Models of Mentoring

Report prepared by Jim Peters
for the Ministry of Education

March, 2000

CONTENTS:

• An Overview: from Ann Dunphy

• Some Observations

• Some Conclusions

• Basic Models of Mentoring

• Descriptions of Mentoring Programmes

NOTE: This report provides information on approaches to mentoring. It briefly describes a range of programmes that have been operating in Auckland since 1994. Most are still being developed and no attempt is made to evaluate or compare them. Full, independent evaluations are not available.

AN OVERVIEW

Ann Dunphy, formerly Principal of Penrose High School, made the following comments in a report to the Auckland At-Risk Committee in October, 1999:

"Mentoring is a relatively new component in the major current movement to integrate support services to a broad range of young people in New Zealand schools. Bringing together these adult volunteers with a group of students is a significant development, clearly on the same continuum as the Tu Tangata programme begun in Wainuiomata, where unemployed adults in the local community joined classes and, as fellow students, became role models and helpers of young people. ------

Current mentoring models ----- generally do not involve tutoring, although improved school performance is a key goal of mentor programmes. They focus on students in the senior secondary school needing assistance with the challenging life choices and decision taking of their stage of development. Many have very low work horizons. Because mentoring operates in a transition time for young people, and at the school/community/business interface, there is a natural liaison between mentoring programmes and careers services, available in all secondary schools. In fact, much of the mentoring is an extension of the work exploration and tertiary liaison programmes supplied to all students.

Mentoring aims to be a cost-effective exercise in assisting a significant group of young people. Its key component is the relationship of trust with a caring adult. While various structures exist to facilitate this, it is valuable to note common factors, particularly the need for maturity in the students, so that they can contract into this assistance and cope with the differences of background of many mentors."

SOME OBSERVATIONS

• In researching the AIMHI cluster of schools, Kay Hawk and Jan Hill made the following comments about mentoring programmes (including Project K, the Manukau Youth Employment Strategy, and programmes implemented at Tamaki College and Tangaroa College) operating in those schools:

• A major determinant of success in mentoring programmes is the commitment of the schools.

• Finding sufficient numbers of mentors for AIMHI schools is difficult. Problems can arise when students have an expectation that they will be linked with a mentor and it doesn't eventuate as anticipated. As well, it is desirable to have a pool of trained mentors in reserve so those mentors who move on can be quickly substituted.

• One-to-one mentoring can be a cause of anxiety for some student mentees, especially Maori and Pacific Islands students. They may develop a dependency on their mentors and are hurt and upset at times such as when there is a breakdown in an arrangement to get together. More success has been achieved where a small group of mentors is matched with a small group of student mentees.

• Communication between mentors and student mentees is often problematic and a cause of frustration for mentors. Many families of students do not have a telephone.

• Whilst ethnic and cultural matching of mentors and student mentees is desirable, it needs to be emphasisied that compatible mentoring relationships do develop between pairings of mixed ethnicity and background. Some students prefer to have mentors from a different culture. The attitude of mentors, and especially their willingness to accept young people for what they are, is of paramount importance.

• Students need to be given realistic expectations of what mentors can do for them. If hopes are raised too high, and mentors cannot meet the expectations that students have of them, successful relationships will not develop.

• Ann Dunphy's investigations led to her drawing the following conclusions:
  "----------It appears that three roles are essential for effective co-ordination of student/mentor groups in schools:
  • A co-ordinator who has credibility with both school and mentors.
  • A senior teacher who actively supports the programme.
  • Administration services, probably from the Careers Department staff.

• Lou Thompson, an experienced mentor trainer based at UNITEC, strongly emphasises that --- "Mentoring programmes must be community-driven but school-managed."

SOME CONCLUSIONS

There is a wide range in the structure and organisation of mentoring programmes in Auckland. Common differences include the following:

• Differences in length of time for mentoring - from one school term to several years.

• Differences in the student target group - from making a start with Year 9 students to programmes that focus on Year 13 students.

• A difference in training for mentors - from no training requirement to the expectation that comprehensive training is undertaken.

• Differences in approaches to establishing relationships between mentors and student mentees - some focus on one-to-one relationships; others focus on encouraging small groups of mentors to interact with small groups of student mentees.

