Mentoring and Coaching: Roles, Effectiveness, and Responsibilities

This essay explores the concepts of mentoring and coaching, often used interchangeably, but distinct in their approach to individual development. Mentoring involves a semi-structured guidance system where experienced individuals share knowledge and skills to assist others in their personal and professional growth, emphasizing motivation and empowerment. Coaching, conversely, focuses on specific skill development to improve performance, often tied to compensation and performance reviews. The essay highlights the differences between coaching and mentoring, including compensation, independence, and investment. It also details the responsibilities of coaches and mentors, emphasizing experience, knowledge, communication skills, and understanding of learning theories. A reflection on the effectiveness of the role as a coach or mentor is provided, drawing on adult learning theories and various schools of thought, such as behaviorism, cognitivism, and humanism, to create a conducive learning environment. The essay concludes by emphasizing the importance of these theories in fostering sustainable learning and personal growth for mentees.

Running head: MENTORING AND COACHING
Mentoring and coaching
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

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Task 1:
Introduction
The term mentoring has different meanings and it can be interpreted in different ways.
It is often mixed with the concept of coaching. Both the ideas can be associated with having a
particular areas of knowledge that a trainer requires. Their sole responsibility is to train the
mentees whether they belong to the same field or not. Both the processes can be taken in the
same time. For the sake of the simplicity the term mentoring is used to cover all the processes
that are involved in giving a support an individual.
Mentoring is usually described as a process that is involves a structure of semi-
guidance. In this the person shares the knowledge and the skills and the experience in order to
assist others to make growth in their own lives and careers. The mentors should have such
nature so that they can be approached by all.
Mentoring can be a temporary arrangement till the original reason for the partnership
is fulfilled.
The role of mentor is not just to give advice, he is expected to deal a situation
according to one’s experience. A mentor is required to motivate and empower other persons
and assist them in identifying their own goals and issues. It is done so that the individual can
find ways to resolve the issues faced by him.
Coaching on the other hand includes the learning of the specific skills that would be
required to improve the performance of an individual. The person who is unaware of the
entire concept will have a different notion about both the terms. It might be similar to him. It
is based on the one-to-one relationship between the learner and the coach. In spite of this
different institutions follow different teaching situations and those should be recognized. The
essay explores the most important feature of the concept of coaching. Keeping this factors in

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mind the essay lays the focus on roles of the coaches. The strategy of instruction should be
based on the learning theory as if any athletes is unable to learn the technique it is not
possible to expect the expected goals from him. In this essay the use of student and athlete
has been made constantly. Therefore focusing on this I will look from a behaviourist point of
view on the way people learn best and the essay intends to learn the conditions that influences
the learning. It can be done by briefly discussing the place of feedback that will identify the
factors that influences the learning process and is related to the education of the pupils
(Richardson, 2002).
The two eminent scholars, Watkins and Mortimer defines pedagogy as any kind of
mindful activity that is conducted by a single person who is designed to improve the learning
in another. Recently coaching has been defined as pedagogy. This is the reason it is
domineering for the teachers or the coach to make sure of the fact that the learners are being
facilitated in their learning. Teaching a mere skill would not do, they should also teach the
learners when to use this tool. In other words it can be said that the coach means to be a
certain kind of teacher (Cassidy et al. 2004).
The role of the teacher or the coach is directive and instructional. They are rigid. For
example, the teacher decides when they would want the students to participate in an event or
any kind of skills or movements. This is the reason the coach is regarded as the sole source of
knowledge. The learners have a passive role in the process of learning (Potrac and Cassidy
2006).
The differences between coaching and mentoring
Differentiator no 1:
Coaching: in the process of coaching it is necessary to be effective as it is relied on the
performance of the learners. This might include the 360s and the performance reviews. The

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background information related to the coaching intervention is provided as a result the area in
which the improvement of the learner is needed is explored due to this.
Mentoring
It is different form coaching in terms of performance management. This system might
be used to determine the areas of competency in order to keep a check on the requirements of
the receiver. The looping back is less direct. The competency factor is considered to be an
important part of mentoring still it is not the primary focus.
Differentiator no 2:
Coaches are paid for their services:
It is evident in many instances that the coaches are paid by the company in order to
provide service. The coach makes extra effort to make sure of the fact that the coachee
succeeds as it is tied to the compensation of the coach. This leaves an impact on the process
of coaching. When a learner is able to succeed the effort of the coach is appreciated.
Mentors never receive compensation for their services:
The mentors provide the service out of generosity of service. The common reason
because of which the mentor wishes to provide assistance to the learners as they are willing
to give back something to the individuals who are willing to take it. They are compensated
for mentoring and this is the reason their performance is not tied to the ones who is receiving
the knowledge form the mentors.
Differentiator no3:
A coach operates independently:

