Europe’s Got Talent: Setting the Stage for New Teachers by Educative Mentoring

Abstract

Growing challenges, demographic change and the need to deal with various demands in one’s professional and private life call for a high flexibility and willingness to learn, especially among teachers, who serve as role models in this respect. Consequently, professional development has to focus on reflective and introspective processes. At the beginning of a teaching career, educative mentoring can provide valuable support. In the course of planning a new teacher-training program in Austria, the
University College of Teacher Education Styria, in Graz, is conducting a mentoring project in primary schools from 2012 to 2014. It takes place in two Styrian districts and is accompanied by evaluation research. Local mentors support new teachers. Moreover, in-service training for new teachers, mentors and principals is provided. The topics of the courses correspond to the participant groups’ roles and interests, foster social and digital networking, and encourage peer discussion and cross-group communication. The qualitative research entailed in the project investigates supporting factors of educative mentoring and communication processes by applying questionnaires, expert interviews and group discussions. This article focuses on the role, challenges and duties of a mentor, taking into account the value of educative mentoring for professional learning communities and individual learning processes.

Full text

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
Europe’s Got Talent: Setting the Stage for New Teachers
by Educative Mentoring
K  R
 Growing challenges, demographic change and the need to deal with var-
ious demands in one’s professional and private life call for a high ex-
ibility and willingness to learn, especially among teachers, who serve as
role models in this respect. Consequently, professional development has
to focus on reective and introspective processes. At the beginning of a
teaching career, educative mentoring can provide valuable support. In
the course of planning a new teacher-training program in Austria, the
University College of Teacher Education Styria, in Graz, is conducting a
mentoring project in primary schools from  to . It takes place
in two Styrian districts and is accompanied by evaluation research. Lo-
cal mentors support new teachers. Moreover, in-service training for new
teachers, mentors and principals is provided. e topics of the courses
correspond to the participant groups’ roles and interests, foster social and
digital networking, and encourage peer discussion and cross-group com-
munication. e qualitative research entailed in the project investigates
supporting factors of educative mentoring and communication processes
by applying questionnaires, expert interviews and group discussions. is
article focuses on the role, challenges and duties of a mentor, taking into
account the value of educative mentoring for professional learning com-
munities and individual learning processes.
Keywords: teachers’ competence, educative mentoring, induction,
mentor, new teachers
 Pädagogische Hochschule Steiermark (University College of Teacher Education Styria), Graz,
Styria, Austria; karin.darocha@phst.at

 ’  
Evropa ima talent: vpeljevanje novih učiteljev s pomočjo
mentorstva
K  R
 Vedno večji izzivi, demografske spremembe in potreba po spopadanju
z različnimi zahtevami v posameznikovem profesionalnem in osebnem
življenju zahtevajo večjo prilagodljivost in pripravljenost za učenje. To
še posebej velja za učitelje, ki so v teh pogledih vzorniki drugim. Zato
mora profesionalni razvoj temeljiti na reektivnih in samoopazovalnih
procesih. Na začetku učiteljeve kariere lahko izobraževalno mentorstvo
nudi pomembno podporo. V okviru načrtovanja novega programa za
izobraževanje učiteljev v Avstriji je pedagoška visoka šola v Gradcu med
letoma  in  izvajala projekt mentorstva v osnovnih šolah. Ta je
potekal v dveh štajerskih okrožjih, spremljala pa ga evalvacijska raziska-
va. Krajevni mentorji nudijo podporo novim učiteljem. Poleg tega je or-
ganizirano tudi strokovno izpopolnjevanje za nove učitelje, mentorje in
za ravnatelje. Teme izobraževanj odražajo vloge in interese posameznih
skupin, nudi se socialno in digitalno mreženje, spodbujata se medse-
bojno diskutiranje in interakcija med skupinami. S pomočjo kvalitativne
raziskave prek vprašalnikov, intervjujev in fokusnih skupin so bili v pro-
jektu analizirani faktorji podpore pri izobraževalnem mentorstvu in ko-
munikacijskih procesih. V prispevku se osredinjamo na vlogo, izzive in
na naloge mentorja z vidika pomena, ki ga ima izobraževalno mentor-
stvo za strokovno učečo se skupnost in individualne učne procese.
Ključne besede: kompetence učiteljev, izobraževalno mentorstvo,
pripravništvo, mentor, novi učitelji

