Self-mentoring™ is the art of leading oneself in unknown environments or even hostile settings. Self-mentoring™, by formal definition, refers to an individual – achiever - willing to initiate and accept responsibility for self-development by devoting time to navigate within the culture of the environment in order to make the most of opportunity to strength competencies needed to enhance job performance and career progression (Carr, 2011; 2012; Duke, Carr, & Sterrett, 2013). Informally, self-mentoring™ is a sustainable practice of building leaders and is different for each individual as an individualized approach. Self-mentoring is the act of accepting responsibility for personal and/or professional growth through identification and development of individual skills; aligning internal and external resources with goals; applying social and professional networking opportunities when needed; and exercising determination to meet these expectations. Self-mentors™ choose the path to reach each goal through collaborations, observations, one-one-one interactions, discussion groups, networking activities, community clusters, and other various identified measures through self-mentoring™.  While self-mentoring™ is a practice of leadership that applies mentoring strategies; it is not a replacement for mentoring practice but can be used to compliment existing mentoring practices.

Mentoring is two or more individuals working together collaboratively to provide support and guidance to the less experienced of the individuals. It can be considered a partnership that both derive benefits from the exchange. “Mentoring is a long term relational process for developing a mentee under the close guidance of a teacher, counselor, or leader who knows how to navigate within the culture of the mentee’s environment organization. Today mentoring is more diverse. It now generally refers to a relationship between two individuals, the mentor and mentee. The mentor works with the mentee to strengthen competencies needed to enhance job performance and career progression”. (Boval, nd)  According to Thomas & Saslow (2011), “Mentoring is a developmental partnership through which one person shares knowledge, skills, information and perspective to foster the personal and professional growth of someone else. The power of mentoring is that it creates a one-of-a-kind opportunity for collaboration, goal achievement and problem-solving.” More successful mentoring relationship may continue informally at the conclusion of the program but are not common.

Self-mentoring™, while akin to mentoring practice, involves the self-mentor™ accepting individual responsibility; it is also necessary to develop relationships with others that support the growth of the self-mentor™ so while independence is promoted, relationships are also a key component in networking and reflection. Self-mentoring™ focuses on leadership development and sustained leadership practice through acknowledging innate or embedding new behaviors. Leadership is a process…not a set of individual skills that is innate or taught, but a process. This process, as defined by Lambert (2003) includes problem-solving and broad-based skillful participation, conversations and stories among colleagues, and task enactment processes. These processes engage the leader in the environment. Teachers aware of the process still need encouragement or a structured approach to reach full leadership potential.

“In the late twentieth century, new developments in teacher education led teacher educators to study their attempts to improve teacher education practices.” (Lunenberg & Samaras, 2011, p 841) Samaras & Freese (2006) introduce, in a publication, the idea of self-study in teaching practice as the ability to improve one’s teaching and leadership with evidence- based practice. Self-study involves the teacher, with the assistance of concerned colleagues, builds a template for self-examination of outcome-based and purpose-driven teaching. (Samaras, 2011) While self-study appears to drive self-evaluation of direct classroom instructional practices, self-mentoring™ strives to identify leadership practices that can be used in and out of the classroom that may or may not involve instructional practices. It is a more indirect approach. Self-mentoring™ is akin to self-study in the efforts to isolate and identify practices that will build self-efficacy.

Jean Piaget, developmental psychologist, believed that everyone does think, but just not alike or use the same critical thinking skills. Piaget advocated that of the four stages of learning, the third level, concrete operational, might be considered the most difficult for individuals. This stage requires individuals to think beyond what is right in front of them-what they feel, taste, see, or know from experience. Critical thinking was believed to develop in the final stage named formal operations.  During this stage, the individual can accept ambiguity and contradictions-can perform abstract reasoning. (Crowley & Tallent, 2013) Self-mentors™ must operate in the formal operations stage in order to be able to build relationships for peer reflection and feedback, use self-reflection, and apply data from various sources for self-improvement. Reflection is an important component of self-mentoring™.

 

The Study

In a rural North Carolina public school system, a self-mentoring™ pilot study was conducted. Nine teachers, one male and eight female, were selected or volunteered by the local school district to be participants in the study.  The only male participant dropped out for unknown reason at the beginning of the pilot but is included in the following demographics. The teacher participants taught in grades 1-3 and 6-12 and prior to the pilot year, taught in grades K-1, 3, 5-12, which was representational of elementary, middle, and high schools. The average teaching experience for the participants was 4.3 years (3-5 years of experience). Age range of the participants was four 20-30 years old; three 31-40 years old; and one 51-60 year old. All participants lived in the county and had been teaching for approximately 22 to 39 years. None of the participants had acquired beyond a bachelors degree. In regard to mentoring experiences, seven of the participants had 3 years of prior mentoring and one participant had four years of mentoring.

