Talking the talk: Dialogic Mentoring in Physical Education

Abstract

The core aim of physical education initial teacher training in England is to prepare associate teachers to become creative, inspiring, and highly skilled practitioners who will contribute to the teaching and development of the subject. School-based mentors play a critical role in this process, and an appreciation of their impact has raised the importance of understanding the nuanced way they work with associate teachers in school. This paper uses the framework of monologic and dialogic mentoring to identify and analyze effective mentoring practices. More specifically, it summarises some of the main findings of five research papers that the authors have written about mentoring and draws attention to the processes that are more likely to improve outcomes for associate teachers as they begin their careers in physical education.