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
Introduction
e induction of new teachers to their profession is currently used and
evaluated in various countries worldwide. It is also a focus of interest in Aus-
trian pedagogic research for two reasons. Because several hundred primary and
secondary teachers are going to retire in the next few years, many new teachers
are going to start their careers. ey are oen deprived of their elder colleagues’
experiential knowledge if there are no transfer phases for intergenerational
communication. us far, new teachers in Austrian primary and compulsory
secondary schools are not accompanied by mentors at their local schools, al-
though the amount of teaching practice is high during pre-service training.
e new curriculum allots a four-year bachelor studies program, an obligatory
induction period supported by mentors at school and a subsequent two-year
master studies program.
is article focuses on mentors’ challenging duties, taking a short look at
existing European practices within this eld. Moreover, this position’s demand-
ing prole is related to national and regional requirements aimed at induction
as a part of the new Austrian teacher-training program. ese ndings are
based on the project Supporting New Teachers at the Beginning of their Profes-
sional Careers, which is being carried out by the University College of Teacher
Education Styria from  to . Finally, the relations between European,
national and regional aspects in mentoring are discussed.
Setting the stage for new teachers: educative mentoring
in induction
In their pre-service trainings, the amount of teaching practice for Eu-
ropean pedagogical students varies considerably. Moreover, there are school
and teaching-related situations that cannot be simulated, such as organizational
issues or parent-teacher meetings. As Feiman-Nemser states, “[…] beginning
teachers have legitimate learning needs that cannot be grasped in advance or
outside the context of teaching” (Feimann-Nemser, , p. ). Terhart ()
and Hericks () both assert that new teachers need to develop professional
attitudes and coping strategies for dealing with unfamiliar situations. Here,
Helsper (, ) refers to typical antinomies such as the uniformity and de-
viation as well as the distance and proximity new teachers have to deal with at
the beginning of their careers. Accordingly, models about new teachers’ school
entrance talk about terms, such as surviving, exploring and mastering (Fuller
& Brown, ; Hubermann, ). In order to do so, it is of great value if new

 ’  
teachers are provided with necessary resources, including time with a mentor
for guided reection or professional conversation.
With a focus on co-operative relationship-based professional com-
munication, educative mentoring oers a rather formal setting, employing an
expert from the eld of work (Ittel & Raufelder, ). It is characterized by
“cultivating a disposition of inquiry, focusing attention on student thinking
and understanding, and fostering disciplined talk about problems of practice”
(Feimann-Nemser, , p. ). e model aims to induce lifelong personal
and professional learning processes by co-operative, reciprocal learning. In this
respect, the mentor’s willingness to agree to mutual learning is of the utmost
importance. Otherwise, the concept does not go beyond a typical “apprentice-
ship model” (Halai, ).
erefore, it must be kept in mind that the mentors to also need to be
prepared for the new role they are going to take on. Self-reection, an active
interest in their own professional development, interest in and tolerance for
colleagues’ opinions and co-operation are preconditions for successful mentor-
ing (Langdon, ). In addition to knowledge about the educative mentoring
model, mentors need to be familiar with communicative tools for critical feed-
back and supportive reection processes.
From a more general perspective, referring mainly to building a profes-
sional attitude, it is necessary to embed mentoring in more far-ranging princi-
ples to foster personal learning. Gardner () provides ve guidelines that
can serve for such a purpose:
• the Disciplined Mind, which refers to dealing in-depth with an area of
expertise,
• the Synthesizing Mind, which describes the selection and connection of
ideas from dierent elds of experience,
• the Creating Mind, which comprises combining a person’s excellence in
a eld with posing new challenging questions and discussing solutions
from various perspectives,
• the Respectful Mind, which means tolerance towards heterogeneity in
people and accepting them, and
• the Ethical Mind, which focuses on taking on societal responsibility.
is short overview highlights the value of Gardner’s concept for a
broader view on learning, which can serve as a guideline not only for mentor-
ing but for learning in general. How the learning-through-mentoring concepts
varies in dierent countries is described below.

