Mentoring Two Student Teachers: Mentors' Perceptions of Peer Placements

Source: Teaching Education, Volume 21, Issue 3, 2010, Pages 233 - 246.

Research on peer placements suggests that partnering two preservice teachers with a mentor provides a better, more supportive context for learning to teach.
While extant research has focused more on student teachers' development, less is known about mentors' perceptions and experiences.

This study focuses on seven mentor teachers who have mentored one-three years in peer placements to provide a textured understanding of their perceptions and experiences.

Results indicate: (a) peer collaboration provides important pedagogical scaffolding that helps student teachers plan and implement complex pedagogies;
(b) peer-mentor observation helps student teachers feel more efficacious about their developing practice;
(c) sharing responsibility for instruction and distributing roles and resources enables mentors to better meet the needs of student teachers and students; and
(d) effective peer placements require mentors to conceptualize their work in different ways.