Mentoring Module 2

Editor's Notes

• #6: Ground Rules, Procedures and Protocols for Mentees and Mentors.   Initial Contact: CSL will provide contact details to the Mentor and Mentee. In the first instance the mentor shall make contact with the Mentee by phone or by e mail. The purpose of this to establish contact and to arrange the first meeting. Purpose of initial Contact: During the course of this conversation the Mentor will outline the purpose of the first meeting- to establish protocols and boundaries, to look at the broad goals of the Mentee and to fill in a Mentor/Mentee Agreement form together. First meeting: The Mentor should allow the mentee to choose the time and venue for the first meeting- however this meeting should not be in a social setting and should not involve food or alcohol consumption. All subsequent meeting venues and times will be discussed at the first meeting. It is not necessary that this particular meeting should last two hours. CSL will provide the Mentor and Mentee with documentation to help them during this initial meeting Practical protocols Confidentiality check list Learning plan template Mentor/Mentee Agreement template Subsequent meetings: – These meetings will take place monthly. They should begin and end on time. At the initial meeting the times and venues for these meetings should be planned in advance. Meetings can be scheduled for the term or for the whole year. These meetings may take place in the schools if this is the wish of the Mentor and the Mentee. It is not necessary to have these meetings in a neutral venue. Documentation for subsequent meetings – CSL will provide a Framework for Professional Discussion document ( Doc no.6 )for the mentor and mentee. These forms are private to the mentor and to the mentee and should not be returned to CSL. The mentor will be required to fill in a different form stating that the meeting took place and this will be co-signed by the mentee. This form will be a record for CSL of the mentoring meetings. Conduct of meetings- The meeting should be a professional conversation based on the goals of the Mentee as identified by them in the initial meeting. At times their goals may change and the mentor should allow the mentee the freedom to change their goals if necessary. Both the Mentor and the Mentee should make every effort to build trust with each other. There should be frank and open communication between the two parties and confidentially should be respected. Both parties should actively participate in the relationship. Leading Learning – The main priority of any Priomhoide (Principal Teacher) is to lead learning within their school. It is acknowledged that many conversations in the first year of a principal taking up a position could be centred on areas such as organisation of the school and building relationships in the community. In order to promote leading learning in schools, the mentors and mentee will be expected to devote some time to discussing leading learning in the school in their monthly face to face meeting.
• #7: Weekly contact: It is expected that the mentor and mentee should have weekly contact by phone or e mail or Skype/FaceTime. The preferred method of contact will be discussed at the first meeting. Both Principals should discuss how much time they can give to this contact (no longer than 30 minutes) and the best time to make contact with each other. They should discuss the boundaries around this arrangement and be clear as when they can and cannot speak to each other. Should person not be available due to either a personal or professional commitment, there should be an agreement as to how this is communicated to the other principal. Participation and Engagement; All participants to this agreement are expected to engage with the other adult. They are expected to participate meaningfully in this relationship. Limitations – If matters arise during the course of the conversations that appear to go beyond the level of competence of the Mentor, they should acknowledge this to the mentee. It is best to refer the mentee to another service or agency that could deal with their particular area. Where difficulties arise – CSL has developed an Exit Strategy Policy. If the relationship is breaking down and appears to either party to be going in the wrong direction, then they should follow the CSL exit strategy policy and make contact with the relevant people. Closure: All mentors and mentees are expected to participate in a closure meeting at the end of the year. At this meeting they can capitalise on what they have learned in the mentoring relationship. The focus will be on the integration of the learning, a celebration of success and a re-definition of the relationship. Should either party to the agreement be unable to continue with the mentoring relationship (due to personal/professional circumstances) during the year it is expected that this closure meeting will still take place. Evaluation of the Mentoring Programme. –The CSL mentoring programme is part of a pilot project. Both mentor and mentee will be required to complete evaluation forms throughout the duration of the project. Confidentiality: It is expected that the Mentor and Mentee will keep all their conversations confidential and will discuss this confidentiality at their initial meeting. It is understood however that if either party to this agreement should disclose that they intend to cause grievous harm to themselves or to any other person(s) that this cannot remain confidential and will have to be reported to a specific service or agency which deals with these matters. There may be a need for the mentor to speak to their CARA about an issue that has arisen and seek advice from them. The identity of the mentee will not be revealed to the CARA and only the specific issue will be discussed between the mentor and the CARA . ( NB Details in relation to the CAIRDE will be given in the afternoon by CSL Personnel )
