New research from National Institute of Teaching offers helpful insights on mentoring new teachers

The National Institute of Teaching has published new research on practices in mentoring and coaching new teachers.

The rapid evidence review and summary report take a multi-faceted look at practices in mentoring and coaching new or trainee teachers.

The NIoT commissioned an investigation into mentoring and coaching. The conceptual review and current practice survey have previously been published. They are joined by a rapid review of the formal research evidence on effective mentoring, by lead author Jennifer Stevenson, as well as a summary review by Dr Melissa Bond bringing the three reports together.

The project found that mentoring requires the development of a sustained, productive mentor-mentee relationship, the establishment of mentee goals, the effective facilitation of mentee learning, and provision of emotional and psychosocial support. It also identified the active ingredients and modifiers of mentoring, which can be managed by school leaders to increase the likelihood of positive outcomes from mentoring activity.

The project also learned that:

• One in 10 teachers in state-funded schools said they had a formal mentor.
• Common mentoring activities cited by mentees included: observation and feedback, sharing knowledge on best practice, agreeing goals, and coaching.
• The available evidence about what makes mentoring effective for trainees and novice teachers is limited. And where evidence exists, it is mostly from the US school context.
• However, synthesising across the project, it is possible to conclude that mentoring appears to be more effective when:
  • it is not linked to teacher performance, to foster trust and openness.
  • the mentor has volunteered for their role.
  • the mentor is not the mentee’s line manager.
  • the mentor is within the same key stage and/or subject area speciality as their mentee.
  • the mentor is located as geographically close as possible.
  • there is trust between leaders and staff.
  • schools prioritise mentoring and ensure mentors undertake appropriate high-quality mentor training.
• Mentees were generally positive about being mentored, with 87 per cent naming at least one benefit.
• Those over 30 were on average less positive about mentoring, with only a minority of mentees over 30 (more likely to be career changers) saying they received appropriate emotional and psychological support from their mentor.
• 44 per cent of mentors said that they received no additional time off timetable for mentoring and 77 per cent named at least one detrimental effect of being a mentor, with around 60 per cent working longer hours.
• Mentors who received an explicit timetable allocation were more likely to report benefits such as reflecting on teaching and finding the experience rewarding, and were less likely to experience detrimental effects. Senior leaders in the survey were more likely to report their mentors and mentees have time off timetable than mentors or mentees.

Calum Davey, the executive director of research and best practice at the National Institute of Teaching, said: “Mentors are the unsung heroes of professional development. This research gets us closer to understanding what the active ingredients of a good mentor relationship look like.

“Effective mentoring promotes a productive, supportive, and open relationship between mentee and mentor, establishes mentee goals, and especially facilitates mentee learning through modelling, reflection, professional development, peer collaboration and networking.

“Mentoring powers a large part of the DfE’s ‘golden thread’ professional development reforms, and we’re pleased to add to the evidence base to inform practice."

This research will be useful for anyone who is co-ordinating school induction programmes; ITT and ECF providers and teaching school hubs. It was led by a project team and peer-reviewed by international experts in mentoring.

Schools that prioritise mentoring, including allocating sufficient resources and recognising and celebrating mentors, are more likely to see successful mentoring outcomes.

Calum continued: “The evidence suggests that creating an environment in which mentoring can flourish can result in better outcomes for both pupils, mentees, and mentors.

“Schools are dealing with multiple staffing challenges so consideration needs to be given to how to make this recommendation become a reality.”

“We also need to better understand the impact of mentoring on pupil attainment, teacher wellbeing and retention, and the experiences of those switching into teaching from other careers, with research that is grounded in the English-schools context.”

The project team was made up of:

• Professor Andrew Hobson (University of Brighton)
• Professor Emerita Bronwen Maxwell (Sheffield Hallam University)
• Catherine Manning (Education and Training Foundation)
• Professor Becky Allen (Teacher Tapp)
• Jennifer Stevenson, independent (3ie senior research fellow)
• Dr Zsolt Kiss (ZK Analytics)
• Dr Clara Joergensen (University of Birmingham)

To find out more, read the reports here