February 2018

Master of Teaching and Learning (MTchgLn)

PRIMARY EDUCATION

Roles and Responsibilities

February 2018

This handbook was developed in collaboration with generous teachers from across the ECE, Primary and Secondary sectors. It will change over time in consultation with teachers.

Thank you for your willingness to support the learning of a student from the University of Otago College Of Education (UOCE). We appreciate the valuable work that you do.

This handbook is intended to explain the roles of the members of the Master of Teaching and Learning (MTchgLn) community, especially that of the Mentor teacher.

Contents

Master of Teaching and Learning (Primary Education)......................................................................... 1

Key people in the mentoring team ......................................................................................................... 1

Specific roles and responsibilities in the Master of Teaching and Learning (Primary). .......................... 1

a) Student Teacher ...................................................................................................................... 1

b) Mentor Teacher ...................................................................................................................... 2

c) Liaison Teacher ....................................................................................................................... 2

d) Liaison Lecturer ....................................................................................................................... 3

For further information and support ...................................................................................................... 5

February 2018 Page 1

Master of Teaching and Learning (Primary Education)

Key people in the mentoring team

Student Teacher

Mentor Teacher The teacher/s in each student teacher’s home classroom

Liaison Teacher In-school liaison person with responsibility for the school experience

Liaison Lecturer Provides a link between the University and the Partner School and observes student teaching.

Specific roles and responsibilities in the Master of Teaching and

Learning (Primary).

a) Student Teacher

It is the responsibility of Student Teachers to:

Engage professionally and fully in their school and its community;

Comply with the requirements of their Mentor Teachers;

Fulfil professional experience requirements;

Maintain liaison with their Mentor Teachers and the schools they are placed in;

Ensure the welfare of learners at all times, and be responsive to their needs;

Accept the advice and guidance of the Mentor Teacher, Liaison Teacher, Liaison Lecturer.

Ensure their written work is up-to-date and available for Mentor Teacher and Liaison Lecturer and at all times;

Maintain and add to their e-portfolio;

Attend briefings on requirements, responsibilities and expectations of performance;

Prepare personal goals for professional experience;

Apply to College, in advance, for any leave required

February 2018 Page 2

b) Mentor Teacher

The role of the Mentor Teacher is to:

Provide an effective model of teaching that demonstrates:

– Positive Teacher/learner relationships

– Knowledge of how learners engage in learning

– Exemplary classroom practices

– A stimulating learning environment Provide an effective model of written planning. Guide and support the Student Teacher with planning and assessment;

Encourage the Student Teacher to develop a (bi)culturally responsive, inclusive approach to their teaching;

Provide the Student Teacher with opportunities for guided practice at his/her stage of development;

Facilitate open and honest communication, treating the Student Teacher as a professional colleague;

Support the Student Teacher to implement teaching as inquiry;

Support the Student Teacher to develop a sense of professional responsibility;

Involve the Student Teacher in professional development and professional life, if and when appropriate;

Observe the Student Teacher and give regular oral and written feedback;

Provide reports on the Student Teacher to the College;

Communicate regularly with the Liaison Teacher and the Liaison Lecturer about the Student’s progress;

Participate in the partnership professional learning community and contribute to the continuous improvement of the programme;

Attend Partnership Development Programme (PDP) hui

c) Liaison Teacher

The role of the Liaison Teacher is to:

Ensure all aspects of the school-based requirements of the Master of Teaching and

Learning Programme are being met;

Liaise with and support the Mentor Teachers;

Identify suitable service projects within the school community;

February 2018 Page 3

Support the Student Teachers in their school by meeting students as a group and

provide pastoral care as required;

In association with Liaison Lecturers, identify, and at times, facilitate workshops/lectures

for Student Teachers;

Observe Student teaching, if required;

Participate in the partnership professional learning community and contribute to the

continuous improvement of the programme.

Attend Partnership Development Programme (PDP) hui.

d) Liaison Lecturer

The role of the Liaison Lecturer is to:

Provide a link between the University and the Partner School;

Develop in Partner Schools an understanding of the intent of the MTchgLn;

Support the Student Teachers by meeting them as a group regularly in the university and/or

school setting;

In association with Liaison Teachers, identify, and at times, facilitate workshops for Student

Teachers;

Support the Liaison Teacher and Mentor Teachers;

Facilitate the use of video analysis;

Observe student teaching, if required;

Encourage Student Teachers, through their e-portfolios, to evidence their progress towards the

EDUCANZ Standards through their e-portfolios.

Participate in the partnership professional learning community and contribute to the continuous

improvement of the programme;

Attend Partnership Development Programme (PDP) hui.