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
International experience and national needs
Both induction programs and educative mentoring as an eective means
have been tested and endorsed worldwide (Wang & Odell, ; Blömeke &
Paine, ). Experiences include, for example, expert knowledge from Anglo-
American countries (Great Britain, the United States, Australia and New Zea-
land) as well as from Europe. Among others, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Greece
and Switzerland provide induction programs, but they vary in terms of assess-
ment and resources, for instance, concerning the time given for professional
conversation and the remuneration of mentors (Huber, ). Countries with
little teaching practice during pre-service training, such as Great Britain, France
and Italy, add compulsory induction to in-service training. Conversely, Swit-
zerland aims for a high amount of pre-service and in-service training (Blömeke
& Paine, ). Models also dier in matters of denition and training con-
cerning the mentors. Paine and Schwille observe that various words and their
respective connotations are used to name the mentor in dierent countries:
“e words used in Shanghai – ‘guiding teacher’, ‘old teacher’, or ‘master’
– are associated with traditional culture and show that in some sense the
new teacher is a ‘disciple’ of the master. In France, mentors are called
‘pedagogic advisors’, a title that communicates the focus of their work,
while in New Zealand, they are ‘advice and guidance advisors’, depart-
ment heads, or ‘buddy’ teachers, which suggest mentoring roles of a dif-
ferent sort” (Paine & Schwille, , p. ).
is emphasizes the manifold cultural interpretations of the term
and the decisions, which have to be made in order to establish mentoring in
schools. Moreover, costs and assessment come into play. Exemplarily, concepts
from Great Britain and Switzerland are described in short below.
In Great Britain, newly qualied teachers (NQT) are obligated to partic-
ipate in an induction program, which is organized by the National College for
Teaching and Leadership, a part of the Department for Education (DfE). New
teachers can only apply for induction aer having obtained qualied teacher
status (QTS) in their initial teacher training (ITT). According to the Depart-
ment of Education, the one-year induction focuses on personal, professional
development as well as assessment concerning the Teachers’ Standards (DfE,
).
Induction tutors support new teachers. ey conduct progress reviews
and formal conversations, too. Guidelines clearly dene the dierent roles in
the process and the corresponding tasks:

 ’  
“e induction tutor (or the headteacher if carrying out this role) should:
–provide, or co-ordinate, guidance and eective support including co-
aching and mentoring for the NQT’s professional development (with
the appropriate body when necessary);
–carry out regular progress reviews throughout the induction period;
–undertake three formal assessment meetings during the total induc-
tion period co-ordinating input from other colleagues as appropriate
(normally three termly, or pro rata for part-time sta);
–inform the NQT during the assessment meeting the judgements to
be recorded in the formal assessment record and invite NQTs to add
their comments;
–ensure that the NQT’s teaching is observed and feedback provided;
–ensure NQTs are aware of how, both within and outside the instituti-
on, they can raise any concerns about their induction programme or
their personal progress; and
–take prompt, appropriate action if an NQT appears to be having dif-
culties” (DfE, 2013, p. 31).
ese requirements merely refer to organization, co-operation, moni-
toring and assessing, but they do not address other aspects of expertise a men-
tor needs. For that reason, dierent boroughs and counties have developed
more specic proles (e Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Ham-
mersmith & Fulham, ) referring to qualities, such as interest in the role and
in another person, communicative skills, an encouraging and fostering attitude,
condence in teaching, experience and problem-solving strategies.
e induction models in Switzerland deal with other preconditions than
the concept above; pre-service training already contains teaching practice. As
Huber () points out, local mentors support new teachers in the St. Gal-
len and Rorschach area. ese mentors have been trained at regional univer-
sity colleges of teacher education. ey help new teachers in pedagogical and
subject matters, in becoming acquainted with school administration and regu-
lations as well as being into contact with authorities. Regional mentors work
with study groups consisting of six to eight new teachers. e model clearly
describes mentors’ tasks and lists the necessary competencies regarding cur-
ricular and pedagogical knowledge as well as organizational and social skills
(Benz et al., ). Here, mentors do not assess the new teachers. is is a very
interesting point to discuss, with regards to comparing European models: some
countries do not grade their new teachers at all in mentoring, allowing personal
and professional development without grading, whereas other literally stand-
ardize the concept, which intends to foster reection and introspection. Such

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
decisions are accompanied by cultural interpretations of models like mentoring
as such, as well as by matters of educational policy and, consequently, institu-
tional demands.
With regard to the upcoming new teacher-training program in Austria,
several projects concerning induction and mentoring have been launched. At
present, the University College of Teacher Education Styria is conducting a
three-year master’s program in mentoring in co-operation with the Catholic
University College for Education Graz, the University College of Teacher Edu-
cation Burgenland and the Karl-Franzens-University Graz. e attendees will
act as facilitators for mentors as soon as the new teacher training curriculum
comes into eect. Additionally, a research project with a focus on mentoring
new primary school teachers is being undertaken. e following remarks refer
to the latter project, which, on the one hand, clearly shows references to devel-
opments in other European countries, but on the other, clearly emphasizes the
need for local variety and refrains from overly restrictive standards.
Developing a regional project
From  to , the project Supporting New Teachers at the Begin-
ning of their Careers in primary schools is organized by the University College
of Teacher Education Styria and strongly supported by the local supervisory
school board. e undertaking is situated in the Styrian districts of Leoben and
Bruck-Mürzzuschlag.
is region has very distinctive geographical features, with only a few
densely populated industrial towns and remote, scarcely inhabited alpine areas.
Consequently, employment and schooling are among the signicant challenges
the population faces. Due to a reduced number of pupils, many isolated schools
are in constant danger of being closed down or merged, which also means that
only a few teachers are employed. Moreover, it is dicult to hire teachers for
these rural schools, because many young people prefer to live in more urban
areas. In the centres, however, big classes with considerable heterogeneity are
always challenges for teachers. e impending retirement of many teachers is
another fact that contributes to the current situation.
In each of the two project years, about  new teachers started their
careers. In order to meet the needs of the prevailing situation, a program to
support new teachers was developed. However, it has to be mentioned that the
pilot scheme at that time neither included any reduction of teaching time for
participants nor remuneration of mentors. Mentors at the local schools were
appointed by the principals; in-service training for new teachers with regards

