Summary
Highlights
Introduction of Professor Linda Zumingani , professor at the Department of Education, Miser University. She has completed masters in several fields and has numerous publications. The topic for the session is 'Teachers as Mentors.'
A teacher is defined not just as someone who delivers instructions, but as someone who helps students acquire knowledge, competence, and virtue. Virtue is emphasized. It involves maintaining decorum, behavior and self-awareness when interacting with other human beings. Teachers interact with human beings, so they should understand that their roles is to build a developed society.
Mentoring involves guiding or coaching, forming a one-to-one relationship where the more experienced person leads the other towards a safer, more knowledgeable end. A mentor can be a trusted friend who cares about career growth and development. The talk emphasizes the importance of maintaining a teacher's role even while being friendly with students.
Essential qualities include a range of interpersonal skills, working knowledge of teaching methods, and the ability to use coaching processes. It also involves having a good working knowledge of a repertoire of teaching methods alternative modalities of learning and styles of teaching.
According to NEP 2020, mentoring is a formalized relationship that supports and encourages professional learning. Strength weakness analysis, opportunities analysis and sharing of profiles mentor and mentee are important and contribute to building foundations for professional relationships. The teacher should connect with society needs, industry, rural and development, and the country to gain practical and field related skills.
Effective communication skills are vital for earning the trust of mentees and accommodating their emotional, social, and cognitive needs. Teachers must understand different stages of teacher development and how adults learn. The most important things about Mentors is the ability of teachers to learn, and sound self-esteem.
NEP 2020 recommends developing a system of mentorship by experienced, distinguished, and sometimes retired faculty. If this isn't possible, you will also need to take from yourselves. Each new faculty member should be assigned a faculty mentor with a long tenure and exemplary track record.
It's mandatory for newly appointed teachers to attend an induction program within a year of appointment, and should be aware about the administrative setup. Regardless, teachers must learn to understand the various essences of a mentor.