Mentor-Mentee Activities List

Our hours spent together dont always have to be in school time.

Activity
Studying the syllabus and the
guidebooks for teachers.

Positives
Teachers assume they know their

Studying the Record of Achievement.

Observation and reflection

Important Considerations
Other Notes
Maybe you already know the Well need to have
syllabus, but often its not the case
syllabus well, in which case a copy of the
assumptions rather than knowledge.
syllabus and
this is a waste of time.
guidebooks to do
Information in the syllabus and the
guidebooks support the
this!
communicative approach ELTDP
encourages.
A good way to start the year.

On ELTDP we use the RoA to

define the qualities of a good
teacher. Looking at it is a
powerful tool for reflecting on
how and where you need to
improve your teaching practice.

Important to help mentors and

mentees work together to
identify where and how they
need to improve.

The RoA is quite large, and

divided into Planning,
Implementation, and
Evaluation. We probably only
have time to look at one stage
for each session.
The RoA helps teachers identify
where they should improve
their teaching. If they arent
interested in putting in the
work to improve after theyve
identified areas of weakness,
then looking at the RoA is a
waste of time.
Most important is time after the Ill have to observe
observation to reflect together. you sometimes,
Only useful if teachers act on whether you want

me to or not.

the reflection theyve made.

Joint planning

Team teaching

Teachers are often unsure about

what a lesson using communicative
teaching methods is supposed to be.
The mentor can help show the
mentee how to stage a lesson more
effectively.
The mentor can help the mentee
interpret and adapt the textbook to
the level of his or her students.

Watching an example can be a

very effective way of learning a
new technique or approach to
your teaching practice.

Deeper reflection

Classroom research

If we are going to plan

together, then we probably
need to organize an
observation and reflection
session to assess the
success of our lesson
planning.
Plenty of time needs to be
available to plan before the
class at least an hour.
Careful joint planning needed
before embarking on a team
teaching exercise.
Careful reflection is also
needed after a team teaching
exercise.
Its important to remember that
the teaching techniques might
not have an immediate impact
or be successful with every
class.

Reflective teaching is a key concept

behind ELTDP and one of the most
effective methods of improving a
teachers skills.
I have a number of exercises
specifically designed to help
teachers reflect on their teaching
practice.

Only useful if teachers act

on the reflection theyve
made.

One of the most effective ways of

helping teachers improve and

Last time we tried to organize

classroom research; few

Its very useful

(but not

Analyzing and adapting the textbook

Investigating formative assessment

Analyzing tests such as LINUS

expand their skills.

Improving your ability to conduct
classroom research is a skill that can
aid you throughout your teaching
career.

mentees actually did any actual compulsory) to

research.
present your
To do this properly, you have to findings at a
be prepared to spend
subcluster
researching outside the hours meeting.
you spend with your mentor. It
has to be taken seriously.

Remember, theres
no requirement to
use the textbook
at all. Its there to
support your
teaching.

As we know, the KSSR textbook is

not always suitable for our students.
Having said that, its still a useful
resource (after all, every student has
one!).
Extracting functional language from
the textbook is a useful skill to have,
and adapting material to suit our
students level is very important.
A lot of teachers remain confused
about PBS and how to conduct
formative assessment. We can spend
some time focusing on this aspect of
evaluating students. This includes
setting up folders to collect evidence
of student level.
Rizal at the PPD is pushing for end of
term tests to be abolished for Level
One English students next year.
These tests are a waste of time and
achieve little, so this is a promising
move. Students will be assessed
formatively.

Well need some folders (or

other method of storing
pupils work) and a copy of
the assessment instrument.
Access to the internet would
be useful but not vital.

Raising the level of LINUS students is

an important and challenging part of
a teachers role. However, success at
the LINUS test requires pupils to use

Well need copies of the past

LINUS papers to analyze.

aspects of English (namely

grammar) which are not explicitly
taught on the KSSR syllabus. Looking
carefully at the LINUS test constructs
can help teachers prepare their
pupils to be more successful at
passing the test.
Exploring phonics

Phonics is an important part of the

KSSR curriculum, but many students
dont know how to implement it (and
it isnt implemented very well in the
textbook). We can look at methods
of teaching phonics to learners, and
we can also ensure you know the
sounds youre supposed to be
teaching.

Its important to remember

that for all the emphasis the
KSSR curriculum places on
phonics, phonics alone
cannot create functional
users of English.

Creating resources

Teaching aids (especially simple

things such as flashcards) are very
important resources for successful
teaching, but many teachers only
use them sparingly. Developing a
bank of materials that can aid your
teaching is an important step
forward in your teaching practice.

This is something you should

be doing anyway, so isnt the
most efficient use of time spent
with the mentor.
Well need access to materials
to create and store your
teaching aids. Access to the
internet is also useful in order
to find ideas or pictures.
For flashcards a laminator and
a colour printer is very useful.

Engaging with parents

Most of a childs learning takes place

out of school, so considering how the
home environment can impact on
their learning is very important.
Working with parents can be very
constructive for a childs learning in
the long term.

If parent engagement involves

a workshop it will involve some
work, and perhaps some
funding for food and materials.
Objectives must be sustainable
and ultimately driven by the
teachers and parents rather

ELTDPs objectives
encompass working
with parents, so it will
have to be done at
some stage during the
project.

than the mentor.

Exploring new techniques and thinking
in teaching online or in books.

Perhaps youve heard about a

different teaching technique but
arent sure how to use it. Maybe
youve got books with ideas for
teaching which youve never been
able to use. Nows the chance!

Getting ideas from the Book of

Change and other sources.

The Book of Change has a lot of

inspiring and interesting ideas from
many different areas where ELTDP
has been. You might like to study
some of these ideas and try and
adopt them for your school.

Anything else you can think of!

Time will be needed to read the

Book of Change, either together or
in your own time.