 ’  
to curricular, pedagogical and organizational knowledge, social and personal
skills was provided by the University College of Teacher Education Styria. Men-
tors and principals were oered in-service training about mentors’ roles and
duties, inducing learning conversations and giving critical acclaim. Addition-
ally, there was a particular focus on reviewing previous actions and changes in
the teaching profession. Table  contains an overview of the project’s training
facilities.
Table . In-service training facilities
New Teachers Mentors Principals
professionalroleand
identity
mentors’rolesandrespon-
sibilities
reectinganddeninga
mentor’srole
classroommanagementand
parent-teachermeetings
thebasicconceptof
educativementoring
inducingprofessionalcon-
versation
individualizationinteaching
andassessment
changesandinnovationin
professionaldevelopment
observingandproviding
feedback
Monitoring research accompanies the project during the two-year peri-
od. e primary objective is to explore factors of successful mentoring on vari-
ous levels concerning personal, structural and systemic development. Moreo-
ver, the concept of mentoring is analysed in terms of implications on school
development and human resources. Consequently, the following research ques-
tions, which are based on studies analyzing new teachers’ needs at the begin-
ning of their professional careers (Hericks, ; Cameron, ; He, ,
and Keller-Schneider, ) are the focus of interest:
• Which factors help to establish successful mentoring?
• How can mentoring help build professionalism in new teachers?
• How does specic in-service training facilitate new teachers’ starts in
professional life?
• Which roles do social and digital networks play with regard to the chal-
lenges of new teachers’ professionalism?
In order to answer these questions, a mixed-methods approach is ap-
plied. e research contains written surveys with new teachers and mentors at
the beginning and the end of the school year (October and June). Each partici-
pant uses the same anonymous code for both questionnaires. e questions in
the rst survey are kept open-ended and focus on the participants’ expectations
about mentoring, as can be seen in Table .

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
Table . Questions from the written survey in October
Written Survey at the Beginning of the School Year
(October 2012; sample questions)
New Teachers
(21questions)
Mentors
(19questions)
Whichhopes,wishesandconcernsarethere
regardingyourrstyearatschool?
Whatareyourreasonsforparticipatingasa
mentorinthisproject?
Inwhicheldsoftheprofessiondoyouwish
todrawuponyourmentor’sexperience?
Inwhicheldsoftheprofessiondoyousee
exceptionalchallengesfornewteachers?
Whatmakesagoodmentor?/Whatmakesanidealmentoringrelationship?
Whatwillbeyourowncontributiontosuccessfulmentoring?/Howdoyouplanto
organizementoring?
e second questionnaire contains open-ended question formats refer-
ring to the target group’s experiences during the project, as well as quantiable
multiple-choice formats. e latter aim at evaluating the in-service training fa-
cilities, which are additionally oered in the course of the mentoring project.
Table  displays a few samples from this written survey.
In order to investigate the research questions concerning factors for
successful mentoring as well as how it can contribute to building profession-
alism in new teachers, group discussions are conducted. Based on Bohnsack,
Marotzki and Meuser’s approach (), these discussions with new teachers,
mentors and principals in March allow for oral feedback pertaining to topics
such as pre-service and in-service training as well as experiences resulting from
the evolving mentoring relationships.
Additionally, recurring expert interviews are conducted, one at a time,
in three dierent schools each year, with the new teacher, the mentor and the
principal. On the one hand, these talks aim at nding out how regional dif-
ferences inuence factors of successful mentoring; on the other, they allow a
close-up of several mentoring situations, which illustrates the process of profes-
sional development in new teachers. Accordingly, questions in these interviews
ask about the local school’s specic situation, the perception and assessment of
the mentoring concept among school sta and project participants as well as
in-depth descriptions of the respective mentor and new teacher’s co-operation.
Inquiries also investigate experiences with in-service training oered in the
course of the project and the establishment of peer networks.
To summarise, the questionnaires aim at showing the participant groups’
general attitudes, expectations and evaluations, whereas the group discussions
serve as feedback options about the running project. e semi-structured