 

Research Question/Theory

The primary question driving this qualitative inquiry was, In what ways does self-mentoring™ serve to support and encourage teacher leaders? Since self-mentoring is evolving; related studies were in mentoring so a grounded theory was applied to encourage discovery.

Participants met over a period of nine months during four seminars that were approximately 2 or more hours in duration. Each seminar focused on one of the four stages of self-mentoring with general overlap from the previous seminar. During these seminars, observations, video, journals, photos, reflection notes, small group discussions, interviews, email exchange, and written responses were used to capture data.

Participating teachers in this study were not isolated in their efforts to self-mentor™. While participants were assigned to different schools and grade levels, they were able to interact during and between the seminars or contact the school officials for additional guidance. It was noted that this type of group internal support may have been beneficial but the impact of having this type of support was not a consideration in the study. Self-mentoring™ advocates for internal and external resources – it does not limit the interactions to single contact but may be group contact if needed. In most cases; however, a self-mentor™ may be self-mentoring™ outside of a study group format.

Each participant signed a contract to self-mentor™ as a testament of commitment. During the seminar I, participants used leadership inventories and tools to discuss leadership processes and traits. The culture of the school district and each school was determined. The participants were from different schools and while some differences in school climate were noted from school to school, there was an overarching supportive culture for the county. At the close of the seminar, participants compiled a list of individual expectations narrowing the list to one primary focus for the next seminar. During the second seminar, participants began with an individual expectation and developed activities or strategies to monitor and assess the progress. Group discussions provided activity selection feedback to each participant. Measurable strategies were developed for the individual expectations and timelines established for implementation and data collection. Each participant committed to a specific amount of time each week dedicated to working strategy implementation. Seminar III applied the previous seminar work in more depth. Participants determined what professional and social networking was necessary to reach expectations. Peer and self-reflection served to guide the participant. The final seminar, IV, was a culmination. Participants were provided time to reflect in groups by sharing results from reviewing recommendations and data, resulting in future modifications. Participants planned for continual monitoring. New expectations can be developed for each year.

 

Data Analysis

The study, a qualitative inquiry, used manual data coding by two researchers directly involved in the study. The first cycle coding was In Vivo and a second cycle of coding utilized pattern coding (Saldana, 2009).  Analytical data were collected from memos, observation, open ended questioning during seminars, individual and group interviews, journal entries, and available documents.

During the first cycle coding, the affective domain dominated the initial review with emotional, values, and evaluation phrases or words. Two categories were formulated: leader and teacher. Confidence emerged as the most prominent theme. Second cycle coding yielded similar patterns that related to teacher and leader confidence during data reviews. Positioning theory was one theory that emerged. Reflective and interactive positioning were dynamics at work within participants and among participants and their peers. Positioning theory explains that learners make decisions and as information becomes available, reflects on data to alter decisions hence becoming more confidence through practice. (Harre & Langenhove, 1999)

 

Results:

Two primary expectations from the participants emerged: to become a stronger leader in the school environment and/or to become a better teacher in the classroom. From participation in self-mentoring™, the participants believed they experienced increased strength in both areas. As teachers, they became stronger at classroom management. They were more inclined to assist other teachers and share ideas. Some indicated they felt more knowledgeable. As leaders, they experienced courage to speak up in meetings and be more assertive when opinions were sought. They gained confidence to take leadership roles and to reach out as leader to assist others when necessary.

Self and peer reflections were acknowledged as the most effective tool in self-mentoring™ by the majority of participants. “Reflection makes you more aware of what you are doing so you can correct it,” explained one participant. “Reflection provided confidence to be able to support other colleagues,” shared another participant, “I believe I will continue to gain confidence as a leader.” Classroom instruction was enhanced through admission of some participants. “I was more comfortable in my subject area – always comfortable but now more comfortable.” shared another participant. A participant, in reply to a question about how instructional practice was improved, explained, “During a Math lesson, I realized sooner that manipulatives needed to be supplied.”

