Principle # 7

1. Principle # 7 Team: K.E.S. (“Kindred Educational Support” and “Kim Waldron, Eugene Rose and Sarah Millman”)

2. According to Principle 7, new teachers should be given the opportunity to: • Observe teachers and students in classroom environments, which are similar to the setting in which the new teacher will be working • Throughout this observation process, mentor teachers should provide new teachers with such opportunities as: • Observing peers • Observing licensed teachers who model effective teaching strategies • Viewing written materials such as lesson and unit plans • Practicing self-reflection through videotaping

3. Conscientious mentors need to ensure that their interns can view classrooms similar to their own by: • Arranging for the intern to observe teachers who work with the same content area and/or same age ranges as the students with whom the intern is working (elementary or secondary). • Allowing the intern to observe the mentor teacher while he/she models best teaching practices. Modeling is a great way for student teachers to “see” how methodologies work best. • Scheduling for the intern to observe his/her peers. Peer observations can be an effective tool, as they provide interns with the opportunity to critique lessons and provide one another with feedback. Interns may also acquire new strategies, which will enhance their teaching. • Providing the intern with sample activities, lesson and unit plans, classroom policies, etc. so that the intern has examples of effective planning and classroom management techniques. • Encouraging self-reflection through videotaping. Interns may use videotaping to evaluate how their lesson played out (did they circulate around the room, spend more time on one side of the room than the other, call on a variety of students or only choose the students who raised their hands). Observing a videotaped lesson also allows interns to view the reactions of their students and whether they truly met the objectives. Videotaping allows interns to watch themselves teach and compare it to what other teachers are doing.

4. Principle #8 • Team: K.E.S. (“Kindred Educational Support” and “Kim Waldron, Eugene Rose and Sarah Millman”)

5. According to Principle 8, interns need mentors who are able to share stories about their teaching experiences. • Storytelling allows new teachers to determine that their mentors are qualified individuals who are experienced in the educational field and able to share their expertise. • Storytelling also allows new teachers to learn that experienced teachers have also struggled with different aspects of teaching and have experienced self-doubt. Furthermore, this technique allows interns to understand the rationale behind their mentors’ teaching decisions.

6. In order to help interns realize that their mentors are experienced and qualified individuals, mentors should: • Share information about their educational qualifications and teaching experiences • Tell the interns about difficulties that they have experienced throughout their teaching career and how these challenges were overcome. This process shows student teachers that what they are feeling and experiencing is not unusual. On the contrary, becoming a teacher is not an easy road and will not always go smoothly. • Share their “best practices” for effective teaching and classroom management while simultaneously explaining WHY they choose to do certain activities the way that they do. In other words, mentors should share stories regarding other tactics, which they have tried, which were not successful, and why the strategy, which they currently use, is effective. • When sharing an experience, it is very beneficial for the adult learner to hear some of your struggles and how you worked to overcome them. After all, if you can share what you learned from your struggles and how you used those experiences to become a better teacher, it will give you more credibility with your mentee. • Arrange for the intern to talk to other instructors who can share their experiences as a new teacher and the information, which they have learned since that time, which has helped them to improve.