 ’  
interviews provide insights into the manifold and complex processes that occur
during mentoring.
Table . Items from the written survey in June
Written Survey at the End of the School Year
(June 2013; sample questions)
New Teachers
(20questions/items)
Mentors
(19questions/items)
Inwhicheldsofyourprofessiondidyou
succeedinyourrstyear?
Beingamentor,inwhicheldsdidyou
gathernewexperience?
Whichareaswerenotcoveredinpre-service
training?
Wouldyouliketocontinuetoworkasa
mentorinthefuture?Why(not)?
Whichchallengingsituationsoccurredduringtheyear?/Whichtopicswerediscussedin
mentoring?
Pleasedescribeyourmentoringrelationship!
Whichsurroundingconditionswereencouraging?Whichoneswerediscouraging?
Howwasmentoringdealtwithatyourschool?Amongcolleagues?Bytheprincipal?
11statementsconcerningmentoringforrespectivegroup(Likert-scale;example):
strongly
agree agree disagree strongly
disagree commentary
Amentoreasesthestartina
newprofession.
Iconsidertherelationship
withmymentor/mentee
successful.
Howmuchmentoringtimewasinvestedperweek?
q15minutesq30minutesq1hourq2hoursqother:
Evaluationofin-servicetrainingfacilitiesforrespectivegroup
(9seminarsfornewteacherstochoosefrom,4formentors;example):
highly
satised satised not
satised
notatall
satised
didnot
participate
MentoringBasics
(October)
Didyouusethemoodleonlinenetwork?Why(not)?
Didyounetworkwithothernewteachers/mentors?Why(not)?
e qualitative analysis entailed in the project is rooted in the recon-
structive tradition; the recorded data was transcribed and categorized by adapt-
ing Mayring’s content analysis () as well as Gläser and Laudel’s guidelines
() for expert interviews. Categories were introduced by an inductive ap-
proach using an open coding system.

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
In the project area, all the primary schools with new teachers partici-
pated:  teachers,  mentors and  principals. e heads of schools were
responsible for nominating the mentors. e age of the mentors varied between
 and  years of age with  to  years of work experience. All mentors and
new teachers were given the two questionnaires (paper format) and asked to
complete them. However, the response rates in the written surveys in the rst
year of the project varied considerably, as can be seen in Table .
Table . Response rates in the written surveys
New Teachers Mentors
October 2012 31outof42 26outof35
June 2013 25outof38 15outof31
Dierences in the total number of participants in the surveys in June
result from changes concerning employment status, number of sta ill or on
maternity leave.
e following chapter will focus on the mentors, depicting interesting
results from the research mainly drawn from the data analysis of the two writ-
ten surveys.
On stage: experiences from the project year /
is chapter deals with ndings from the research referring to the men-
tor’s role. At the beginning of the project year, none of the participants had been
ocially placed in such a position before and therefore could neither rely on
experience nor specic training with theoretical knowledge about the concept.
Due to the previous lack of a nationwide program including all types of schools,
mentors in this project learned about competence concerning the mentoring
project and how to put it into practice simultaneously. In this respect, the focus
of interest here is on how the new mentors in this project evaluate the concept
based on their experiences of the ongoing school year.
Participants’ expectations in October  already showed how much
was expected from the mentors in this particular situation – by themselves and
by the new teachers. Experiences aer a year of mentoring are reported and
analysed below. Finally, conclusions for the second project year and recom-
mendations for induction in the new Austrian teacher training are drawn.

 ’  
e wish list
Early in the project, in the rst written survey in October , new
teachers and mentors were asked about their beliefs and expectations concern-
ing the project, and, especially the mentor’s role. Answering to the question
what makes a good mentor, new teachers and mentors conceptualize a similar
picture, which is illustrated in Table .
Table . What makes a good mentor?
New Teachers Mentors
…condent,competent,well-organized
…beingpatientandtakingtime
…beingrespectfultowardsthenewteacher
…oeringsupportwithoutobtruding
…beingamentorvoluntarily …opentoquestions
…listeningandkeepingconversations
condential
…open-minded,interested,motivated
…helpingwithwordsanddeedsatalltimes …readytohelp,ifasked
…attendingin-servicetraining …cooperativeandfriendly,onalevelplaying
eld
…likesbeingateacher …givingappreciativefeedback
Interestingly, in the rst four features mentioned in Table , new teach-
ers and mentors are in total agreement. ese characteristics refer to curricu-
lar and pedagogical knowledge, which are accompanied by a strong focus on
establishing a working relationship based on mutual respect. is rst survey
emphasized that, in addition to relationship based on trust, having enough time
for professional conversation is one of the most important factors. Moreover,
another emphasis, with a thoroughly demanding implication, becomes clear:
mentors shall always be available in case they are needed.
When it comes to describing the ideal relationship between mentor
and new teacher, the mentors point out that their new colleagues have to feel
comfortable with them, which can only be achieved in an atmosphere based
on mutual trust and with an open respectful way of communication, as had
been stressed earlier by Bobek (). Moreover, there has to be a clear un-
derstanding that positive reinforcement, fostering individual development, and
mutual learning are among the goals that resemble research ndings by Cooper
and Stewart (). Additionally, it has to be emphasized that support is of-
fered without obtrusion. e new teachers want to talk freely to their mentors,

