Exploring Mentor Teachers’ Experiences and Practices in Japan: Formative Intervention for Self-Directed Development of Novice Teachers

Figures & Tables

Theme	Hesitation in advising mentees	Difficulty in transmitting teacher professionalism
Quotes	– “I am not sure to what extent I should instruct on classroom practice and student discipline.” – “I wonder how much I should help the mentee.” – “It is difficult to estimate how much the mentees solve problems on their own.” – “It is difficult to balance development of the mentee with classroom management.”	– “They need to be more responsible as professional teachers.” – “My mentee could not change easily when I provided advice on work etiquette, like communicating with colleagues and keeping deadlines.” – “It is difficult to convey what I am thinking.”

Demographic and background information		N
Gender	Female	19
	Male	5
	No answer	1
Age	30‒39	8
	40‒49	6
	50‒59	3
	60‒69	8
Teaching experience	5‒9 years	3
	10‒19 years	10
	More than 20 years	12
Experience as a mentor	0‒1 year	7
	2 years	8
	3 years	3
	4 years	2
	5 years	5

Theme	The ability to intervene according to the mentee’s situation
Quotes	– “The ability to give instructions and show a model after discerning to what extent mentees can do by themselves.”
	– “The skill to grasp situations and determine whether I should help or let the mentees proceed on their own.”
	– “The ability to encourage mentees’ agency, regardless of the situation.”

	Designing a class	Determining teaching methods	Reviewing a class
Theme	Setting the direction for self-directed problem-solving	Collaboratively clarifying unclear and ambiguous aspects of teaching method	Assessing effective instructions and providing clues for further growth	Designing an opportunity for learning in dialogic communication and mutual negotiation
Subtheme	(a) Building a relationship of trust	(d) Asking a question to clarify the teaching method	(g) Valuing the good teaching points	(i) Attempting to learn from the novice teacher with a modest and sincere attitude
	(b) Positive listening to the novice teacher in dialogic communication	(e) Prompting mentees’ decisions	(h) Addressing problems identified together with the novice teacher	(j) Creating a place to talk about one’s educational value as a teacher with each other
	(c) Encouraging novice teachers to set a direction for future lessons	(f) Agreement and suggestions to create a collaborative learning activity

Survey question 1 answer Options	Count	Percentage of mentors (%)
(1) Instruction concerning lecture	22	88
(2) Instruction concerning student discipline	7	28
(3) How to communicate with parents	4	16
(4) How to deal with school administrative work	5	20
(5) How to manage communication with colleagues	2	8
(6) Other	14
– Issues about health and well-being	4	16
– The importance of active behaviour	1	4
– Priority of work	1	4
– Work etiquette	1	4
– How to learn in the school	1	4