• Differences in procedures for:-
  • matching mentors with students
  • monitoring the mentoring process
  • gaining full school involvement / ownership of the mentoring process

• Differences in how mentors are recruited - from community-wide drives by advertising through to tapping the resources community groups, businesses etc. Some programmes have difficulty recruiting the numbers of mentors they need.

  Note: Students in UNITEC sports degree and diploma classes undertake mentoring as part of their course, thus providing a reliable source of mentors for programmes involved.

• Differences in the evaluation of mentoring programmes

BASIC MODELS OF MENTORING

The focus is on describing mentoring programmes as follows:

• Partnerships between Schools and the Corporate Sector
  Examples are:
  • Tangaroa College and the Fletcher Challenge Corporation
  • Aorere College and the Auckland Airport Authority

• Partnerships between Schools and Community Service Organisations
  Examples are:
  • Penrose High School and the Penrose Rotary Club
  • Tamaki College and the St Heliers Presbyterian Church

• Sponsored Multi-school Mentoring Programmes
  Examples are:
  • Project K
  • The Manukau Youth Employment Strategy

• School Managed Mentoring Programmes
  Examples are:
  • Kelston Boys High School
  • Western Springs College
  • Long Bay College

DESCRIPTIONS OF MENTORING PROGRAMMES

1. PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN SCHOOLS AND THE CORPORATE SECTOR

   Name
   Tangaroa College and Fletcher Challenge Corporation/ Bell Gully Associates

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc

   • Set up in 1996 as a component of a partnership between Fletcher Challenge and Tangaroa College.
   • The aim of the programme is to keep students in school and provide incentives to achieve in their studies. Young employees of Fletcher Challenge/Bell Gully, most of whom have fairly recently completed their studies, provide models for the students and encourage them to strive for success. Social activities involving all members of the group are mixed with more learning-focused mentoring/tutoring interactions.
   • Mentoring is done "group to group" - that is, a group of 4 or 5 mentors works with a group of 4 or 5 students. This enables flexibility of interaction: some interaction, especially social and recreational activity, involves everyone and one-to-one mentoring relationships develop within the group context. It is left to the groups to arrange meetings and get-togethers.
   • The programme continues for one year. Many students and mentors are involved for longer periods.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • Fletcher Challenge/Bell Gully employees volunteer to be involved. Encouragement is given to make the commitment.
   • A brief induction programme is provided but there is no formal training. The possibility of introducing training is being investigated.§ Students from Years 11, 12 and 13 go through a formal application process to be involved in the mentoring programme. A committee of school staff makes selection. Many students stay in the programme for more than one year but must reapply.
   • Mentors are grouped according to where they work e.g. employees at Fletcher Building Products form a group etc Groups of mentors and students are put together arbitrarily.

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • The programme has evolved over 5 years. For the first two years - 1996 and 1997 - only Year 13 students were involved and there was no application process. In 1998 the programme was opened up to Year 11 to 13 students and an application process introduced. This has increased student commitment.
   • There has been no formal evaluation of the programme. Those involved in organising and managing the programme believe that it is making a difference. All school duxes since 1996 have been mentored. The retention rate of students involved has been very high.
   • A key aspect of the programme is the work of the coordinators at the school and at Fletcher Challenge/ Bell Gully. The employers of the mentors show their commitment to the programme by allowing work time. They believe that the experience of mentoring is as beneficial for their people as is for the students.

   Name
   Aorere College and the Auckland International Airport Ltd.(AIRBRIDGE)

