Effective Mentoring Program

Teachers who are new to the profession require guidance and professional support to apply their knowledge in everyday teaching situations, and it is an expectation that PRTs will be inducted into their teaching environments and the profession by more experienced colleagues.

The evidence-based process for full registration requires experienced teachers to:

• observe and provide guidance in relation to the PRT’s practice
• provide feedback on practice
• engage in professional discussions with PRTs
• work collaboratively with PRTs.

This mentoring support is central to the development of new teachers as independent practitioners. As a mentor, you will play a key role in this process and should have an understanding of the evidence-based process for gathering and documenting evidence to apply for full registration.

The guidance offered is an essential element of support and should be targeted to the focus of inquiry.

Use evidence of what you have seen and heard in the learning environment as well as samples of student work to assist in these discussions.

Be prepared to question your PRT to encourage creative and critical thinking.

Help them build capacity to develop perceptive decisions and take appropriate actions.

By the end of the discussion, there should be clear action points for the PRT.

Attendance at both Day 1 and Day 2 of the EMP, and completion of both pre- and post-online modules, is required to complete the program. 

Attendance at the two face-to-face days of the EMP are the minimum requirement, for a teacher / early childhood teacher, to be recognised as a VIT trained mentor for participation on a Workplace Panel for (full) registration. Teachers are strongly encouraged to complete all components of the EMP.

In addition to the two-day program, a small number of one-day refresher seminars will be conducted for mentors who completed EMP before 2015 and wish to update their skills and knowledge about mentoring and the provisional to (full) registration process.

Further information for government schools and early childhood providers can be found at:

Effective Mentoring Program for experienced school teachers

Effective Mentoring Program for experienced early childhood teachers

Program overview

Day 1 

• understanding my beginning teacher and their learning needs
• discussing the role teacher mentors play in supporting beginning teachers
• exploring the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) and the need for evidence to support full registration
• identifying factors that enable mentoring in schools and services.

Day 2

• building a relationship with your beginning teacher
• gaining knowledge of the registration requirements
• exploring options for observing practice
• engaging in evidence-informed conversations
• understanding evidence and the APST
• recommendation process overview.

How does The Victorian Teaching Profession Code of Conduct relate to the Early Childhood Australia Code of Ethics?

Early Childhood Australia’s Code of Ethics is a set of statements about appropriate and expected behaviour of early childhood professionals. It reflects current pedagogical research and practice, providing a framework for reflection about the ethical responsibilities of early childhood professionals.

The VIT Code of Conduct has been developed for and by the Victorian teaching profession; it identifies a set of principles, which describe the professional conduct, personal conduct and professional competence expected of a teacher by their colleagues and their community.

There are overlaps between the two codes in professional conduct and professional competence. These documents are complimentary and an early childhood teacher should conduct themselves in a manner that is consistent with both codes.

The Victorian Teaching Profession Code of Conduct applies to all teachers and early childhood teachers registered with VIT.

How can a provisionally registered teacher (PRT) demonstrate they are proficient in Standard 1.4, strategies for teaching Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander learners?

A PRT should consider individual children’s progress in relation to the Learning and Development Outcomes and / or the Victorian Curriculum, and any modifications to their practice they need to make for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) learner to access the learning. The evidence of this will likely be in their programs and learning experiences / lesson or unit plans.

The following are some examples of evidence for descriptor 1.4:

• develops and / or modifies programs and learning experiences / lesson or unit plans to include teaching strategies (such as story sharing or links to community) based on the local community and cultural setting, linguistic background and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners;
• takes discussion and lesson observation notes that reflect understanding management of learner capabilities and behaviour that is sensitive to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners; and
• takes conversation records from online forums about teaching strategies that are responsive to linguistic backgrounds and histories of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners.

If a PRT does not have an Australian and Torres Strait Islander learner child in their group(s), the PRT can:

• observe an experienced teacher’s practice and / or approach to an Australian and Torres Strait Islander learner and base their demonstration of Standard 1.4 on another child in the school; or 
• hypothetically include an Aboriginal and / or Torres Strait Islander learner to demonstrate the standard.

Then the questions to ask are:

• what would I do if I had this learner in my group? 
• how would I design and implement effective teaching strategies that are responsive to the local community and cultural setting, linguistic background and histories of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners?

