University Mentoring Report: Working with Individual Learners

This report delves into the nuances of mentoring individual learners, contrasting coaching and mentoring approaches. It explores the effectiveness of mentoring in supporting student development, highlighting the importance of building relationships and providing constructive feedback. The report outlines practical strategies and resources for mentorship, including fostering community and providing positive reinforcement. Additionally, it discusses three agencies where the author desires to consult, based on their commitment to student support and development. The author reflects on their mentoring role, identifying strengths such as open-mindedness and effective communication, while acknowledging weaknesses like time constraints. A five-point action plan is presented to improve personal skills, focusing on communication, decision-making, and time management. The report concludes with an emphasis on continuous improvement in mentoring practices and the adaptability required to meet evolving student needs.

Running head: WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
Working with Individual Learners
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
Table of Contents
1.0 Task 1.........................................................................................................................................2
1.1 Differences between coaching and mentoring.......................................................................2
1.2 Effectiveness of the role in helping a student........................................................................3
2.0 Task 2.........................................................................................................................................4
2.1 Strategies and resources for mentorship................................................................................4
2.1.1 Three strategies...............................................................................................................4
2.1.2 Three resources...............................................................................................................5
2.2 Three agencies, where I desire to work in consultation.........................................................5
3.0 Task 3.........................................................................................................................................6
3.1 Reflection on the mentoring role and identification of strength and weakness.....................6
3.2 Implementation of five point action plan to improve personal skills....................................0
4.0 Reference list.............................................................................................................................0

2WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
1.0 Task 1
1.1 Differences between coaching and mentoring
The major difference that Rhodes and Fletcher (2013) highlight between mentoring and
coaching is that mentoring refers to a relationship that last for quite a time; whereas, coaching is
only meant for some duration. Mentors are liable to evaluate every aspect of the people under
them; while, on the other hand, coaching is specific and only specific issues are focused to
overcome. Tee Ng (2012) furthermore highlight that mentoring emphasizes not only in career
development but also in personal development but coaching is meant for highlighting some
issues at work that should e overcome.
I was allowed to mentor a student, who is my junior. I had to mentor him for
understanding the class syllabus and how to plan his activities so that all the work can be
successfully implemented. The problem I noticed in m mentee is that he gets nervous when he
was asked to do more than two works at once. Taken for instance, with the course study, when
some course assignment is given, he cannot take the decision what should be covered first.
Another major problem that I have noticed is that his major difficulty is in making an effective
assignment. This is a serious issue as in future he should take all the decisions on his own. Thus,
basically I have to develop his attitude so that he could cope up with all the difficulty he is facing
after joining the graduate course. I had started making him learn about the program guidelines
along with the Graduate School’s procedures and policies. Brouwer et al. (2017) depicted that in
order to understand the thinking capability, a mentor should allow their mentee to speak or share
their perception or knowledge. Thus, my role is to provide him a basic road map that he can
follow on any situation but at the same time also encourage him to think about alternative way

3WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
that can be best suited for the situation. In my case also, I did the similar thing and ask what
difficulty he is facing and how would he take the decision if there were no mentor for him. I
belief in giving constructive feedback so that my mentee can realize that he is proceeding in the
correct way and can improve in future. My role here is to provide him guidance about
accomplishing university programs effectively. In addition to that, my role is also reminding
him about his past mistakes so that he can learn from the mistakes in future. As a mentor and
senior, my role is to introduce my mentee with the faculty member of the university so that an
effective interpersonal relationship can be established.
1.2 Effectiveness of the role in helping a student
I can say that my role is effective because may major concerned is to share my
knowledge to my mentee. I have given some time to develop a good relationship with the mentee
which I think is the most important phase. This is because unless an effective communication is
developed, discussion on accurate problem cases cannot be obtained successfully. I also
encourage self initiative that the mentee took and then evaluate whether or not the process is
effectual. According to David (2016), this procedure is successful as participation of both the
mentor and mentee can be witnessed but I criticize this process as it takes much time to
understand a particular thing to the mentee. Thus, in cases, when time lacks, I have to follow
different strategy that is t direct him with the solution and then make him understand why that
particular option was opted rather than other. I can also relate this approach with contingency
leadership theory which focuses on undertaking no particular leadership style that can be applied
on every situation. David (2016) stated that leaders adopt strategy best suited for the situation
and thus more than one leadership skills can be adopted. I can also say that my mentorship is
relationship oriented and I share experiences and suggestions on different issues that can affect

4WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
his professional and personal success. Lastly, the major role is to evaluate the performance of
my mentee and assess his progress report compared to the first day under my mentorship. This
initiative not only allows me to mark my mentee’s progress but also my success in leading the
person for his personal and professional development.
2.0 Task 2
2.1 Strategies and resources for mentorship
2.1.1 Three strategies
Available and attentive concerning their requirement
I opt for being available all the time and attend their queries whenever they face problem.
This process allows me to assess that they are working for improvement and thus it is my
liability to help them if they face some challenges. Olsher and Kantor (2012) also suggest that
spending quality time with a mentor is paramount for the success of the student. Thus, being
attentive and alert all the time not only helps them to overcome their difficulty but also develop
mutual trust and respect among the students and mentors.
Fostering Community
I always focused on communication among us and conduct regular one-to-one session so
that all the queries, misunderstanding and conflict can be overcome. Kadji-Beltran et al. (2014)
moreover depicts that formal and informal gatherings also encourages the effective interpersonal
relationship. I have opted for social outings like sports events, curriculum activities and then
discuss about overall progress of the university programs for constructing a stronger research
environment

5WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
Providing positive feedback
As a mentor I feel that it is required to encourage the mentees for their effort as they also
intend to improve. Thus, in case I noticed that their chosen step is not productive I appreciate
them for their effort but at the same time also make them aware about the probable challenges
for those methods. As mentioned earlier, suggesting alternatives with proper justification allow
them to adopt things faster and improves their cognitive ability.
2.1.2 Three resources
The three resources that I had use are- university guidelines and policies along with the
university course materials. Secondly, I had selected stationary resources like whiteboard,
projectors to show mind maps and way for progressing their thinking ability. Thirdly, I had also
opted for computers technology to find handouts that can help him to extract necessary resources
useful for him.
2.2 Three agencies, where I desire to work in consultation
I desire to work with the following three agencies- Randstad Student Support, ReachOut
Mentoring Services and Young Enterprise. My first preference is for Randstad Student Support
as they provide support to students with disabilities and special health conditions. These students
need more attention and also require a clear perception regarding every study course. I want to
help these students to prosper and compete with all the other students of their classes. My second
preference is ReachOut Mentoring Services and it demands for a mentoring program for school
kids. My reason for this preference is that it is better to mentor school students as they are in
their learning phases and it is easier to mould their cognitive ability and ready them for the
future. Lastly, Young Enterprise is my third choice because this organization guides student to

6WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
utilize their academic knowledge for their future business and career path. I love the fact that this
agency values the creativity of the students and guide them with pathways so that they can form
their career in their field of subject.
3.0 Task 3
3.1 Reflection on the mentoring role and identification of strength and weakness
I have been mentoring a student from many months and have found that I have adopted
all the necessary strategies that are required to provide effective mentoring to the students. I have
a positive attitude that encourages by mentees to be enthusiastic and encouraged to accomplish
their desired goals. I have also give time to understand his competencies and then ask for his
perception so that I can find some pitfalls and positive aspects. I provide constructive feedback
on their every action and suggest them with solutions that they can utilize in their future.
Strength: I possess nature of open-mindedness that I think help my mentee to develop innovative
ideas and strategies according to his bet understanding. Another strength that I can highlight is
the ability to communicate with the ideas and justify it proper evidences. I focus on a result that
is long-term and hence always desire to suggest effective ideas. As a mentor, I think it is my
strength that I encourage new ideas and motive of my mentee to select that alternative. This
approach is not followed by other mentors as they only provide developed solutions to their
mentees. The prime reason for this is fostering ideas may lead to risky situations that other
mentors do not want to take. However, I always encourage my mentee to try new alternative only
if required.
Weakness: The negative aspect is that it took much time to complete the learning session if
followed long-term strategies. I also have to face the disadvantage of time in completion of a

7WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
particular milestone. However, I know even though my procedure is time consuming but by
mentee will develop a permanent and long-lasting impact that can help in all the phases in future.
One of the most disadvantage in the entre process is that in got too much engaged in mentoring
process that I have to put extra effort to complete my own task.
Opportunity: I can say that I have to learn how to complete my work along with mentoring my
mentee. I can also improve my knowledge in new strategies of mentoring so that I can develop
my personal skills. In this way, I can opt for mentoring profession to help school, college and
university students to develop cognitive ability. I have to manage a framework and road map to
formulate routine that me and my mentee will follow.
Threat: The time I took to accomplish a single milestone, in that time other mentors can achieve
many. Through this approach even if my method is effective, my effectiveness cannot be
considered as I have to maintain the quality along with the productivity. Another threat that can
take place is occurrence of difficulty in grasping new mentoring strategies as technologies and
human needs are changing rapidly. Opting career as a mentor required me to develop all the
mentoring theories according to different needs of students and this may take some time to
overcome.

Running head: WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
3.2 Implementation of five point action plan to improve personal skills
Options Current performance Things that require improvement How do I evaluate Time Scale
Communication I am able to communicate well
with my mentee and discuss all
the requirement of the task. I
also often conduct social outing
for developing effective
interpersonal relationship
Even though I have work I have to be
psychologically available for my mentee
Using resources like technologies for a
flexible communication
To develop my friendly nature
Lesser conflicts
Better co-operation
Discussing different
alternative for a
situation
2 Weeks
Decision
Making
Currently I analyze all the
requirement and then plan a
schedule to cover all the
necessary obligations.
I have to formulate a SMART guidelines
for improve my decision making ability.
Taken for instance:
Specific: Highlight the areas that can
help in gaining extra marks in university
projects
Measurable: Criteria for how a goal is to
be achieved
Action: Selecting necessary steps that
Whether or not the time
allotted for every
milestone is
accomplished within
the assignment time
The result for a
particular milestone is
effective compared to
other students in the
3 Weeks

1WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
can help in accomplishing the desired
action
Realistic: considering the resources and
constraints relative to the situation.
Timely: Distributing time to complete
each goal like within a weak.
class
Problem-Solving I always focus on evidence
based decisions and suggestions
so that I can assess the entire
scenario logically.
Prepare a list that define the problem
statement
I have to keep myself updated regarding
the new mentoring resources and
strategies so that current demands of the
students can be fulfilled efficiently.
Exploring problem
scenario
Exploring unfamiliar
problem
Ability to handle the
available information
Listed all the
alternative and then
find out the weakness
and strength of the idea
4 Weeks

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Select the most
effective idea for the
situation
Skills of
listening
I listen to every query of may
mentee and then provide the
most effective solution for the
situation.
I need to improve the skills by providing
defer judgment and then ask the mentee
what they are thinking. I think I have to
develop my participative nature which
will encourage my mentee that there
mentors are taking equal effort.
Happy mentee
Improvement in a
handling the university
assignment on his own
Less need of suggestion
for a situation or task
1 Week
Table 1: Five Point Action Plan
(Source: Created by Author)

Running head: WORKING WITH INDIVIDUAL LEARNERS
4.0 Reference list
Ambrosetti, A., Knight, B.A. and Dekkers, J., 2014. Maximizing the potential of mentoring: A
framework for pre-service teacher education. Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning,
22(3), pp.224-239.
Brewer, A.M., 2016. Mentoring for All Seasons. In Mentoring from a Positive Psychology
Perspective (pp. 191-208). Springer International Publishing.
Brouwer, J., Pierce, G., Treweek, J. and Wallace, T., 2017. Hierarchy to heterarchy, shifting the
power imbalance in the mentoring relationship. HE KUPU, 5(1), pp.28-35.
Cleary, M. and Horsfall, J., 2015. Coaching: comparisons with mentoring. Issues in mental
health nursing, 36(3), pp.243-245.
David, S., 2016. Beyond goals: Effective strategies for coaching and mentoring. Routledge.
Gamlem, S.M., 2015. Feedback in the Mentoring of Teacher Learning. In Mentoring for
Learning (pp. 79-97). SensePublishers.
Griffiths, M. and Armour, K., 2012. Mentoring as a formalized learning strategy with
community sports volunteers. Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning, 20(1), pp.151-
173.
Gyuse, E.Y., Eriba, J.O., Samba, R.M. and Achor, E.E., 2016. Peer Mentoring as Intervention
Strategy towards Improving Secondary Teachers’ Interaction and Attitude in Secondary Schools.