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc

   • Set up in 1994 as a component of a developing partnership between AIAL and Aorere College.
   • The objectives of the programme are:- To offer students identified as having potential the opportunity to develop a mentoring relationship. - To provide an organisation that will allow the mentor to meet set goals, to report on progress, and to generally use the wisdom and experience of the mentor to widen aspirations of the student.
   • Candidates for mentoring are identified near the end of Year 9. Nominations come from staff. The criteria is "academic and leadership potential". 20 students are selected each year and it is intended for them to remain in a mentoring relationship until the end of Year 13.
   • The programme is arranged so that there is a get-together of mentors and student mentees for one afternoon per school term. This is done alternately at the school and the airport. A programme is organised for this, usually focusing on teambuilding, decision making, goal setting etc. Occasionally there are informally arranged activities such as golf (played on the airport golf course).
   • Mentors and student mentees work in-groups: 5 mentors and 4 student mentees. Meetings of individual mentors and student mentees are organised from time to time.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • AIAL employees volunteer to be involved in the programme as mentors. A liaison person does Mentor selection.
   • Most mentors are older and fairly senior staff, but in recent years younger employees have become involved. It has been found desirable to seek employees who have flexible working hours.
   • There is a get-together of mentors to explain the programme. This is the only induction activity. No training is provided.
   • The liaison person in the school does matching of mentor and student mentee groups. This process has worked satisfactorily.

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • The programme has evolved over the years. Some cohorts have been more successful than others have. Students have responded positively to having a relationship with adults who are interested in their lives.
   • Of the original group of 20 that started in 1994, 17 remained at school until the end of Year 13. Of the group that started in 1995, 15 stayed until the end of Year 13. Although there has been no formal evaluation of performance, it is felt that mentoring helped to lift academic achievement and improve commitment to study. The confidence of the students seemed to be enhanced. Another positive outcome is that the experience broadens the students' knowledge of careers.
   • Students say that they enjoy the contact with their mentors.
   • A problem has been that some mentors have not been able to attend meetings oganised each term. This has disappointed student mentees.

2. PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITY SERVICE ORGANISATIONS

   Name
   Penrose High School and the Penrose Rotary Club

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc
   

   • Started in 1997 and has continued since then.
   • The goal is to provide one-to-one support for students in Years 11, 12 and 13 and encourage them to succeed in their school programmes. Students self-refer to the programme but school staff actively encourage some individuals to be involved.
   • Initially the programme ran for one term. It has continued to have a short-term, rather than long-term, focus.
   • Mentoring sessions are structured. Mentors meet with their student mentees weekly in school time. Goal setting and self-esteem materials provided by the careers department and other sources, are used. Social and workplace experiences are arranged between individuals. There is a social meeting time with families and a whole group motivational session.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • Mentors are volunteers provided through the Penrose Rotary Club. There is no formal selection or screening process.
   • Mentor training was offered in 1999. It consisted of 4 evening sessions of 3 hours duration.
   • School staff and the coordinator do matching of mentors and student mentees from the Rotary Club.

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • There is no evaluation data for the programme but informal feedback and observation is very positive. Training carried out in 1999 revealed the need for a longer-term component to achieve measurable outcomes. However the initial idea of short-term sharing of life and work experience from people in the world beyond school is very valuable and suits mentors and students who have less time to give to the programme. The school plans to proceed with a two-stage programme.
   • Student absence is an ongoing problem (due to conflict with other school activities etc).

   Name
   Tamaki College and the St Heliers Presbyterian Church

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc

   • Started in 1998 and has continued since then.
   • The aim is to target students with "higher career aspirations" and link them with persons who can provide support and orientation to a career opportunity.
   • Students are drawn from Years 12 and 13. Volunteers are called for and senior staff and careers personnel make final selection. Criteria used in selection are reliability, potential and ability to handle unfamiliar situations.
   • Ten mentors with business and professional backgrounds meet one-to-one with students every two to three weeks over an eight-month period. Opportunities to job shadow are organised.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • Mentors are drawn from the congregation of the St Heliers Presbyterian Church.
   • No formal training is provided for mentors. Participants meet informally at the school to discuss what is involved in the role.
   • The school arranges matching of mentors and students mentees.

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • Outcomes are known anecdotally. One student - who became the dux of the school - was successful in gaining admission to the pre-medical school course.
   • About 70% of the mentor - mentee relationships succeed and last until the end of the year (8 months).
   • Mentors are selected annually. Some are involved more than one time.
   • Mentors comment on the positive aspect of the experience of working with young people and, in some cases, getting very involved with their lives. One mentor worked with a boy who was living on his own and taught him how to cook a meal.

