Mentoring Our Mentors: Augmenting Maryland and DC Teacher Mentor Programs
If mentors are critical to the success and retention of novice teachers, what must we do to ensure mentors are equally equipped, supported, and empowered to succeed?
On my first day as a teacher, I remember standing in the middle of my empty classroom with a pile of desks against the wall. All I could think was, "What do I do now?" While I met experienced colleagues who kindly passed along words of wisdom, I never had that trusted person who was there to provide consistent support and advice. I never had a mentor.
Why Schools Need Mentors
Research has shown that teachers are the single most important factor influencing student achievement. The role of the mentor teacher has become increasingly important in order to support novice teachers to ensure that a workforce of skilled educators is nurtured, guided, and sustained.
There is a real problem, however, maintaining the educator workforce due to a persistent teacher shortage. The shortage is due in large part to attrition as well as decreasing enrollment in teacher preparation programs. In 2024, approximately 1 in 8 teaching positions were either left unfilled or were filled by individuals not certified for the role.
Nationwide studies show that 40 - 50% of teachers in their first five years of teaching leave the profession with an additional 20% considering leaving their positions. The ultimate result of these attrition rates has been that large portions of the teaching workforce (approximately 25% nationwide, 20% in Maryland, and 50% in DC) have five or fewer years of experience.
The data shows what I learned on the first day of my teaching career: Novice teachers need more than kind, wise words. They need mentors.
Mentoring Programs - A Call to Action
Throughout the country new teacher induction programs have been created to provide professional development to stem the flow of early-career teachers leaving the profession. Both Maryland and DC have established regulations that mandate new teacher induction programs aimed at improving the success of emerging educators through training and mentoring.
The role of the mentor is unique in a school. While the goals of a mentor are similar to those of instructional leaders - improving teacher performance - unlike these supervisory positions, the mentor’s role is non-evaluative. The following are among the responsibilities identified in the regulations for Maryland and DC.
- Provide confidential collegial support.
- Conduct classroom visits with feedback.
- Participate in collaborative planning.
- Model best practices.
- Provide job-embedded support for new teachers.
- Lead professional development on relevant topics of need.
- Participate in initial mentor training with additional ongoing professional development.
- (In DC) Track mentee implementation of instruction.
Mentor programs have shown success across the country in meeting state and system goals of reducing attrition, increasing teachers’ skills, and improving student achievement. Specific studies have shown the following:
- According to the National Center for Education Statistics nearly 30% of new teachers without mentor support left the profession by year five compared to only 14% of teachers with mentors.
- Regular meetings with a mentor have been shown to help new teachers develop important skills in less time than more experienced colleagues.
- An SRI Education study found that novice teachers with mentors had higher student achievement scores in both reading and math than students in control classrooms.
- The OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey showed that novice teacher self-efficacy increased when they were able to collaborate with mentor teachers more frequently.
- In a survey of National Teachers of the Year, having a mentor at the beginning of their career was identified as the support that had the greatest influence on their success.
Challenges to Mentor Support
While system induction and mentoring programs are in place, there are some implementation challenges that impact their effectiveness, including:
- The frequency of the mentor/mentee collaboration varies greatly with some mentees reporting fewer than three meetings during the school year.
- In one study less than half of the mentees had been observed more than once by their mentors.
- Many mentors teach different grade levels or subject areas than their mentees, making curricular support difficult.
- Mentors and mentees often do not have shared collaborative planning time.
- Mentors often do not receive relevant, ongoing professional development beyond their initial training.
Mentors wear a lot of hats and have a huge responsibility in supporting novice teachers. In order to be successful, schools must ensure that time, space, training, and resources are available to mentors so that they can provide the guidance needed to promote the success and retention of new teachers . How can school leaders create conditions that allow mentors to thrive in their role?
Creating a Mentor Teacher PLC Group
A National Institute for Excellence in Teaching report recommends supporting mentors with specific strategies and tools needed to strengthen their mentoring skills. A Mentor Teacher PLC would develop a community for training, practicing mentoring skills, receiving feedback, and solving challenges together.
While creating a PLC is a fairly straightforward process, there are several elements to a Mentor Teacher PLC that need to be considered.
- Identify a Mentors’ Mentor. This individual should have no evaluative role and must complete the system’s mentor training. They coordinate meetings and training while providing non-evaluative feedback and support to teacher mentors.
- Reduce administrative duties. Mentors and mentees should have time during their duty day for collaboration. Consider using the Mentor Teacher PLC as a committee assignment.
- Schedule regular Mentor Teacher PLC meetings. Encourage the Mentors’ Mentor to create meeting agendas including opportunities for professional growth, skills practice, and discussions about challenges. Among the possible meeting activities:
- Practice class visits using a focused look-for sheet. Watch a video from the internet or a mentor’s classroom to identify evidence of the look-for and opportunities for improvement.
- Plan a reflective conversation. Work collaboratively to identify coaching topics and questions based on “class visit” notes.
- Practice conducting reflective conversations. The following are two different activities that can be used to practice these conversations.
- Choose Your Own Coaching Conversation. Role-play a coaching conversation with one mentor and one mentee. The PLC provides feedback, pausing at key moments to discuss next steps. Continue to a natural close, then debrief the decisions and the mentee’s experience.
- Reflective Conversation Fishbowl. Two mentors role-play a reflection conversation while PLC members observe and take notes using the system’s coaching guidelines. Debrief by discussing strengths, areas for improvement, and feedback.
- Conduct a Mentor Program Survey. Use a survey to gather mentor and mentee feedback on supports, successes, and areas for improvement. Administer it at least twice a year and discuss results during PLC meetings to guide program improvements.
School systems have identified what new teachers need to succeed. Equal attention should be given to the mentors who help make that success possible.
"The mediocre mentor tells. The good mentor explains. The superior mentor demonstrates. The greatest mentors inspire!" ~ Lucia Ballas Traynor
What will you do as we begin the school year to create inspiring mentors?
RESOURCES
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