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
without any fears. ey appreciate honest and critical feedback on a level play-
ing eld, sharing experiences, swapping material and regular meetings. From
the new teachers’ point of view, a combination of quick, situation-related que-
ries and longer professional reective talks is most eective. Again, the factor of
time comes into play, especially regarding the mentors’ availability.
Interestingly,  out of  mentors did not hesitate to accept their princi-
pals’ request to take up this new role. For many, it went without saying that new
colleagues have to be supported; some mentors referred to their own almost
traumatic career starts as a reason that they agreed to working in this posi-
tion. Many experienced colleagues were surprised by the high number of new
teachers and saw the need and value of the mentoring concept. Moreover, they
regarded the model as a means for enhanced school quality and development,
for example through teamwork.
e mentoring experience
Aer a year of mentoring, a second written survey was conducted in
June . Results from the annual group discussions and the expert interviews
with new teachers, mentors and principals in three schools were supported by
this inquiry. Further depictions in this paper focus on the mentors to empha-
size the importance and challenges of their duties.
Generally, the mentors described their experiences as positive, manifold
and interesting. ey referred to their own role in a responsible position with a
role model function and highlighted the strong feeling of commitment, which
accompanied the ocial appointment to the position. It added to their previous
prole as a teacher and allowed new insight into collegial co-operation. In this
respect, the mentors reported increased skills in communication and observa-
tion, perception and reection. It proved to be essential to acknowledge the
new teachers as equals by trusting them. e mentors observed that, depending
on the new teachers’ personalities, their task was to be there, willing to help and
interested in the new colleagues’ progress in the rst place. Listening sensitively
and actively and providing experience and guidance to individual solutions
were mentioned as means of professional communication. Reecting on their
own beliefs turned out to be a key to new learning processes in mentors; many
had forgotten about actions performed in their daily routines that had become
unconscious routines. In addition, the mentors drew attention to the dicult
balance between supporting new teachers and not forcing their advice on them.
Moreover, it was evident that the mentors felt obligated to confront new teach-
ers with positive as well as constructive critical feedback, which denitely ex-
ceeded the usually existing supportive attitude among colleagues, which many

 ’  
teachers had mentioned in the project year’s rst survey.
During that year, mentors dealt with various areas that were demanding
for new teachers. As studies (Lipowski, ; Martinuzzi, ; Keller-Schnei-
der, ) have already conrmed, the new teachers consulted their mentors
concerning:
• curricular knowledge about assessment, annual planning, education
standards, individualization and dierentiation;
• pedagogical knowledge about pupils displaying behavioural problems,
implementing codes of conduct, mixed-level classes and classroom
management;
• organizational knowledge about local school administration and school
laws;
• social skills for parent-teacher meetings, relationships with colleagues,
principals and superintendents, and
• personal skills for time management, work-life balance and coping with
individual expectations.
More than half of the mentors in the survey described various challeng-
ing situations during the process. ey referred mainly to problems concern-
ing time in various ways. Due to set timetables, attendance at school was oen
impossible: Austrian primary school teachers are usually entirely responsible
for their class including hall monitoring. As a result of the reduction of total
teaching time, many schools had not set specic timeframes for professional
conversation, so mentors and new teachers had to organize their meetings
individually.
Moreover, the specic regional situation came into play. First many
new teachers and mentors in the area were commuters, so time management
required considerable exibility on both sides. Next, up to ve new teachers
started their rst year at the same school. As pointed out earlier, because of the
size of many local schools, there were not enough mentors in such cases. en,
some very small schools ended up with the principals as the only experienced
teacher plus one or two new teachers. Under these circumstances, the heads of
schools served as mentors, which caused other diculties, for example with hi-
erarchy in case there were any conicts of opinion. is underlines the impor-
tance of bearing in mind reective questions about how mentoring is dened
and carried out in various countries and their particular regions.
In the course of the project, it was seen that various forms of time man-
agement were established. e written survey in June , as well as the expert
interviews, proved that once a particular structure for meetings had been set,