3. SPONSORED MULTI-SCHOOL PROGRAMMES

   Name
   Project K

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc
   

   • Project K was started in 1996 and is a three stage programme:
     • Stage 1 instigates change in behavior;
     • Stage 2 allows students to see how differently they can operate back in their community; and
     • Stage 3 cements the changed behavior and encourages students to achieve the goals they set themselves.
   • The target group is students whose self-esteem is "below average, but not critically low".
   • The aim of the mentoring component is to sustain changes that are produced as a result of experiences in the wilderness and in the community. The objective is to provide the student with a trained adult who can be a supportive and friendly person, who can be relied on and who will assist them to meet set goals. Students are encouraged to consider mentoring a part of their lives and to view their mentors as being the first of many.
   • Mentoring partnerships are for 12 months. It is best started after the wilderness experience. Mentors and student mentees meet fortnightly. Mentors meet with the Project K coordinator every month.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • Mentors are recruited through national and community advertising.
   • There is a thorough screening policy (actioned through a "vettings and validation" policy).
   • There is a four-day training programme. This has recently been adapted to five evening sessions. Training is the responsibility of franchised Project K providers. Currently there are negotiations with the Manukau Institute of Technology to establish an advanced training course leading to a diploma qualification.
   • Matching is done by bringing mentors and the students together and providing a range of activities to encourage mixing. Students choose their 1st and 2nd preferences for mentors and give their reasons why. Mentors do the same. Both can also state whom they wouldn't like to be paired with, and give reasons why.
   • A full package of guidelines, policies and procedures is provided to the school via a designated liaison person.

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • Qualitative and quantitative research has been done. There is evidence that mentoring is effective in sustaining changes made as a result of other Project K experiences.
   • The recruitment and retention of mentors is hugely time consuming. Project K is currently reviewing practices to see how this area can be made more efficient. When it is impossible to provide mentors as required (due to incomplete training etc), school staff sometimes assist in the interim. In past years mentors were asked to work with two students but this was found to be overwhelming for them.
   • It has been particularly difficult to find mentors in South Auckland.

   Name
   Manukau Youth Employment Strategy

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc

   • Set up and run as a pilot project in 1999. The project was based at the Manukau Institute of Technology.
   • The aim is to connect secondary school students who are at-risk of dropping out of school to opportunities for academic achievement and career development through personal goal setting, learning support and life planning. It is intended that support will continue through the secondary school years into tertiary education and/or until clients are in secure and stable employment.
   • A project coordinator plays a key role in working with groups of students, providing coaching and motivational experiences and linking mentors with student mentees. The project coordinator meets regularly with the students in their schools.
   • School staff identifies students. A needs analysis is carried out and a "Personal Action Plan" is drawn up.
   • A "skill development" programme is offered. This focuses on self-management, communication, thinking and interpersonal skills with a focus on building self-confidence. A subject coaching and study skills programme is also offered.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • Mentors are recruited from the South Auckland community through advertising (especially on Radio 531 PI), approaches to service clubs and personal networks. Finding and retaining sufficient numbers of committed mentors has been difficulty.
   • All mentors are required to complete a 4-day training programme at the Manukau Institute of Technology. Finding dates suitable to run the training programme has been difficult.
   • Matching of mentors and mentees is done informally e.g. through arranged social mixing.

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • There is no substantive evaluative data as yet. One measure of effectiveness is that 44 out of 45 students who were involved in the programme at Otahuhu College and Hillary College in 1999 have returned to school in 2000. Results of the students at Otahuhu College sitting School Certificate showed that they maintained a consistent level of attainment throughout the year. Anecdotal evidence reported by the researchers of the AIMHI project was positive about the programme, particularly the positive influence of the project coordinator.
   • An issue that arose was the resistance of some students to accept mentors after they had established a relationship with the project coordinator.
   • Lack of support from teaching staff in the schools was an issue.

