It always makes me smile when someone mentions their father as a mentor as my father was mine.
Gwendolyn,
Thank you for this post. The "Pygmalion effect, where a teacher's believe impacts a student's behavior, is very powerful. Truly believing in students will translate into behaviors that help them develop belief in themselves.
Jeffrey Schillinger
Eboni,
What are some specific ways your mentor showed you support?
Jeffrey Schillinger
I remember my second grade teacher believing not only that I was smart but also could sing. So I think I was extremely lucky because I was only 7 years old when I experienced a teacher believing and showing me that I was special. I was such a shy child that this helped me tremendously.
I also remember the first day of nursing school when we met prior to the official start of the semester for an introductory course. Our instructor told us with great confidence that she KNEW we could all make an A in her course. I was motivated by her belief that all of us had the ability to achieve an A in this our first nursing course.
My mentor taught me the importance of communication and how important it is to be careful of the words I choose. Her saying was, "you can never unring a bell".
As a career educator, this lesson has allowed me to learn to listen to others and not use words or body language that will escalate issues.
My mentor played several roles in my life. The most important being my biggest support system.
I share my experiences; good and the bad. Allowing a discussion on how I could have handled the bad more effectively.
I train.
Thank you for this post, Wayne. What are one or two specific things your Chair did to lead you toward considering your Chair as a mentor?
Jeffrey Schillinger
During my doctoral program I had several prof mentors. However, I never would have completed my PhD with my dissertation with my Chair that proved the vital role of a mentor. It was a long journey of 6 years.
Heather,
What are one or two specific things you do to position yourself as a potential mentor for your students?
Jeffrey Schillinger
I had a great mentor while I was going to school. Since I was working at the hospital while going to nursing school all of my co workers acted as mentors. It really helped me stay focused on my ultimate goal. If i was struggling in an area I always had someone to go to. I believe if I did not have these valuable resources school would have been quite the struggle for me.
Rocio,
What are some of the common characteristics of your mentors? How can you use what they did for you to the benefit of your current students?
Jeffrey Schillinger
Having several mentors in my life starting with my mom followed by intructors and coaches. I was the firt generation college student and having them as a mentor made a significant impact on my college experience, confidence to believe in my self, assured me through my accomplishments that i was a successful student , hard work pays off.
Scott,
Turning "have to" into "want to" is the key to student success.
Jeffrey Schillinger
I make myself available to tutor at least 3 days a week immediately after class and let my students know that I am willing and able to schedule additional time to help them out if needed as well. I then make sure that I am in the classroom where I said I would be to tutor even if none of my students have indicated they would definitely be there. I want them to see that I am holding myself accountable to be where I am supposed to be and stay available to them, whether they have already communicated with me or not.
I also speak with my students whenever there is a subject that they struggle with for which tutoring may be advantageous. I encourage them to come to a tutoring session and in some cases will complete a written action plan with a student that is specific in stating that the student will attend tutoring for a specific minimum amount of time on a specific schedule. Most importantly I follow up with my students if they do not show up for a scheduled tutoring session. The follow up discussion is mainly a review of their action plan and why we put it together along with an explanation of what can be accomplished if the plan works and what the potential consequences are if the plan is not followed and therefore does not work. This last part is usually where the perspective will often change and the idea of 'I have to' go to a tutoring session will become 'I want to' go to a tutoring session because the vision of successfully completing a course and moving on is so much more positive and motivating especially when contrasted with the potential consequence of not completing a course successfully and being able to move one step cloer to a long term goal.
Scott,
Great post. Thank you. Aaccountability" is not something that is mentioned often in the responses in this forum, but it i something many students need to develop. What are some of the specific things you do to help students develop accountability?
Jeffrey Schillinger
I had a track coach during high school that served as great mentor for me and helped me to be better in my role as a career educator. My coach was very outwardly positive and took the time to get to know me while also coaching me in track. Knowing that I had a coach who cared, caused me to also have more 'buy in' when the time came to work hard and be prepared for the next race. This was especially true before my senior year when I knew I would be one of only two returning seniors and the coach would be counting on me to become more of a leader in my senior year.
My coach stayed in touch with me during the summer and gave me some suggested training to complete over the summer so I could improve as much as possible. I ended up training much harder than I had in any previous summers and saw the benefit of the training as well. I had my most successful season as a senior and felt confident in my ability to lead the rest of our team which was younger.
From this coach I learned the importance of a good attitude, hard work, and treating people with respect. He modeled each of those qualities for me. He also took the time to get to know me and mentor me as both a runner and a leader. Last but definitely not least he held me accountable. On one occasion in my senior year I failed to complete a history assignment. I soon found out that my coach was communicating with my history teacher so he could monitor my progress and when he heard about the incomplete assignment he did not waste any time in letting me know that he did not find that acceptable and I would find myself cheering on my teamates from the sidelines instead of leading them in a race if it happened again. I was embaressed at the time, but I can say I am truly grateful now.
Since becoming a career school instructor I have tried to model a lot of what I do, and how I treat my students after the behavior that was modeled for me by my coach. I haven't always thought of it as the '3 M's' but I have been aware from the beginning that my students would often be a reflection of me, that they would need a lot of help in becoming healthcare professionals, and that when the time came I would have to hold them accountable if they started to slip in their work ethic or attitude.
Doris,
Sometimes just being there is enough.
Jeffrey Schillinger
When a student is having problems, I remind him of the end goal. I empathize with him but tell him to keep going. Depending on the student, the encouragement takes different forms. I do not go into details, but let then know I have been there. I encourage them to come and seek me out to speak with. It does not have to be about school, but we can talk sports anything to let them know they have an advocate.
Doris,
How do you bring these lessons into the ways you interact with your students?
Jeffrey Schillinger
