"You Do for Your Kids": A Self-Study of Responsible Mentoring

Amanda Moody Maestranzi, Fordham University

Abstract

In this self-study/fiction-based research study, I explored how I responsibly mentored three teaching fellows in culturally responsive teaching (CRT) and analyzed moments where I missed opportunities to implement responsible mentoring (RM) practices. I conducted interviews and teacher observation cycles to engage participants in RM and support them with CRT. Data analysis techniques included multiple coding rounds, constant comparison, interrater agreement checks, within-case and cross-case analysis, the use of a critical friend to refine interpretations, and the use of a fiction planning process to represent the findings as stories. I used Dedoose (SocioCultural Research Consultants LLC, 2018) and Google docs/spreadsheets to engage in data analysis. The findings were that I engaged all three teachers in elements of RM and CRT, resulting in three distinct mentoring stories. Further, I identified and analyzed several mentoring missteps, also present in the mentoring stories. This study revealed that researchers who wish to practice RM and support teachers with CRT should engage in recommended self-work and plan how to integrate it into mentoring practices before attempting such an endeavor. The findings suggest that while good intentions are far from enough to practice RM, they are a start, and RM may be a useful mentoring framework to support teaching fellows with CRT.

Subject Area

Teacher education|Multicultural Education|Educational leadership

Recommended Citation

Moody Maestranzi, Amanda, ""You Do for Your Kids": A Self-Study of Responsible Mentoring" (2020). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI28028459.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI28028459

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