Provide guidance, support and pastoral care to the Student Teacher as he/she works towards

achieving their teaching goals and professional experience requirements;

Work in partnership with the Liaison Teacher and Mentor Teacher;

Observe the Student Teacher in the classroom and provide oral and written feedback to the

Student Teacher and Mentor Teacher

Expect each Student’s documentation to be up to date at all times and available for discussion;

February 2018 Page 4

Meet with the Student Teacher and a representative from the school for professional learning

conversations to review progress towards meeting the professional experience requirements.

Support the Student Teacher to et goals for the next stage;

In consultation with the Liaison Teacher and informed by the professional conversations and

observation reports, decide on the competency of the Student in achieving College requirements;

Planning checks

Participate in the partnership community and contribute to the continuous development of the

programme.

Mentor Teacher

The shift in terminology from ‘Associate Teacher’ to ‘Mentor Teacher’ is significant and deliberate. It signals a model of Professional Experience (practicum) where Student Teachers are seen as contributing members of a school/centre learning community and Mentor Teachers are co-learners.

Schwille (2008) says that “Knowing how to be a good mentor is not necessarily inherent in being a good teacher” (p. 139) and goes on to say that ”mentoring is differentiated work in that mentors determine and adjust their mentoring actions based on what they know about their learners and what needs to be learned”.

From this perspective is it important that you, the Mentor Teacher, understand the programme that the student teachers are engaged in and the requirements that they are working towards in the form of the Education Council of Aotearoa New Zealand’s Standards.

The Conceptual Framework which underpins the Master of Teaching and Learning programme makes it clear that the mentor role is very important for effective student teacher learning as described in this excerpt:

Mentor teachers are vital to the success of professional experience placements. Within a learning communities model mentor teachers provide another support to students as they move towards becoming a teacher. The scaffolding and encouragement Mentor Teachers and schools/centres provide supports growth and confidence. The classroom or centre setting is more than a place for practice – it is a community of practice.

Learning for all brings a commitment to equity, social/justice/social change, and inclusive practice. Teachers are agents of social change and play a crucial role in making a more just society. Working for social change and social justice needs to be a collaborative endeavour where “prospective teachers, experienced teachers and teacher educators alike work together in communities of learners – to explore and reconsider their own assumptions, understand the values and practices of families and cultures that are different from their own and construct pedagogy that takes these into account in locally appropriate and culturally sensitive ways” (Cochran-Smith, 1995, p. 495).

Shulman (2005) says that teaching, in common with other professions, entails knowing, doing and believing. We can describe the role of the Mentor Teacher using this framework.

February 2018 Page 5

Mentor teachers:

Know and understand

how to form respectful relationships with adult learners;

the conceptual framework for the relevant teacher education programme;

the Education Council Standards;

how to be a reflective practitioner.

Believe that

the Student Teacher is a an active participant in the learning process;

Student Teachers bring valuable knowledge, skills and experiences to teaching;

Student Teachers will make a positive contribution to programmes of learning;

Facilitating Student Teacher learning requires the Student Teacher to be engaged in thinking about their thinking;

There are many ways to be an effective teacher;

Mistakes are learning opportunities.

Mentor Teachers actions

Model effective teaching for diverse learners;

Practice teaching as inquiry;

Facilitate learning conversations that challenge and support Student Teachers based on evidence;

Assist with planning and assessment to develop effective learning programmes;

Observe the Student Teacher and give specific feedback based on evidence;

Support and challenge Student Teachers;

Give pedagogical guidance and feedback;

Assist Student Teachers to gather and analyse student learning data in order to inform next steps/different approaches in their teaching;

Listen to Student Teacher reflections and encourage them to find their own solutions

For further information and support

1. The Education Council of Aotearoa New Zealand’s information on induction and mentoring is useful because the vision of educative mentoring for Provisionally Certificated Teachers (PCTs) in their first few years of practice, as outlined in the information contained within Professional Learning Journeys Guidelines for Induction and Mentoring and Mentor Teachers 2011 (updated July 2015), is consistent with the University of Otago College of Education’s view of the mentor role.

2. Contact the UOCE Practicum Office:

Practicum Administrator (Dunedin Campus)

Primary

03 470 4225

primarypracadmin@otago.ac.nz

February 2018 Page 6

References

Cochran-Smith, M. (1995). Color blindness and basket making are not the answers: Confronting the dilemmas of race, culture, and language diversity in teacher education. American Educational Research Journal, 32(3), 493-522.

Schwille, S. A. (2008). "The professional practice of mentoring." American Journal of Education

115(1): 139-167.

Shulman, L. S. (2005). Pedagogies. Liberal Education, 91(2), 18-25.