THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL FOUNDATIONS OF MENTORSHIP IN THE TEACHING STAFF

Khachatryan Liana A.  –  lecturer of the Kuban State University, a postgraduate student of the Department of General and Social Pedagogy, Kuban State University, Krasnodar, Russia, hachatryan-liana@mail.ru

UDC: 371.15

Professional mentorship in a teaching staff is an organized interaction aimed at helping early-career educators in gaining practical experience and optimizing their professional adaptation. It focuses on assisting them to master teaching methods and techniques, workplace organization, and efficient management. Mentorship facilitates the development of skills essential for the educational and upbringing process, as well as social activities, establishing constructive relationships with colleagues and students and improving communication strategies. The multifaceted nature of mentorship as a form of professional support for novice teachers, along with contemporary views framing it as a dynamic interaction and mutual influence between mentor and mentee, necessitates defining integrative foundations for this practice. These include effectiveness factors, organizational principles, objectives, and the roles of participants. In turn, to make informed decisions regarding mentorship methods and approaches, it is crucial to identify the challenges and difficulties educators face at different career stages in their professional growth. The purpose of this study is to analyze theoretical and empirical data to determine the key characteristics of mentorship—its goals, methodological, procedural, and substantive aspects—as the basis for effective collaboration between novice and experienced educators. The findings include: The objectives, functions, and forms of mentorship, framed within modern perspectives that emphasize mutually beneficial cooperation between early-career and seasoned teachers. Current challenges faced by both novice and experienced educators, spanning communicative (establishing and maintaining relationships with colleagues and students), emotional (psychological stress, emotional discomfort), and practical (organizing instruction and educational activities) domains. Refined integrative characteristics of mentorship, including methodological (core principles), substantive, functional, and personal-interaction aspects. The theoretical significance of this research lies in its synthesis and specification of scholarly knowledge regarding the content, forms, and principles of mentorship in teaching staff, as well as the conditions for its effective implementation. The results can be applied to enhance collaboration between novice and experienced educators through well-structured mentorship programs.

Key words: mentoring; teaching staff; professional adaptation; young teachers; experienced teachers; professional qualities; education; cooperation

For citation: Khachatryan L. A. THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL FOUNDATIONS OF MENTORSHIP IN THE TEACHING STAFF. Pedagogicheskie issledovaniya = Pedagogical Research. 2025;(1):157–182. (In Russ.).

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