4. SCHOOL MANAGED MENTORING PROGRAMMES

   Name
   Kelston Boys High School: Programmes to Support Students at Risk

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc

   • Initiated as a pilot in 1997 and continuing in 2000.
   • The focus is on achievement and success through building on identified strengths and competencies. The intention is to equip each student with the tools and knowledge to build the capacity for personal best within a group setting in the context of the school.
   • There are 3 programmes:
     1. The High Achievement Mentor Programme for Maori and Pacific Islands' students (started 1997). The objective of this programme is to identify high achieving students in Year 9 and, from Year 10 onwards, to provide them with support to encourage them to stay at school to strive for academic success, to focus on an achievable career pathway and to become role models for other Maori and Pacific Islands students. These students are mentored by high profile, career people from the community. The first cohort of students involved in this programme is now in Year 12.
     2. The Challenge Programme (started 1999). This programme targets students in Year 10 who present behavior problems. The aim is to reduce referrals to the discipline system, improve attendance etc. Senior students from the school are recruited as mentors. In turn, supervisor mentors support the senior students.
     3. The Independent Learning Tutor Programme (started 2000). This programme targets Maori and Pacific Islands' students with low self esteem who experience learning difficulties. They receive one-to-one mentoring from students in the UNITEC Bachelor of Sport programme. The programme is run during a timetabled "Activity period" and links with a Homework Centre are made.
   • In all programmes there are strategies to engage and involve parents.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • Mentors for the High Achievement programme are recruited from the community. They are screened and trained at UNITEC.
   • Senior students involved in the Challenge Programme are trained. Qualified supervisors drawn from the UNITEC Bachelor of Sport programme oversee the mentoring activities, working with clusters of 4 students.
   • Mentors for the Independent Learning Tutor programme are drawn from the UNITEC Bachelor of Sport programme.NOTE: mentoring is a component of the UNITEC Bachelor of Sport course.

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • In the High Achievement Mentor Programme there is evidence that the high dropout rate of able Maori and Pacific Islands students has been lowered - 60% of the students originally selected are still at school in Year 12. The school was pleased with the results achieved in the 1999 School Certificate examinations.
   • The school is currently seeking the assistance of a Masters degree student to undertake evaluation of the programmes.
   • An "Innovations Team" of Kelston Boys High School staff, headed by a coordinator oversees the programmes.

   Name
   Long Bay College: Peer Mentoring

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc

   • Started in 1998 and continuing.
   • The programme involves Year 13 students mentoring Year 9 students who are considered to have the potential to succeed in School Certificate but who are at risk of failure due to lack of confidence. They assist with goal setting and improving motivation.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • Year 13 students volunteer to be mentors. They are supported by supervisors drawn from the Bachelor of Sport programme at UNITEC (2 supervisors per 20 student mentors)

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • Feedback is positive. All year 9 students involved in the 1998 programme returned to school in 1999.
   • The support of the UNITEC supervisors is an important factor in the success of the programme.

   Name
   Western Springs College

   Outline of Programme, including Goals etc

   • Started in 1999. It is intended to run it again in 2000
   • The programme targets Pacific Islands' students in Year 11 who are identified as having high ability. The aim is to encourage the students to raise their achievement. In 1999 14 students were selected for the programme.
   • The programme started in July. The basic strategy was to link mentors and student mentees for one-to-one interaction.

   Recruitment, Selection, Training and Matching of Mentors

   • Mentors are recruited from the community using school networks (e.g. a Police Youth aid officer, a Teacher Aid) who were approached by the school. All mentors in 1999 were Pacific Islanders.
   • Training was provided for 3 evening sessions - based at the school.
   • Mentors and students were matched by bringing them together and arranging an activity to facilitate interaction. The students departed and the mentors were left to decide who they would be paired with. Note: The matching process will be done differently in future.

   Outcomes and General Comments

   • No formal evaluation was carried out. However, where mentor relationships flourished there was evidence of increased commitment from the students.
   • Several difficulties were identified and it is hoped that they will be rectified when the programme is resuscitated in 2000. The most significant problems were:- Establishing an optimum frequency of meetings between mentors and student mentees.- Difficulty experienced by some mentors in establishing a fruitful communication with their student mentees.- Lack of an in-school coordinator to manage and support the programme.- Confusion about the role of mentors as opposed to the role of a tutor. Ongoing training will help to clarify role and responsibility.

NOTE: In February, 2000, the New Zealand Centre for Notational Analysis applied successfully to the Tindall Foundation for $150,000 to establish mentoring programmes in 100 schools. A manual has been written and will be provided to schools to use for setting up programmes. Lou Thompson and his team, based at UNITEC have developed this initiative.