A Word on Mentoring

Hi all,

About two weeks ago I attended a workshop at the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology during which we discussed “What do you wish you had known as a new instructor or student at University?”

I attended this session as a means of gaining insight from the brains of wise veteran instructors.

The group was small, but I was very much enlightened by the end of the session. We explored both the realms of students and instructors – what we’d like to be equipped with when new to the (either) scene, and what resources we should provide to new folks, as veterans.

In answering these questions, we constructed maps with clustered post-it notes that summarized themes, pivotal questions, and solutions. The maps for students and instructors ended up being virtually identical. It seems that, in being a “new” anything, our biggest issue is fear of the unknown and how to be confident and succeed in new and unfamiliar environments. As veterans, it seems that providing support in a number of ways – paper resources, directing to campus services, reading groups, one-on-one guidance – could do the trick.

What really struck me was that the (self-declared) lack of the “newbies” could be easily remedied by what the veterans could provide – mentorship. I suppose I use the term “veteran” to mean “expert”, implying that there is an understanding of the field, the content, and likely of the cogs that make the whole machine work. This is why I say they could “easily” support those facing the unknown, I refer to the inherent knowledge base of a veteran.

When I began my engagement with teaching and learning, my dad (an emeritus professor) sent me a book he’s had for years, titled Adviser, Teacher, Role Model, Friend: On Being a Mentor to Students in Sciences and Engineering by the National Academy Press. This book starts by broadly defining a mentor as “someone who takes a special interest in helping another person develop into a successful professional”. It mentions that in academia, mentor is often used synonymously with faculty advisor or lab supervisor, which isn’t always the case. Mentoring fosters a relationship that is personal in addition to professional; “an effective mentoring relationship is characterized by mutual trust, understanding, and empathy. Good mentors are able to share life experiences and wisdom, as well as technical expertise”.

Since this cartoon lightbulb has gone off at the CTLT workshop and continues to float above my head as I go through this nice little book, I have been thinking a great deal about mentoring and ways to improve work environments via this avenue.

I encourage you all to think about issues you may have run into as a “newbie”, problems you may be facing in the workplace, and consider what place, if any, mentoring has in the solution. Feel free to leave a comment and start a discussion too! I would be happy to discuss – this is my own personal “Hot Topic” right now!