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The feedback and coaching to the coachee and to the immediate supervisor of the
coachee is provided by the coach. In case a coach requires assistance in the way of coaching
more effectively, he or she would explore the external sources, for the assistance.
A mentor acts as part of a system:
The integral Mentoring Program Manager is responsible for a resource that is
applicable to the mentors, mentorees and the immediate managers. This program addresses
the problems that provides assistance and that preserves the current interaction in order to
ensure that the mentoring relationship is working efficiently. In the coaching process it is not
necessary for a coachee to attain training on the coaching relationship. It is certain that the
coachee should be informed about the purpose of the program and the way it will operate.
However there is no training required on the understanding of the subtleties of coaching. It is
presumed that the coach will coach will be trained form before. He will only go to train the
learners.
Differentiator no 4:
Coaching usually involves a smaller monetary investment:
The coach is brought in the company in order to provide knowledge that would enable
to achieve results. In case a bigger amount of coaching the investment in the training program
would be higher. Formal mentoring includes a huge investment up front but the cost would be
less over time. It has been observed that the company does not simply call in a mentor for an
employee. In order to save the cost the company develops a system of mentoring for more
than an individual. For example, the group of pilot usually consist of 10-20 pairs. However
the cost of investment may be higher initially but with the progress of time the mentoring
investment will be smaller than the investment in coaching.
What are the responsibilities of a coach or a mentor?

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According to Brown et al. (2008), coaches should be highly experienced and they
should have the knowledge of giving training to the learners. They should be highly talented
and they should have the creditability with the administrators and the teachers. They should
have the ability to manipulate several roles and they should have the skills that is needed to
work on one-to-one with the teachers. They are expected to have wide skill of knowledge in
different areas. They should have the ability to communicate with the learners. There are few
characteristics of good coaching that has been accounted in the following points. These have
been presented by the professional organizations such as International Reading Association
that identifies the following skills that are necessary for the literacy coaches.
 It includes understanding of the culture of the schools and the students.
 The coach should be familiar with the latest research on literacy that includes the
development of ELL literacy and the concepts of adult learning and motivation.
 The coach are expected to have a deep knowledge of particular content areas of high
school.
 They should help the teachers to make evidence-based current research that is
applicable to their classrooms.
 It includes the knowledge to develop a comprehensive assessment program that will
address the formal as well as the informal measures of achievement.
 The mentor must have the ability to work with the teachers in an individual level and
also in groups and it includes providing a professional development in a wide range of
skills and strategies.
Reflection on the effectiveness of my role as a coach or a mentor
During the process of mentoring the adult learning theories are made used of based on
the requirement of the individual (Brookfield 1994). It is important for the mentors to have

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connections and understanding of the theories of learning in order to assist the learning and to
make it relevant to the individuals (Boreen, Niday and Johnson 2003). The department of UK
for the education and skill declares that mentoring is a valuable opportunity that can be
related to the theories and practice and it is usually associated with the idea of trying out new
and innovative things. From my experience as a mentor and as a coach I have learned about
the new theories related to it.
The school of behaviourism thought developed a classic conditioning that included
the learning by association. It has been scientifically proved by Pavlov and Thorndike. The
theories that they recognized had a significance of positive experience and therefore they can
be related to mentoring. Watson promoted the stage by stage deductive approach that
includes the fact the previous learning was a progressive one and that the learners were able
to build on the skills that were learned previously. The scientific study of mental events as
stated by Gagne states the fact that the learning process was a progressive process and that
the learners were able to build on the skills that were learned previously. The reason for
relating the theories to mentoring is the sustainability of the mentees as they can learn
through repetitive experiences and this can be done by the relating actions to support
perfections (Reece and Walker 2006).
The cognitivists concludes that the learners should be encouraged to reflect for
themselves. They should be done in such a way that they are able to seek knowledge for
themselves. They should be able to reflect whatever they have learnt. Dewey has identified
the learning process as the thinking process. He mentioned it as learning to think that can be
done with the help of reflection. Bruner on the other hand claimed that the learners should be
motivated to self-reflect for themselves. They should be educated in order to solve their own
problems. They should be made ready to provide effective solution for the serious situations.
The humanists perceive that the learners are the individuals that empathises the significance

