Mentors Matter

Educator preparation programs (EPPs) across Tennessee train teacher candidates through a combination of coursework and practice teaching experiences. This brief examines whether having a more instructionally effective clinical mentor matters, and what the state, districts, and EPPs can do to ensure that student teaching experiences ready future teachers.

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Published:
April 2020

Authors:
Wesley Morris
Matthew Ronfeldt
Emanuele Bardelli
Matthew Truwit

Key Findings

  • Pre-service teachers with more instructionally effective clinical mentors perform better during their first year as measured by observation and student growth scores, feel more prepared, and report more frequent and higher-quality coaching.
  • Serving as a clinical mentor does not negatively impact teachers' evaluation scores.
  • When the state provides districts with lists recommending specific teachers they should target to serve as clinical mentors, they recruit substantially more effective teachers and, as a result, the pre-service candidates those teachers mentor feel more prepared for the classroom.

Wesley Morris

Wesley Morris

Wesley Morris is a Ph.D. Student in Education Policy at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Matthew Ronfeldt

Matthew Ronfeldt

Dr. Ronfeldt is an Associate Professor at the University of Michigan School of Education. 

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