Mentoring for Novice Teachers

The purpose of this chapter is to explicate the concept of “mentoring.” First, the confusion on the “mentoring” concept is fixed in this chapter and then the purposes of mentoring practices are examined. The theoretical background of mentoring, roles and responsibilities of mentors, and main mentoring models are reviewed. Then, benefits of mentoring practices are discussed thoroughly. After clearing up the concept of “mentoring,” the qualities that a mentor should have are mentioned in this chapter. Additionally, the selection of mentors, mentor-novice matching, and mentor training issues are highlighted. Finally, the interaction between mentors and novice teachers, the effect of mentors' and novice teachers' workload to mentoring practices, and incentives for mentor teachers are discussed.