• #8: We decided to use this confidentiality checklist as a 3 corner debate . Facilitators read out a statement from the list below . Participants are asked to go to a particular corner of the room which indicates what they believe. The presenters facilitate a robust debate between the participants . The purpose of this exercise is to show that participants that everyone has a different view /outlook on confidentiality. It is very important that at the initial meeting that the mentor has a good conversation with the mentee about confidentiality and that they come to a common agreement. ( e.g. Some mentees would prefer that the mentor would never say who they were mentoring . Others would be happy that the mentor could tell others who they were mentoring ) All the statements in the checklist below need not be addressed – Facilitators should choose a few statements which they believe would generate the best debate . The Confidentiality Checklist Which of the following assumptions about confidentially do you hold? Answer one of the following: Yes No Not Sure What we discuss stays between us for as long as we are engaged in our mentoring relationship   We can freely disclose what we talk about in our conversations with other people   After our mentoring conversation is over, it is okay to talk about what we discussed or how we related If there is a demonstrated need to know, we can disclose our conversations, impressions etc   What we say between us stays there unless we give each other specific permission to talk about it with others   Some issues will be kept confidential while others will not It is okay to discuss how we relate to each other but not the content of our conversations   It is okay to talk about what we talk about as long as it is positive   If we meet out socially it is okay to greet and to introduce each other to those present in the company .  Adapted from Zachary
• #9: This is where the participants will be doing a lot of work . They will work in pairs ( swapping each time) and completing the documents to the best of their abilities. Issues may arise from the participants and facilitators can take note of all the issues and bring this feedback to the CSL team who will create the final versions of these documents for uploading onto our new website. Below are the documents in note form but CSL will also provide you with the actual document. Mentor/Mentee Agreement – We are entering into a mentoring relationship from which we both expect to benefit. We have discussed the ground rules, protocols and procedures for Mentors and Mentees. (A copy of this should be sent to CSL)   Practical issues  Venue(s) and Time -  Calendar for Term/Year-  Arrangements re: Weekly contact. ( Timing of this and Nature of this contact : E mail /skype/Phone etc..)    Other Issues Confidentiality for us means that …   What stumbling blocks might we encounter? What process should we have in place to deal with them? We agree to meet on a monthly basis for a two hour session in a venue to be decided by agreement between us. We agree to abide by the ground rules, procedures and protocols. We agree to weekly contact by e –mail/phone/skype This relationship will last for one academic year. We will review this agreement on a regular basis. The focus of our mentoring relationship will be in the Learning Plan. We agree to have a discussion in every monthly meeting about the role of the principal in leading learning in the school. We are committed to open and honest communication with each other. We agree to fill in all documentation required by CSL and to willingly partake in the evaluation of this project.   Mentor Mentee Date Date The Learning Plan (for completion at the initial meeting ) DOCUMENT 4 The table below may help the mentee to reflect on their needs and the goals that they will to set: This table can be used to start a conversation between the Mentor and the Mentee and to help the Mentee clarify in their own mind what their needs are. The mentee fills in this document and keeps the document in their possession. Area of school life V. comfortable Comfortable Need support here Leading learning and teaching Managing the organisation Leading School development Developing leadership capacity     Then the mentee fills in the details below in the boxes provided :   Areas in which the mentee is very comfortable Areas in which the Mentee needs support and mentoring Long term Goal(s) for this academic year This box can be used to breakdown the long term goals into a series of short term goals   Draft Quality Framework for Teaching and Learning:  1. Leading learning and teaching School leaders: promote a culture of improvement, collaboration, innovation and creativity in learning, teaching and assessment foster a commitment to inclusion, equality of opportunity and the holistic development of each student manage the planning and implementation of the school curriculum foster teacher