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
it was kept throughout the year; for the vast majority, that meant a total of
one to two hours a week. Many included their conversations in joint lessons
for planning, especially when mentor and new teacher worked on the same
class level. is appeared to be the most appreciated combination, because (as
a matter of course) the mentoring-team was able to co-operate content-wise as
well as in areas such as individualization, grading or classroom organization.
In the reection, some mentors who had oered a lot of time for spontaneous
conversation and, in some cases, had more than one new teacher to attend to,
contemplated another solution for the following year. ey would try to ar-
range mentoring at set times to avoid overwork.
Here, the important role of school advisory boards and principals as
facilitators of induction programs with mentoring becomes evident. Not only
do the new teachers have to be cared for, but so do the mentors. Even though 
out of  mentors report their principals’ support on a personal level, about  of
them observed that the concept was not selected as a central theme in confer-
ences at all. Some even experienced alarming reactions from their colleagues.
Many did not respond to the project at all, pitied the mentors because of the
extra workload, or in single cases, even accused the mentors of acting like “the
queen bee” by taking on this position. erefore, it is clear that professional
development must not only focus on support for new teachers in order to avoid
attrition at the beginning of their careers, but has to be a recurring topic and
constant basing point for lifelong learning in teachers.
Mentoring in mind
Learning cannot be nished at any time. Correspondingly, Gardner’s
concept of ve minds for the future (), which has already been referred to,
opens developmental elds for the individual. Regarding the concept knowl-
edge of new mentors, this means examining their own beliefs and attitudes as
well as facilitating the new teachers’ growth, both on personal and professional
levels. Accordingly, the following set of features for mentors always requires
permanent reection and must not be regarded as a list of tasks that has to be
fullled.
With this intention and based upon the conclusions from the research
results above, a mentor’s duties can be split into areas of individual experience
and professional development as well as content-based tasks. is, in combina-
tion with Gardner’s ve minds, can be used to illustrate the concept, which is
summarized in Table .

 ’  
Table . Mentors’ elds of development and tasks
Areas of Experience and Professional
Development Content-Based Tasks
Disciplinary Mind
variousyearsofteachingexperience;
enthusiasticaboutpupilsandteaching
supportingnewteachersincurricular,peda-
gogical,organizational,socialandpersonal
matters
Synthesizing Mind
interestinschooldevelopment introducingandintegratingnewteachers
quickly
Creating Mind
willingnesstotryoutnewideasandto
participateinin-servicetraining
establishingprofessionallearningteams
withnewteachers
Respectful Mind
communicativeskillsformentoringand
coachingprocesses
conductingrespectful,empoweringprofes-
sionalconversations
Ethical Mind
reectionandintrospectionconcerningthe
mentor’sownwork(asateacherandasa
rolemodelfornewteachers)
actingasamediator(newteacher–princi-
pal,newteacher–teachercolleagues)
Providing such a prole not only serves as a means for nding enthusi-
astic mentors, but also oers a guideline for teachers interested in such a role.
Moreover, such a model illustrates its requirements, which essentially means
being ready for continuous professional learning with responsibility for and
partaking in a colleague’s initial career phase. It also shows that mentoring
must not undermine the new teacher’s personal responsibility; on the contrary,
the objective is to empower the new teachers to nd their individual solutions –
an approach that strongly relies on Deci and Ryan’s “Self-Determination eory
of Motivation” () and Reeve and Jang’s research () concerning the sup-
port of autonomy in learners.
With this intention, one focus in the second year of the project is on
further in-depth observation of the mentor’s role, taking into account topics
such as mentors’ positions among their colleagues, (self-)evaluation for both,
mentor and new teacher, and fostering learner autonomy in general.
Conclusion and implications
Mentoring for new teachers may serve as a supportive and constructive
concept in various countries. However, several decisions concerning the level of

