skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Explore Research Products in the PAR
It may take a few hours for recently added research products to appear in PAR search results.


Title: Office Talks: Connection & Discourse in Peer Mentoring of Postsecondary Educators
By encouraging the development of a community of practice, peer mentoring can be a high impact component of a teaching professional development program. However, in implementing our program for novice instructors in the mathematical sciences, we found that pairing up peers and encouraging regular meetings was insufficient to create this desired connection. This article describes our solution, a just-in-time conversation tool called Office Talks, and the impact it had in creating rich mentor-mentee relationships. We provide steps to help others in designing office talks that fit the unique needs of their peer-mentoring program.  more » « less
Award ID(s):
1821460
PAR ID:
10560746
Author(s) / Creator(s):
; ; ;
Publisher / Repository:
Taylor & Francis
Date Published:
Journal Name:
College Teaching
ISSN:
8756-7555
Page Range / eLocation ID:
1 to 4
Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
Peer mentoring graduate teaching assistants professional development
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. ; ; ; ; (, 2021 Research in Undergraduate Mathematics Education Reports)
    Karunakaran, S. S.; Higgins, A. (Ed.)
    Peer mentoring programs are one approach to improving the pedagogical development of mathematical sciences graduate students. This paper describes the peer mentoring experiences at three institutions that have implemented a multi-faceted GTA professional development program. Data was collected from surveys and focus groups conducted with graduate teaching assistants at each institution regarding mentees’ ratings of their mentors, mentors’ ratings of their impact on mentees, mentors’ impressions of the benefits and challenges of peer mentoring, and mentees and mentors’ ratings of program components related to support from mentors, their TA coach, program staff, and other graduate students. Most GTAs found value in participating in the peer mentoring program. While the mentees found their mentors to be significant to their own success and effectiveness, the mentors did not rate themselves as high as the mentees rated them with respect to their own significance in impacting the effectiveness of their mentee. 
    more » « less
  2. ; (, Paper and symposia abstracts AERA annual meeting)
    Abstract The mixed method examination of a pilot of a virtual peer mentoring program for the advancement of women faculty is described. Evidence from the semi-structured interviews and surveys demonstrated that the peer mentoring experience had a direct impact on the mentor and mentees’ s efficacy related to their career progress, promotion, and mentoring competencies. Sense of belonging in the STEM community also improved. The study results will be presented and discussed as well as the development of the program. 
    more » « less
  3. ; ; ; ; (, Proceedings of the forty-fourth annual meeting of the North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education.)
    Lischka, A. E.; Dyer, E. B.; Jones, R. S.; Lovett, J. N.; Strayer, J.; Drown, S. (Ed.)
    Graduate student peer-mentoring programs benefit participants by providing unique academic, social, psychological, and career development opportunities (Lorenzatti et al., 2019). However, the positive effects of research-oriented peer-mentoring programs are much better understood than teaching-oriented ones. In our poster, we consider mentees and mentors’ perceptions of effective mentoring in a teaching-oriented peer mentorship program. 
    more » « less
  4. ; (, International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education)
    PurposeRacially and ethnically minoritized (REM) women continue to be underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programs and careers. Peer mentoring is one strategy that can support their participation. This study explores the experiences of Black women peer mentors in an online peer mentoring program at two historically Black institutions. Design/methodology/approachA qualitative case study approach was utilized to explore the impact of an online peer mentoring program on peer mentors' STEM self-efficacy, sense of community, STEM identity and intent to persist in STEM. FindingsAnalysis identified five themes relating to peer mentors' experiences in the program: (1) an “I can do this” approach: confidence and self-efficacy; (2) utility of like others; (3) “beacons of light”: intersecting and malleable identities; (4) skills development and (5) motivation and reciprocity. Further, challenges of the online relationship were shared. Originality/valueThe study contributes to the body of knowledge by demonstrating the utility of an online peer mentoring model among women mentors enrolled in STEM programs at two historically Black institutions. The findings support those who are historically marginalized in participating in and remaining in STEM. 
    more » « less
  5. ; (, The American Statistician)
    Universities have been expanding undergraduate data science programs. Involving graduate students in these new opportunities can foster their growth as data science educators. We describe two programs that employ a near-peer mentoring structure, in which graduate students mentor undergraduates, to (a) strengthen their teaching and mentoring skills and (b) provide research and learning experiences for undergraduates from diverse backgrounds. In the Data Science for Social Good program, undergraduate participants work in teams to tackle a data science project with social impact. Graduate mentors guide project work and provide just-in-time teaching and feedback. The Stanford Mentoring in Data Science course offers training in effective and inclusive mentorship strategies. In an experiential learning framework, enrolled graduate students are paired with undergraduate students from non-R1 schools, whom they mentor through weekly one-on-one remote meetings. In end-of-program surveys, mentors reported growth through both programs. Drawing from these experiences, we developed a self-paced mentor training guide, which engages teaching, mentoring and project management abilities. These initiatives and the shared materials can serve as prototypes of future programs that cultivate mutual growth of both undergraduate and graduate students in a high-touch, inclusive, and encouraging environment. 
    more » « less
  • Citation Formats
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
  • BibTeX
  • Save / Share this Record
  • Send to Email