There should be at least one professional discussion with the mentor that includes a few hypotheticals, which focus on what the PRT will do and how they will record the approach that they would take.

Teachers may find the following resources useful:

• Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander learners PDF, 223.39 KB
• Standard Inquiry matrix PDF, 373.14 KB

How can a PRT demonstrate they are proficient in Standard 1.6, strategies to support full participation of learners with a disability?

A PRT should consider the modifications to the curriculum and / or their practice they need to make to support the full participation of learners with a disability. The evidence of this will may be in the teacher’s program and individual learning experiences / lesson or unit plans.

The following are some examples of evidence for descriptor 1.6:

• meets the learning needs of a learner with a disability through the differentiation of experiences and tasks recorded in the teaching program;
• develops individual learning plans for learners with a disability;
• indicates strategies that addresses disability policy or legislation through annotations in learning experiences / lesson or unit plans; and
• designs and implements play and learning programs that utilise notes of meetings with families, specialist support teams or services.

The Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth) provides a definition of learners with a disability. This is quite broad and includes:

• total or partial loss of the person's bodily or mental functions;
• total or partial loss of a part of the body;
• the presence in the body of organisms causing disease or illness;
• the presence in the body of organisms capable of causing disease or illness;
• the malfunction, malformation or disfigurement of a part of the person's body;
• a disorder or malfunction that results in the person learning differently from a person without the disorder or malfunction; and
• a disorder, illness or disease that affects a person's thought processes, perception of reality, emotions or judgement or that results in disturbed behaviour.

The definition of disability includes those learners with a disability who are supported by general resources available within the school or service, as well as learners who are receiving targeted specialist education services and supports.

The impact of the learner’s disability should result in the school or service actively addressing the learner’s specific individual education and learning and development needs arising from their disability. This should be done within quality differentiated teaching practice and / or by monitoring the learner, or providing a ‘supplementary’ / higher level of support.

Whilst this definition is broad and includes a wide range of disabilities such as dyslexia, dyscalculia, autism spectrum disorder or hearing and vision impairments, it does not include learners who speak English as a second language. This is considered a disadvantage, not a disability.

Teachers may find the following resources useful:

• Working with learners with special needs PDF, 244.45 KB
• Standard Inquiry matrix PDF, 373.14 KB

Why doesn’t Victoria recognise a standards level beyond ‘proficient’ like other jurisdictions?

For a regulatory authority to recognise levels beyond proficient requires a certification process involving a rigorous and robust assessment of evidence of practice. Through this process, certified teachers demonstrate their impact on colleagues and students and develop a deep understanding of their own practice along with the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers. Currently three states and one Territory have processes in place. In NSW and WA the accreditation process is linked to salary.

In 2011, the Victorian Premier rejected the offer to provide funding to undertake the accreditation process. In 2012, VIT undertook a pilot project with a group of non-government and government school teachers, looking at the Highly Accomplished and Lead Teacher certification process, however no implementation followed this project.

How will my PRT / mentor find out about the provisional to (full) registration requirements?

In order to create awareness of the provisional to (full) registration process VIT:

• emails all PRTs at the beginning of the year to invite them to register for the Supporting Provisionally Registered teachers seminars; 
• sends circulars to Principals and Early Childhood services asking them to inform their PRTs about the upcoming seminars;
• publishes articles in Professional Practice;
• provides comprehensive information on VIT’s website;
• provides resources including podcasts, videos, Inquiry samples on VIT’s website; 
• conducts PRT seminars – face to face and online;
• provides the Supporting Provisionally Registered Teachers Guide PDF, 3534.71 KB; and
• delivers presentations at Initial Teacher Education providers.

Where can a PRT learn more about the Code of Ethics and the Code of Conduct?

VIT has developed, and will continue to develop, a series of videos and podcasts on the Code of Conduct.

• VIT Code of Conduct and Code of Ethics PDF, 3176.16 KB
• Video: Teacher conduct case - Brendan and Ella Snapchat 
• Video: Teacher conduct case – Luke Shoplifting
• Video: Teacher conduct case – Elisha Drug Possession
• Podcast: Teacher conduct issues - Inappropriate Conduct
• Podcast: Teacher conduct issues - Sexual Offence
• Podcast: Teacher conduct issues - Sexual Relationships
• Podcast: Teacher conduct issues - Social Media

Early Childhood Australia’s Code of Ethics can be accessed here.