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of the emotional causes, the individual growth and the meeting the individual needs of the
learners (Wallace 2005). Their central point is on the Andragogical School of learning, being
a centred to a learner and promoting the individuals in order to practice their individual
interest and increase their personal strengths and skills as it is done by Maslow. These
theories are considered to be the dominant point in order to present an advantageous
environment for both the mentor and the mentee. This view is supported by (Roger 2004).
Task 2:
The three strategies and resources that are used in helping the student and state
 This include the current demo lesson plans that features a variety of strategies related
to teaching.
 The students and the teachers should be allowed to develop and prepare an original
teaching plan.
 The feedback should be taken regularly in the form of verbal as well as written
document.
 The feedbacks should be provided in the presence of the teachers in the classrooms.
 The guidance should be provided in the use and care of the supplies and the materials
of the schools.
 This includes the guidance of the students by the teachers in understanding the special
needs of the students.
 The collaborative teaching should be implemented.
Observation
In this phase the student and the teacher are supposed to observe the mentor teacher in
action as they serve as a model of ideal teaching skills and practices. The student and the
teacher will learn by example and they will be able to reflect their understanding of the skills

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that they might observe before they move on to stage two. They should think about the future
and they should prepare for the same.
2. teamwork
The teaching process should be a team work. The mentor-teacher and the students
should work in a team. This kind of team teaching experiences provides the opportunities for
the student teacher in order to observe and experience the teaching process.
Independent teaching plus observation
In this phase there is more independence in the teaching process. The mentor teacher
have to evaluate the lesson plans and observe the style of instructions and methods of a
teacher and student. The mentor teacher will regularly host the meetings with the student
teacher after the teacher’s sessions that would include providing feedback as well as support.
Why are those strategies chosen?
The student mentor teacher can be daunting. There is a chance for the new students to
make the mistake as soon as they get out of their classrooms. This is the reason as a mentor I
should give them helpful feedback and guidance.
The three agencies that worked it with are
 The department for education and skills
 The head teacher
 Student education service
Why working with the agencies:
 In order to establish the areas where the practice is not consistent and to identify the
possible ways to resolve those.

9MENTORING AND COACHING
 To illustrate the view of the student who is working with the learning mentor and the
way they get the support when there is multi-agency involvement.
 In order to identify and analyse the thoughts of the parents on the learning role of the
mentor.
 In order to establish in case there are ideas that confusing related to the learning
mentor role.
 In order to learn more about the other professional roles and the way the learning
mentor can complement the work that is done by the professionals with the students.
Task 3
Reflection on my coaching and mentoring role: this include the identification of my strength
and the areas where I need improvement that might be helpful in future.
Seed the growth of the mentee
The mentee is the responsibility of the mentor. It should be kept in mind that just as a farmer
has to apply fertilizer at the right time in order to have a fast and quality crop, the mentor
must check the progress of the mentee. It includes challenging my mentee that will encourage
him to maintain high standards of practice.
Ability to provide feedback that can be heard.
It is considered to be the most difficult part of being a mentor. The feedback should
be shared with the class and it should be mutual. The first focus should be on providing
feedback, this will serve as the correctional methods. The mentee has some areas that need to
be strengthened.
Share my network

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I will introduce my mentee to the other individuals who might be valuable resources
of the future collaborations. It includes the invitation of attending a seminar to the mentee.
One should always look for opportunities that might open new doors into the networks.
The five points of action plan that might help to improve my skills in relation to one-to one
teaching and learning situations:
 It includes the shaping of the attitude that might result in having a desirable outcome.
However it is different from the financial gains. It includes the sharing of the
experience of the mentor.
 It might include choosing the mentor relationships carefully. Before agreeing to be a
mentor there should be a meeting with the individuals so that a sense of weather can
be gained from it.
 It includes creating a contract of mentoring and sticking to the same. The expected
behaviour of the mentor should be documented.
 There should be a respect in the relationship between the mentor and the mentee.
 One should be good listener than a good speaker. The mentor should listen to the
problems of the mentee and solve them effectively.