relationship within and between the investigated practices but also the imperative interrelatedness of these practices in developing a sound and resonant professional learning process. / Doctor of Education

The purpose of this study was to describe and explain significant mentor/protege relationships in professional ministry education. Through an exploratory, naturalistic inquiry, the mentoring phenomenon was studied inductively, culminating in a descriptive theory that illuminated the variables and their interrelationships on the ministerial campus. The multiple case study design accommodated ten mentoring pairs from three graduate level seminaries in the Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area. Data were collected through several in-depth interviews and a written questionnaire. The findings indicated that the relationships were the product of three dimensions in a dynamic, evolving interaction: interpersonal factors, intrapersonal factors, and contextual factors. Additionally, each dimension brought a mix of variables which, when present, gave rise to the formation, development, and outcomes of mentor/protege relationships. Pre-existing personal factors were mediated by entry conditions, and further influenced by aspects of the social and institutional setting. The relationships developed through a uniform progression of five stages, with each stage moving through a transitional characteristic making possible the formation of the next level of interaction. Common relationship qualities were evident, as were mentoring functions which enhanced or enabled the achievement of personal growth or ministerial competence. Personal motives and selection criteria were significant in the formation and timing of the relationships. Individual differences were acknowledged, but were tempered by the commitment to one another and to the relationships. The influence of significant others, as well as the institutional environment were described. Benefits for students, faculty, and institutions were identified. / Graduation date: 1994

The purpose of this research was to evaluate a web-based training program for mentors of distance graduate students enrolled in a distance Master of Science Dietetic Management Program. The online training program was designed to consist of four modules focusing on mentoring skills, communication, research methods and university mandated guidelines for graduate students. Six mentors with advanced degrees, representing three regions of the country participated in this case study. Data collection was accomplished from answers, received by e-mail, to consistent questions identified in each module, a post-training program semi-structured telephone interview and a scenario, pairing mentors to practice mentoring skills in a realistic setting, received by email. Data were analyzed qualitatively, using QSR. NUD*IST as a tool to facilitate data organization. Emergent themes from the data included issues relating to the level of experience of the participants, technological issues, and outcomes and benefits of the training program to the mentors. The module perceived as most informative focused on research methods. The participants agreed the web-based training program was a viable method to train a mentor living in close proximity to a distance graduate student to assist the student with the research project required for the degree. / Graduation date: 2002

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oregon, 2000. / Typescript. Includes vita and abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 189-196). Also available for download via the World Wide Web; free to University of Oregon users.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--West Virginia University, 2002. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains v, 155 p. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 135-144).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2003. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI Company.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves : [58]-61).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2003. / Title from first page of PDF file. Document formatted into pages; contains xiii, 162 p.; also contains graphics. Includes abstract and vita. Advisor: Patricia Stuhr, Dept. of Art Education. Includes bibliographical references (p. 143-147).