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Mentoring + Coaching = Academic Growth and Success

    Think of some words that describe a great mentor and coach

    When I think of words that describe a mentor, I think dependable, helpful, educated, willing, experienced, reliable, strong work ethic, and caring. These are similar words that I would use to describe an instructional coach. Working at the secondary level, we do not have an instructional coach specific to our campus, we have in the past, but that was a position that was absorbed and used to to cover our junior high, high school, and alternative campus. Lacking an instructional coach on campus in my opinion has been a bit frustrating. As a teacher, I unfortunately used to question what an instructional coach really did all day. I hate to even admit that. When I was a special education teacher, instructional coaches did not offer or typically assist us as they did general education teachers. That has changed tremendously in the past couple of years. At that time, I was unable to observe the work they were doing since my classroom was not impacted by an instructional coach. Without observable work ethics, it appears they are not as hardworking as others (Oliver, 2007). Working as an ARD Facilitator, I depend on that person to help provide me data, which has been more challenging to come by since she is overseeing multiple campuses, however, this has put into perspective how much an instructional coach does and the value they bring to the campus. 


    On the other hand, my district does a great job at ensuring all first-year teachers as well as new to the campus teachers have a mentor teacher. I have been a mentor teacher in the past. One year, I can specifically recall not being the proper fit for the teacher I was mentoring. She was working with self-contained students and I was not. This was something I tried to address and offered solutions to, but was turned down by my administration. Grossman and Davis communicate throughout their article the value of having the right personnel together in order to effectively be supportive (Grossman and Davis, 2012). I could emotionally support her, but that was not enough. However, that experience was beneficial for myself and her and growth was occurring, but it was not maximized to the fullest extent possible.


    Holloway’s article brought many aha moments to perspective. I did not foresee while being a mentor that I would grow professionally, however, that is an aspect of being a mentor (Holloway, 2001). In my situation, I was a mentor teacher just a few years after graduating from college, but I was empowered by the new practices, changes in teaching styles, skills, and technology implementation that evolved in just a few years (Schwartz, 2021). Imagine a teacher who has been away from updated information and he/she gets a mentor teacher. The cross-training and learning that takes place is more than beneficial to not one classroom or teachers, but to two. Additionally, the mentor assists with pieces that are not found in a textbook or taught to you in college. The veteran teacher knows the “tricks of the trade”. He or she can communicate to you what to do when the power goes out, your lesson finishes 10 minutes too early, back up plans, technology fails, and many more pieces that occur throughout a school year that appears to be the end of the world until your mentor teachers swoop in to save the day (Schwartz, 2021). The veteran teachers have closets and totes filled with goodies that help assist a teacher who is not as experienced. 


    As discovered, instructional coaching and mentorship programs are equally as important to the success of a campus. They each target different areas of education but are both vital to the growth of staff and students. When continuing to research, I stumbled across a YouTube video called The Calling. This short video should be the clip that a mentor teacher plays for his/her mentee after a tough day to put into perspective the value they are. Therefore, I will conclude with a quote from the video. “You have the most important job on this planet. We need you today more than ever” (Beckman, 2019).    




(Some references below were used to construct the Venn Diagram, but were not necessarily utilized in the narrative)


References

Aguilar, E. (2013, March 25). How coaching can impact teachers, principals, and students. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/coaching-impact-teachers-principals-students-elena-aguilar 

Beckman, J. (2019). The Calling. YouTube. Retrieved September 19, 2023, from                https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dCq83DhyC8 

Carr, J. F., Herman, N., & Harris, D. E. (2009). Chapter 1. Building Professional Relationships. In Creating dynamic schools through mentoring, coaching, and collaboration (pp. 1–12). essay, Hawker Brownlow Education. 

Dabbs, L. (2011, October 14). Mentoring matters. will you take up the challenge?. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/mentoring-new-teachers-lisa-dabbs 

Grossman, P., & Davis, E. (2012, May 1). Mentoring that fits. ASCD. https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/mentoring-that-fits 

Holloway, J. H. (2001, May 1). Research link / the benefits of mentoring. ASCD. https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/-the-benefits-of-mentoring 

Morel, N. (2019, November 1). How to get the most out of a coaching session. ASCD. https://www.ascd.org/el/articles/how-to-get-the-most-out-of-a-coaching-session 

Oliver, B. (2007). Send Me in Coach! Just for the ASKing!, IV(IX), 1–4. 

Schwartz, L. (2021, August 27). Supporting new teachers this year. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/supporting-new-teachers-year 

        Tomlinson, Carol Ann. (2012b). One to Grown On / Three Wishes for New Teachers. Educational         Leadership, 69(8), 90–91.

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