893.645 Resource Guide

Course # 893.645
Electronic Coaching and Instruction on the Internet

Resource Guide Overview

Mentoring and Coaching

You have been exposed to local, regional, national, and international seminal researchers, teachers and developers. They have presented a variety of different views on teaching, learning, and technology. And while you have had access to these potential mentors, you have not received a recipe of how to work with them in a mentoring relationship. Instead you have been asked to review a variety of examples, studies, and articles to provide the foundation for you to develop what works best for you as a mentee and for you in the mentor/coach role.

In preparation for your development of your mentoring model, you had an assignment to read about and describe the role of mentor and coach. The online course readings and your own research revealed that the use of mentors/coaches is recognized as a significant "added value" in both corporate and academic professional development. And, while there is no one way to select, use, or be a mentor/coach, there are some guidelines that are helpful in structuring your mentoring experience.

Some of these guidelines and ideas are presented in a recent article from Workforce magazine ("Moving up through mentoring"). We have placed that article in the "Lecture" section of the class Web site. The article also presents a historic perspective of mentoring, gives several corporate examples of successful applications, and provides advice for mentor and mentee in a brief review of mentoring as a "two-way street."

This mentoring article also addresses a question many of you have posed -- what's the difference between mentoring and coaching? According to the author, "... coaching focuses on interpersonal, communication, leadership and management skills in specific areas where they need development or reinforcement. Coaching is about people achieving new breakthroughs, accomplishing their goals and having a great life."

What about a mentor? "A mentor tends to work with people in their area of expertise and concentrates not only on improved performance but on the intricacies of their particular profession." After reviewing this article you should decide, for the purpose of this class, if you are searching for a mentor or a coach and in which capacity are you preparing yourself to serve others.

One last article we feel compelled to mention is in the current issue (March) of Technology and Learning, "Staff Development Success Stories" (p 44) which you probably have in your media center. The article examines six teacher training programs that "work." The first example describes technology mentors and cohorts which seems particularly relevant to this class.

One statement in this article reflects a central tenet of this course: "The technology mentors are expected to bring what they have learned back to their schools and provide ongoing staff development to their colleagues."

Your entire graduate program has armed you with new and expanded skills to better serve the students, staff and parents in your school. In addition, the Resource Guide you are developing will be a customized support tool for your mentoring/ coaching activities in Baltimore County.

There is not a "one size fits all" formula. There are however some basics that are as straightforward as your classroom lesson plans or your task analysis for specific learning activities. First and foremost select mentor/coach based on a clearly defined purpose, specific need, reasonable expectations, accessibility and availability, and , finally on a comfort level appropriate to the situation. Obviously there are many factors that influence the degree and frequency of contact with, and guidance by your coach--the level of collegiality, shared expertise, and synchrony of purpose. This list may seem ambiguous. It is. Remember the articles you have reviewed with their many ‘how-to' lists that are based on their agenda. You have the rare opportunity to produce a meaningful assignment with direct application to your work.

Resource Guide

Now about the Resource Guide for Online Coaching and Mentoring. Some of the content is standard:

Brief description of how to use the Web as the delivery channel for mentoring and coaching.
The technology features and functions necessary to support synchronous and asynchronous communication.
Examples of discussion boards, conference topic boards, chat centers and other interactive features.
A glossary of terms.
Perhaps a list of hardware and software requirements and options -- with vendors, prices and even terms and conditions if relevant.
A selection of relevant Web sites, articles, and success stories.
You may consider developing grade level or content specific mentors.
Perhaps a section focused on cross-cultural and cross-skill mentoring might be interesting (see Moving Up Through Mentoring Article).
A grid, matrix or other graphic could depict mentee need and mentor skill.

Clearly, the design of the Resource Guide should reflect what you know about the real world of the classroom and the reality of the resources available.

Last updated March 24, 1998
Direct comments on this web page to Dave Keefe