Everyone Needs A Mentor

“Mentoring is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction” . Everyone needs someone in their corner, rooting for them to succeed. A good mentor does just that. They walk alongside you and provide guidance when needed.

I was assigned a mentor during my first year of teaching. I recall “meeting” with her once. She was a relatively new teacher with a very off putting personality. The day she came to meet with me, she walked into my classroom and asked if there was anything I needed? By the way she asked, I could tell that she had no real interest in helping me. I responded “I don’t think so” and she said “OK” and left the room. We did not speak again for the remainder of the school year and that was in September.

Luckily, I had enough self motivation to work hard at being good in my position. I studied the curriculum and found activities to support the students in my classroom. Too often educators are left without needed guidance, especially in the first few years of their careers. There seems to be reluctance, with some people, to ask for help. This brings up the question, are we creating environments where mentoring is the norm?

In many school districts there are mentoring programs for teachers in the beginning stages of their careers. This helps them to get acclimated to the profession and their school district. My concern is what happens after a teacher is no longer considered a novice? There is still a need for a mentor to work alongside teachers as they progress through their careers.

A mentor could be someone that works on your campus or in your school district. The great part about education is the access to people that may not live close to you. There are many educators that share their work through social media that are gracious when it comes to collaborating with those that reach out to them. Don’t be afraid to reach out to someone who could give you much needed advice with something you are curious about or struggling with.

Mentorship is not only needed for teachers, but administrators as well. Too often school leaders are given the keys to the building and essentially left to figure things out on their own. There are a few school districts that have programs to mentor school leaders, but that is not the norm. Administrators have to be intentional about seeking guidance when needed.

A good mentor is beneficial to not only your profession life, but also your personal life. If there is someone that does things in a way that could benefit you professionally reach out to them. Have a few questions handy and don’t be afraid. The worst someone could do is not respond. In most instances, educators are more than willing to help each other.