Karen,
What are the behaviors a "positive role model" must exhibit in a career college?
Jeffrey Schillinger
My grandmother was my mentor. As a young kid--one of 64 grand children, I was considered to be a favorite. She taught me how to cook. She was a mother of 14 and the kitchen was always a buzz. She told me that no matter what I choose to do in life, People will always need to be fed. This set me on an extraordinary adventure. I am still learning from that one statement.
There have been good and bad influemces in my career. I have allowed the bad or negative comments motivate me to do and be better. That drive has allowed me to be a positive role model in the lives of my students.
my first mentor was my uncle I did not know my father he teached me a lot of thing about life and people, this why I became a teacher, I always wanted to share my knowledges.
I'll never forget my 8th grade teacher. I loved the way she would truly listen to you while you spoke to her. She looked right at you with a gentle smile and never interrupted. It made me feel that she cared about what I had to say. I have modeled my listening skills the same way. She was my listening mentor!
Kelvin,
Thanks for this post. Well said!
Jeffrey Schillinger
I have had a couple of mentors in my life. Both have shaped me well for the career education field. Patience is the main thing that they displayed as they tought me how to do tasks as well as keeping a cool head. I pride myself in the amount of patience I have as I teach. It's hard not to just jump in and finish a students work if they are slow or making minor mistakes. I believe that the highest degree of leaning happens when you are allowed to get very close to the mistake. Look at it and then correct.
I have been fortunate to have had great supervisors in my lifetime and most I am still in contact with, though I might have stopped working with them 20 years ago.
I have learned from J Hughes how to surround myself with quality people so that there is less need to manage.
I have learned from T Richardson to consider the other person's point of view before reacting.
Thank you, Richard.What are some specific things instructors must do, in your opinion, to position themselves to be mentors?
Jeffrey Schillinger
INSTRUCTORS HAVE TO BE A MENTOR FOR STUDENTS TO SEE HOW WE ARE NOT JUST PREACHING THE WORD BUT LIVING IT.
Jim Howard and John Padgett both demostrate the three M's successfully. They model what it is to be a very effective professional with an intellgent heart. In addition, they mentor by sharing knowledge through one of the oldest forms of learning - parables or stories. Importantly, they monitor progress by involving people in setting high standards. This leads to employees who are internally motivated to WANT TO succeed and win. This has helped me to believe that what I do as a career college educator is invaluable.
Howard Stevens was an instructor of mine at Suffolk Community College. At that time in my life being an instructor or educator was not on my radar. Many years later I got in contact with Howard. By that time, I had earned my Master's degree and had been working in the media production field for over ten years.
Howard's unruffled manner when dealing with students and sense of humor are traits that struck a chord with me. I also learned a valuable lesson regarding assessment. In a TV production class I spent a great deal of time drafting a script that was a satire. Howard gave me a "C" for the class. He pointed out the script was very funny and much appreciated but it was not the objective of the class.
When I fiest started teaching One of my adminastrators ask me a Question,"What are you doing hear? This made me think in a real way and to trully ask of myself "WIIFM". I enjoy people and the learning process. But do I know how to teach that with others, This set me up for success.
I recall an English teacher who mentored me to write better by taking the time to carefully read and critique my work. Each paper was scrupulously corrected and marked up to guide me in the right direction. The result is my ability to effectively write with purpose, ease of prose. Today, I continue to pursue higher standards in my own writing as a professional teacher as well as my students.
Blossie,
My dad was my mentor as well.
Jeffrey Schillinger
My mentor is an old English gentleman named Ian. I met him when I was just 18 years old when I interviewed for my externship at the end of culinary school. He had already been an instructor so that was probably why he was so patient. He made sure to always thoroughly explain why we would do things the way we did. He made me keep practicing each technique until I got it right, which while frustrating at the time, I can appreciate now. We are still close friends to this day 12 years later. Sometimes I can impress him with my work and I'm sure he's thinking... I taught her everything she knows.
I'm sure I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for his influence. Ian is like another parent to me. He nurtured my passion for chocolate which was only just the beginning. He later encouraged me to aplly for an associate instructor position at the culinary school that I had graduated from and I am currently an instructor there. I wouldn't have believed I could have done it without his support and guidence.
As instructors, the better we are at explaining the reasons behind each action, the more likely the students are to remember it. We also have to be ever encouraging! Don't lower the standard if they are struggling, give them the extra help they need. We have to motivate our students so they know they will succeed. Let them know that some take longer than others, but with passion and dedication they will get there!
Erica
One of my greatest mentors was my dad. He would say, "There is no such thing as I can't. If others can do something, you can do the same task better. All you have to do is decide what you want to do and put your mind to it. You have the ability."
I am 62 years old and I still remember the positive caring and attention I received by a psychology professor. He was even concerned if i was receiving proper nutition and had a nutritionist show up after class to talk to me about propper diet. He motivated me and guided me to a career in law enforcement.
Like many people I have had a lot of people in my life that had an impact on where I am today. The one that I have always felt provided me with the greatest all round education and impact on how I teach was my high school shop teacher Mr. Wilkerson.
He had the 3M’s down to a science, and I believe each student looked forward to every minute spent in his class. He interacted with each student and took a genuine interest in our lives, and motivated us to be our best.
Often times now I think back to Mr. Wilkerson and his style of teaching and emulate him in my classes. My retention rates are very good, and I often times have students that will seek me out just to say hello and let me know they appreciated to time I took with them.
One of my mentors was my program Director when i was a sophomore in college. She took time out of her busy schedule to make sure my academic needs are meet. She showed interest in my knowledge and achievement and it made me feel that someone cares and everytime i get frustrated and feel like quiting i think about the efforts and time she invested in me and i worked her to make her proud. This helped me to be able to reach out to some of my students that need the extra attention and need someone to believe in them so that they can reach their goal. This contributes to improving self esteem and improved performance in school.
