|
|
|
|
Contents
What are the responsibilities of Mentors and Mentees?
|
Supporting
Our Own:
A Manual for ESP Mentoring
Programs
What Are the Responsibilities of Mentors and Mentees?
Both parties in a mentoring partnership should sign a contract at the beginning of their relationship that identifies their acceptance of certain ground rules and assumptions about the process.
Mentors agree to...
- Take the mentoring commitment seriously.
- Have realistic expectations.
- Participate in needs assessment with mentee and establish a time frame for accomplishing the identified goals.
- Develop an action plan that includes:
- contract (schedule and goals)
- journal/reflection log
- attendance record
- exit analysis
- Recognize time commitment and be willing to follow through on it.
- Participate in all mutually agreed-upon meetings.
- Be available on an as-needed basis above and beyond agreement (within reason). This contact may be other than face-to-face, such as phone conversations in addition to regular meetings.
- Practice confidentiality (see box, page 9).
- Tailor feedback to provide encouragement.
- Keep a reflection log and review with mentee (see "Reflection Form for Mentor" in the Tools section).
- Model professionalism—what a good employee should be and do.
- Attend meetings with other mentors if appropriate.
- Refrain from reprimanding or recommending disciplinary actions.
- Recognize that his or her role is not to evaluate the mentee.
- Be prepared to change or end the mentoring relationship if it isn’t working.
Celebrate success and recognize achievement.
Acknowledge Time Commitments
A mentoring relationship involves a substantial time commitment from both mentor and mentee. It is essential that participants discuss this issue up front to make sure there is a clear understanding of what each expects from the other. Pledges of time should be part of the written contract signed by both parties. |
Mentees agree to...
- Take the mentoring commitment seriously.
- Have realistic expectations.
- Participate in needs assessment with mentor and establish a time frame for accomplishing the identified goals.
- Recognize time commitment and be willing to follow through on it.
- Be willing to assume responsibility for personal development and success in the relationship.
- Participate in all mutually agreed-upon meetings.
- Ask for additional assistance if necessary.
- Practice confidentiality.
- Accept constructive feedback from the mentor and provide honest feedback to the mentor.
- Keep a reflection log and review with mentor (see Reflection Form for Mentee in the Tools Section).
- Be prepared to change or end the mentoring relationship if it isn’t working.
- Celebrate success and recognize achievement.
Anticipate Possible Challenges
By identifying the potential difficulties a mentoring program might face, many problems can be avoided from the outset. Here are a few things to consider:
- Resistance: Head off possible objections from the school system, administrators, teachers, or others by proactively touting the benefits of the program for all areas of the school community, especially for student learning and success.
- Recordkeeping: The program will need an administrative location: a place to meet (preferably not a lounge) with access to a desk and a phone, and somewhere to keep records. Consider which records should be kept and for how long. Try to determine which data can identify the program’s successes or weaknesses. Be sure to keep present and future confidentiality in mind when making decisions about record retention.
- Relationships: Carefully consider how to match mentor and mentee, and establish procedures for reassigning duties should a pair be incompatible. Most likely this will be the responsibility of the mentoring program committee.
- Responsibilities: Work on how to delineate the roles and responsibilities of mentor and mentee, keeping in mind that each mentoring relationship is unique.
- Realistic analysis of objectives and demands: Start with realistic goals. If you set your sights too high, it puts undue pressure on both the mentor and the mentee. Also, acknowledge the emotional demands of the program—possible conflicts over objectives or undue demands on time—and discuss them openly from the outset.
- Results: Try to define in advance what would be considered a successful outcome for the program.
|
Go to the
next section: "Setting Up a Mentoring Program"
|
|
| |
 Printer friendly
|
 E-mail
|
 Subscribe
|
|
|
|
|
Members Only
