Mentor training for experienced early childhood teachers
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The Effective Mentoring Program (EMP) is a professional learning opportunity for experienced teachers to enhance their mentoring knowledge and skills to support graduate and returning teachers in achieving full registration.
The program is delivered as a partnership between the Department of Education and Training (the department) and the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT).
Availability
The program is designed for experienced teachers who are mentoring provisionally registered teachers in
- government, Catholic and independent schools
- early childhood and education care settings
- non-school education centres (e.g. hospitals and zoos).
The Effective Mentoring Program workshops will be delivered either online or face-to-face. Participants will be informed directly of any changes to delivery mode due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation.
Participants who register for the program are required to attend day 1 and day 2 of the program and complete the pre and post online modules.
Experienced mentor teachers who have completed the program in the past 2 - 3 years may wish to attend a refresher one day program to update their knowledge and skills.
Teachers who register for the training must be able to attend day one and day two of the training, and complete the online modules.
Skills developed
After completing the program you will have the mentoring skills to support graduate early childhood teachers through ongoing professional learning embedded in day-to-day practice. This will build the professional practice of the PRT.
Mentoring practices and skills are explored in the context of guiding and supporting a provisionally registered teacher, from provisional through to full VIT registration.
Activities within the program allow you to explore mentoring with practiced examples and key readings to develop your skills.
Program Overview
The program will cover:
Day one
- What makes mentoring effective and the benefits of mentoring.
- Mentoring for Doing and Being
- Giving and receiving of feedback
- Mentoring Capability Framework
- Observation discussion
- Registration Process and Australian Professional Standards
- The Inquiry Approach.
Day two
- System Enablers
- Professional Stance
- Applying your learning - Mentoring Practice
- Realistic tips for mentors
- The inquiry cycle
- Sample of evidence
- Requirements and Code of Conduct.
Time is allowed for reflective conversations with other mentors to share and extend ideas and understandings. A dialogic approach will build knowledge with opportunities for cross-sectoral discussions.
Refresher course
Mentor teachers who have previously completed the program may be eligible to complete a one day refresher course.
The Refresher EMP program consists of a pre-workshop, workshop and post-workshop activities, which build and further develop established mentoring practices. You will have opportunities to practice and refine mentoring skills to strengthen and consolidate your skills as an effective mentor.
Mentor self-assessment tool (MSAT)
The MSAT is a self-assessment tool that will assist in determining your baseline knowledge and understanding associated with the practice of mentoring. It will allow for the measurement of growth and impact across the program.
You will complete this at the beginning and the end of the EMP.
Mentoring Capability Framework
The Mentoring Capability Framework (MCF) for Early Childhood Education and Care is a comprehensive guide designed to support the effective and ongoing mentoring of Victoria's beginning teachers.
The MCF is focused on guiding the development of mentoring relationships and aligns with the expectations of the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework and the National Quality Framework.
The MCF intends to ensure that the development of effective mentoring relationships is a collective effort and that all beginning teachers have access to effective mentoring that is consistent and coherent.
To support this collective responsibility, the MCF describes expectations and behaviours of mentors and mentees and the cultural and structural elements in service settings that create an enabling context for the effective mentoring of beginning teachers.
Mentoring Capability Framework
How to register
More information