The study suggests participants involved in self-mentoring™ gained confidence as leaders through a variety of activities chosen by the participant and guided by self-mentoring™. The participants were empowered to make decisions and determine the method to meet expectations. As participants began working through strategies, a participant, between seminars, shared through an email, “I made a decision about our PLC [Professional Learning Community] at [school]. Three of the four ED teachers can meet together. Number 4 cannot because of students, lunch, or homebound responsibilities. So, I decided to meet with the majority. The last meeting was in Number 4’s room because she could not leave her students. So, we met in there.” Teacher leaders emerge when they have the confidence to make decisions and plan for their success. 

An interesting revelation resulted in the final review of the system evaluation data. During the first seminar, participants were asked to talk about the culture of the system they work in regard to supporting and empowering teachers among other questions. Participants completed an evaluation of the school district prior to and post of the self-mentoring program. The participants viewed the system as a stronger organization prior to self-mentoring. Participants were more critical of the system and ranked it lower after self-mentoring. Assumptions were drawn that as the participants became more confident in leadership roles, they also became more critical of the organization. The study was completed and there was not opportunity to interview participants to gain insight but in future studies, this will become part of essential data collection. District officials reported observable increased confidence in participants during the program. A memo sent by observing school official during the first seminar to the district superintendent read, “The self-mentoring™ session … was exceptionally powerful. [I] am pleased with how productive this session was. The participants stated this was one of the best Professional Development sessions that they have ever been apart of.”

 

Conclusion

There is no limit to the self-mentor’s™ ability to grow as a professional. Self-mentors™ are motivated and passionate in sustaining the success achieved and expended to meet expectations. They maintain control over their own destiny and any achievements are from their efforts. This sense of accomplishment is motivational so that self-mentors™ strive to sustain these skills for empowerment and self-efficacy. Self-mentoring™ is not a cure all, but it can become a practice to promote leaders in professional settings. It is only through practice and continued study in the area of self-mentoring™ we will learn the importance of advocating for continued practice. Kimberly Horn (2013) writes, “…there will always be times in one’s career when the right mentor-mentee fit simply doesn’t happen. This is when the concept of self-mentoring™ becomes particularly important.” As self-mentoring™ grows nationwide, continued efforts to gather data through additional studies will yield more about how self-mentoring™ and how it can become a more useful tool. Avil Beckford, (2012) agrees that self-mentoring™ “puts you in the position of power. You take control of your life and journey on the path that is right for you”.  Self-mentoring™ is the act of accepting responsibility for your own growth and success – you are the best leader in your own life. Your life – You lead!

 

REFERENCES

Beckford, A. (April 2, 2012) Self-Mentoring: An Idea for the Twenty-First Century. http://theinvisiblementor.com/2012/03/26/self-mentoring-an-idea-for-the-twenty-first-century/

Boval Inc., Marilou (ND). Code 400: Orientation Session for Flight Programs and Projects Directorate: “Mentoring for Success”. MLBova1@home.com

Carr, M. (2011). The Invisible Teacher: A self-mentoring sustainability model. Wilmington, N.C.: University of North Carolina Wilmington, Watson College of Education.

Carr, M. (2012). The invisible leader: A self-mentoring guide for higher education faculty. Wilmington, N.C.: University of North Carolina Wilmington, Watson College of Education.

Duke, D., Carr, M., and Sterrett, W. (2013) The School Improvement Planning Handbook: Getting Focused for Turnaround and Transition. Rowan & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc. Lanham:MD   https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781610486316

Harre, R. and Van Langenhove, L. (Eds.) (1999). Positioning theory: Moral contexts of intentional action. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.

Horn, K. (January 28, 2013). The increasing importance of self-mentoring. Research Accelerator: Resources for Public Health Research. George Washington University.      

Lambert, L. (2003). Leadership redefined: An evocative context for teacher leadership. School Leadership and Management 23(4): 421–30.

Lunenberg, M. and Samaras, A. (2011). Developing a pedagogy for teaching self-study research: Lessons learned across the atlantic. Teaching and Teacher Education. 27:841-850

Salanda, J. (2009). The Coding Manual for Qualitative Researcher. California: Sage Publications.

Samaras, A. and Freese, A. (2006). Self-Study of Teaching Practices. New York: Peter Lang.

Samaras, A. (2011). Self-Study Teacher Research: Improving Your Practice through Collaborative Inquiry. SAGE Publications; Los Angeles, CA.

Thomas, N. & Saslow, S. (2011). Improving productivity through coaching and mentoring. The Institute of Executive Development. Chief Learning Officer. http://clomedia.com