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
formality, the contents of such programs and the costs have to be kept in mind.
Regarding the role of the mentor, further decisions have to be made; for exam-
ple: Can a mentor who supports a novice also assess that person? Shall the men-
tor be chosen by the beginner teacher or assigned? Can mentoring and men-
tor training happen simultaneously? Schwille, Dembélé and Schubert ()
raise these questions among others in order to emphasize the complexity of the
concept and its various applications. In a detailed study, Britton et al. ()
pointed out that among the ve countries they compared there was hardly any
consensus on such questions but individual national solutions which reected
the countries’ manifold cultural approaches.
Just as mentoring not only emphasizes curricular and pedagogical
knowledge but also contributes to the formation of professional beliefs and
attitudes, human resources and school development constantly have to focus
on continuous individual learning processes. Viewed in this wider context,
this adds to a joint dimension and understanding of professional learning in
teachers, which is, of course, not only part of mentoring processes but becomes
clearly visible in these relationships: co-operation, openness, interest, toler-
ance, respect and communication are virtues that are goals in teaching pupils
or students, but must be especially valid for teachers, too. Educative mentoring
evinces a gap in which new relationships can contribute to the growth and crea-
tion of new forms of professional learning by forming new communities or, as
Niklas Luhmann puts it, “it is only non-knowing systems that can know; or, one
can only see because one cannot see” (Luhmann, , p. ).
However, individual, professional and systemic development are only
some of the reasons mentoring proves to be a valuable support at a teacher’s
career start in various countries; the concept also contributes to augmented
communication among teachers. What this discussion about experiences with
mentoring also shows is a way to bridge the generation gap and enable the
transfer of knowledge within schools. Establishing mentoring ocially also
means accepting an obligation for the employees’ development. Here, guidance
ideally refers to open-mindedness based on self-motivation, bearing in mind
principles, such as Gardner’s () and Deci and Ryan’s (), to increase new
teachers’ and mentors’ awareness towards meeting future challenges.
In contrast to the wider perspective presented above, concepts like men-
toring must also be considered on a regional, or even local level depending
on the very circumstances. erefore, it is necessary to keep an eye on cul-
tural contexts and t when transferring one model to another European na-
tion. Values and traditions of assessment or the denition of good teaching
vary considerably, and the acceptance of such models diers accordingly. is

 ’  
complex bridge between European and national concepts requires the respect
of individual countries’ needs.
Regarding the project described above, one goal is to investigate which
factors help to establish successful mentoring; in this case, focusing on the
mentor. One of these is certainly the suitability of the mentor for the individual.
New teachers’ personal needs to enable individual and professional develop-
ment must be met as well as regional needs, when, for example, schools are very
small and not enough mentors are available. Establishing professional learn-
ing communities by employing regional mentors is one adequate way to deal
with structural dierences. Moreover, it adds to the mentoring concept of one
mentor and one to two new teachers at the local school by providing regular
communication apart from the consolidation of (new) hierarchical structures.
It was indicated in the current research results that the following fac-
tors can be viewed as necessary components to make mentoring work: the
principals’ willingness to establish the program and to support the mentors’
activities, the mentors’ ocial appointment and voluntary participation, suf-
cient time slots, and a relationship based on mutual trust between mentor and
mentee. e latter issue reects the new teachers’ need for emotional support
(Hargreaves & Fullan, ; Zachary, ), although there is a strong focus
on reciprocal learning as referred to by Cooper and Stewart (). At the same
time, new teachers have high expectations concerning the availability of men-
tors and the time they are willing to spend with their mentees. is nding is
important for the mentors to prevent them from overstraining.
Taking mentors’ qualities into account, it can be reiterated that they not
only have to have excellent curricular, pedagogical and organizational knowl-
edge, but also social and communicative skills to lead eective conversations
and foster new teachers’ professional development, as research evidence has
already suggested (McDonald & Flint, ). Challenging in this respect is the
fact that there is no compulsory training for mentors in Austria thus far, and
projects take place only in test settings in which the mentors are not oered
any remuneration or lesson reduction for this professional work. However, the
mentors’ great willingness to learn about the concept and their positive reac-
tions to the pilot project show the value they allot to this means of professional
development for new teachers and themselves.
In order to arrive at a general conclusion, it can be stated that – given the
chance – new teachers and mentors mostly appreciate working in professional
teams to experience the joy and benet of co-operation and reective talk, be-
cause it not only leads to investigating their own but also their pupils’ potentials
in order to set the stage for further mindful learning. erefore, it is high time

    our nal | Vol.4 | No4 | Year 2014 
for school authorities to acknowledge that professional mentoring needs set
times for reection and to establish high quality in-service training facilities for
current and future mentors.
Acknowledgements
e author gives sincere thanks to the research team at the University
College of Teacher Education Styria: Andrea Völkl, Angelika Kornberger, Silvia
Kopp-Sixt and project leader Andrea Holzinger.
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 ’  
Biographical note
K  R, dr., is a lecturer and researcher at the University
College of Teacher Education Styria in Graz, Austria, with a Master’s in Teach-
ing English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) and German from the University
of Vienna and a doctorate in education/lifelong learning from the University
of Klagenfurt. She has previously taught English and German in Brazilian and
Austrian secondary schools. Her current research interests include induction
and mentoring, learner autonomy, critical thinking, visual literacy and teaching
literature in EFL.