professional development that enriches teachers’ and students’ learning   2. Managing the organisation School leaders: establish an orderly, secure and healthy learning environment, and maintain it through effective communication manage all the resources of the school so as to create and maintain a learning organisation manage challenging and complex situations in a manner that demonstrates equality, fairness and justice develop and implement a system to promote professional responsibility and accountability   3. Leading school development: School leaders: communicate the guiding vision for the school and lead its realisation lead the school’s engagement in a continuous process of self-evaluation build and maintain relationships within the school, with other schools, and with the wider school community manage, lead and mediate change to respond to the evolving needs of the school and to changes in education   4. Developing leadership capacity School leaders: critique their practice as leaders and develop their understanding of effective and sustainable leadership empower staff to take on and carry out leadership roles promote and facilitate the development of student voice and student leadership build professional networks with other school leaders   Checklist Have you both read the Ground Rules, Procedures and Protocols for Mentors and mentees? ( Document 2) Have you discussed where you will meet? Have you discussed the most suitable time to meet? Have you made a calendar of meetings for the Term/Year? Have you discussed how you will make your weekly contact? Have you discussed your understanding of confidentiality? If problems arise, have you discussed how these might be addressed? Have you completed the Learning Plan? ( Document 4) Have you filled in the Mentor/Mentee agreement and do both of you have a copy of it?( Document 3) Have you discussed the “Framework for Professional Discussion” (Document 6) and how you might use it to inform your monthly meetings? Have you filled in your Record of Meetings form? ( Document 7 ) Are you both familiar with the Exit Strategy Policy? ( Document 8)
• #10: CSL is providing a document to all the participants called “ Framework for discussion. This document can be used to start the conversations every month. It is the mentee who will fill in the document and the mentee who will keep the document as a record of the conversation that was had . The mentee may wish to give a copy of it to the Mentor as an aide memoire . (as a part of a co-professional relationship) . The purpose of this document is to empower the Mentee They are proactive in the process and have a sense of co-ownership of the process The document can help build the dynamic of the relationship The document concretises the conversation It is a commitment to action Framework for Discussion Document. ( Document 6 )   This is to be used at every meeting after the initial meeting. This form is private to the mentor and to the mentee and should not be returned to CSL. It should be filled in by the mentee at the conclusion of each meeting. It is a report agreed by both parties.   Month of Meeting What went well last month?    Even better if………..    Updated goal(s)    Other    Areas you may wish to discuss:  Leading learning and teaching Managing the organisation Leading School development Developing leadership capacity
• #11: This is a straightforward document Record of Meetings Form.   Please fill this in every month. It is the responsibility of the Mentor to return this form to CSL at the end of the year (or earlier if requested.) Month Date   Time Signature of mentee Signature of Mentor.            
• #12: Facilitators may wish to discuss this policy with the Mentors. They may have some further suggestions to improve the policy . Exit Strategy Policy Should either party in the mentoring relationship feel that the process is not working for them he/she should in the first instance address the matter in an open way with the other principal.   If this is not successful, the mentor should contact his/her Cara and express his/her concerns to him/her.   If the mentee is dissatisfied and feels that he/she cannot discuss this with their mentor then he/she should contact the CSL office and request an exit strategy meeting outlining the difficulties they are encountering and the reasons that he/she believes that change would be appropriate.   The CSL office will arrange for one of the Cairde to meet individually with the mentor and the mentee. Should he/she believe that the relationship could be salvaged he/she may (with agreement of both parties) arrange a meeting with both the Mentor and Mentee present. If he/she believe that the relationship needs to be ended, he/she will report this finding to the appropriate Deputy Director of CSL. Upon hearing the recommendation of the Cara , the deputy director can make one of two decisions : She can accept the recommendation and proceed to find another suitable match for the Mentee in question. Or She can decide to re-interview one or both parties in the relationship following this meeting. Should the Deputy decide that the relationship has irrevocably broken down, she will recommend to the Director of CSL that a new mentor is assigned to this Mentee.
• #13: Facilitators: The literature research supports this statement . Formal mentoring is a new concept in educational leadership but is well established in leadership in many other professions