The Impact of Mentor-Disciple Interaction on Student Teachers’ Learning to Teach

Abstract

Abstract:

The relationship established between a cooperating teacher and a student teacher during practicum may have great impact on the student teacher’s learning to teach. This study examines different types of relationships that both parties can establish and how different relationships impact the student teacher’s knowledge transformation and identity formation, and reports 4 types of relationships, including positive and promoting, positive but prohibiting, negative and prohibiting, and negative but promoting. Based on the analysis of the features and enabling factors shown by these four prototypical cases, we argue that a harmonious relationship does not necessarily lead to a learning environment promoting the student teacher’s knowledge transformation and identity formation, and negative relationship does not necessarily prohibit the student teacher’s learning and growth. The relationship between the cooperating teacher and the student teacher depends on the student teacher’s satisfaction about contextual factors. Their knowledge transmission and identity formation rely, to a great degree, on their own awareness and skills of reflection, as well as the cooperating teacher’s mentoring styles and skills. This paper concludes with a discussion that the quality of the cooperating teacher’s mentoring can be attributed to not only their personal factors, but also the institutional arrangement and resource allocation in the practicum.

Key words: mentor-disciple relationship, practicum mentoring, interaction model, knowledge transformation, identity formation

CLC Number:

G451

Chen Xiangming, Qu Xia. The Impact of Mentor-Disciple Interaction on Student Teachers’ Learning to Teach[J]. Education Science, 2021, 37(5): 36-48.

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