Are you writing a proposal and not sure what to include in your mentoring plan? Or do you work with graduate students and want to learn more about mentoring strategies that work? Or are you a graduate student or postdoc who has specific interests and needs for professional growth, and want to know where to turn? Browse our spotlight below for strategies.
CADRE BRIEF
Mentoring for the Postdoctoral/Early Career Researcher: Key Elements and Broader Impacts
This brief identifies and describes the key elements of effective mentoring for postdoctoral and early career researchers. Six relevant main points for future developers of mentoring plans emerged from this overview of the research on mentoring.
PROPOSAL MENTORING PLANS
Webinar
On October 13, 2015, CADRE hosted a webinar on mentoring plans and strategies. View slides and a recording of the webinar.
Mentoring Plan Examples
MENTORING TIPS
CADRE Tips for Mentoring Early Career STEM Education Researchers and Developers provides guidelines that may help new mentors and mentees establish an effective and productive relationship.
VOICES FROM THE FIELD
Podcast: What Makes a Successful Mentorship Work?
Listen in as Chris Rogers (Tufts University) and his former mentee Kristen Wendell (UMass Boston) talk about mentorship and what worked well for them.
Video Series on Mentorship
Also featuring Chris Rogers and Kristen Wendell, this video series breaks down their discussion into specific topics: Building a Supportive Mentor-Mentee Relationship, Creating a Community of Learners, Finding the Right Mentors, Gauging What the Mentee Needs, Giving the Mentee Space to Learn, Mentoring Goals and Project Goals, and the NSF Mentoring Plan.
CURRENT DRK-12 WORK
Browse projects that have a mentoring component to their work.
Mentoring Youth:
- PBS NewsHour STEM Student Reporting Labs provides a Student Reporting Labs journalism and digital media literacy curriculum, a mentor for students from a local PBS affiliate, professional development for educators, and support from the PBS NewsHour team to participating schools. Learn more: 2018 Video | 2017 Video
- PlantingScience: Digging Deeper Together is a PD model that brings teachers and scientists together, in-person and online, to guide students in conducting authentic science investigations and to reflect on instructional practices and student learning. Learn more: Project Website | 2018 Video | 2017 Video
- Building Sustainable Networked Instructional Leadership in Elementary Mathematics Through a University Partnership with a Large Urban Districts builds instructional leadership capacity in teachers and school-based leaders in a network of underperforming elementary schools. Mathematics lead teachers are mentored by a university-based consultant with expertise in mathematics instruction.
- Engaging Students in Scientific Practices: Evaluating Evidence and Explanation in Secondary Earth and Space Science is developing instructional approaches and materials for high school students that focus on the links between scientific evidence and alternative explanations of phenomena relating to Earth and space education. The professional development for teachers includes mentoring sessions. Learn more: Publication | Publication
- Facilitating Teachers' and Young Children's Science Learning Through Iterative Cycles of Teacher Professional Development engages a sample of kindergarten and 1st-grade teachers in a series of workshops, during which teachers will work individually and together to design and test new lesson plans that enhance teachers' abilities to help young children think and act like a scientist. Teachers receive mentoring and support to further reinforce their learning for NGSS teaching. Learn more: Poster
- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Scholars Teacher Academy Resident System is preparing new, highly-qualified science and mathematics teachers from historically Black universities in high-needs urban and rural schools with the goal of increasing teacher retention and diversity rates. 150 middle and secondary school teacher residents will gain clinical mentored experience and develop familiarity with local schools.
- Testing the Efficacy of the Strategic Observation and Reflection (SOAR) for Math Professional Learning Program is developing a professional development program to build capacity for mentors and teachers to improve English learner's academic language development and mathematical content understanding.
Explore additional projects and resources.
RELATED RESOURCE
Visit our Early Career page for resources and opportunities for early career researchers.