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Research Article
Ikuko Goto, Takumi Yada*
Exploring Mentor Teachers’Experiences and
Practices in Japan: Formative Intervention for
Self-Directed Development of Novice Teachers
https://doi.org/10.1515/edu-2024-0022
received February 17, 2022; accepted May 28, 2024
Abstract: This study pursues interventions by mentors in dif-
ferent mentoring phases. The mentoring refers to Engeström’s
(2011. From design experiments to formative interventions.
Theory & Psychology, 21(5), 598–628) formative intervention
to promote the self-directed development of novice teachers.
This study involved data obtained from the preliminary
survey, fieldwork experiences, and interviews with mentees
during teacher training. The survey data were descriptively
analysed for the close-ended question and thematically
coded using an inductive approach. The fieldwork and inter-
view data were thematically analysed. This study uncovered
themes with supporting subthemes to identify mentors’activ-
ities addressed during the mentoring process: designing a
class, determining teaching methods, and reviewing a class.
The themes for these processes were setting the direction
for self-directed problem-solving, collaboratively clari-
fying unclear and ambiguous aspects of the teaching
method, assessing good instructions and providing clues
for further growth, and designing an opportunity for
learning in dialogic communication and mutual negotia-
tion. Mentor training opportunities are needed for experi-
enced teachers to pursue the intervention that supports
the self-directed development of novice teachers. This is a
unique study to explore interventions that meet the needs
of novice teachers according to mentoring phases, in cer-
tain contexts.
Keywords: mentoring, formative intervention, novice tea-
cher, teacher training
1 Introduction
Two urgent issues relate to supporting novice teachers in
Japan. First, the mass retirement of teachers will continue
in the next few years, resulting in a significant increase in
the number of new teachers hired. This requires schools to
take systematic measures to develop their teaching quality
(Kawasaki, 2019). Since novice teachers now comprise a
significant proportion of the teaching staffin many schools
in Japan, their training has attracted ongoing attention due
to its importance in ensuring the quality of education.
Second, as mentors for novice teachers, experienced tea-
chers are required to provide appropriate support in the
form of interventions. This mentoring support depends on
the novice teacher’s experience and ability. Due to the
shortage of teachers, municipal boards of education, which
are in charge of teacher recruitment and development in
Japan, offer various routes available to recruit teacher can-
didates from different backgrounds. Some candidates apply
for teaching positions right after the university graduation
without any teaching experience, some have part-time
teaching experience, and some have worked in a different
field from teaching. Thus, novice teachers with different
experience of teaching require flexible training methods
to encourage their autonomous development (Corbell,
Booth, & Reiman, 2010).
However, mentoring in Japan tends to be an instruc-
tion-based, one-way approach, in apprenticeship mode,
without encouraging novice teachers in dialogue to create
new knowledge (Asada, 2012). Although this may come
from the Japanese culture where seniority and vertical
relationships are emphasised (Sugimoto, 2003; Triandis,
2001), researchers argue that encouraging autonomous pro-
blem-solving through trial and error leads to the growth of
the novice teacher (Asada, 2012; Fantilli & McDougall, 2009;
Author). Since Engeström’s (2011) formative intervention
emphasises the agency of mentees with which they shape
their work, the ways of providing mentoring play a key role
in the new learning design for mentees. Although the
Ikuko Goto: Faculty of Core Research Human Science Division,
Ochanomizu University, Tokyo, Japan, e-mail: ikuko.goto@nifty.com
* Corresponding author: Takumi Yada, Finnish Institute for
Educational Research, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland,
e-mail: takumi.t.yada@jyu.fi, tel: +358465395008
ORCID: Takumi Yada 0000-0001-9953-7972
Open Education Studies 2024; 6: 20240022
Open Access. © 2024 the author(s), published by De Gruyter. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
formative intervention encouraging self-directed develop-
ment has been studied in research for adults’learning
(Engeström, 2011; Sannino, Engeström, & Lemos, 2016), few
studies have investigated mentoring that meets the needs of
novice teachers in the Japanese context. Thus, this study
aims to pursue mentoring referring to Engestöm’s formative
intervention that enables the novice teacher to actively
question the relevant issues, set the direction for solving
the issue, and review successful results and identify a new
problem based on the novice teacher’s awareness of the
problem (Engeström & Sannino, 2010).
1.1 Mentoring for Novice Teachers in Japan
Since mentoring for the novice teachers has drawn atten-
tion to developing their educational expertise, the need of
the training for mentors has been called for (Roegman,
Reagan, Goodwin, & Yu, 2016). Many municipal boards of
education in Japan have developed the curriculum of the
novice teacher training and created on-the-job training
(OJT) systems that deploy mentors to guide novice tea-
chers. In elementary schools in Tokyo, for example, in-
house novice teacher training and systemised training by
mentors are provided for 300 h over the novice teachers’
first 3 years (180 h in the first year) (Tokyo Metropolitan
School Personnel In-Service Training Center, 2008). Gener-
ally, former managerial teachers and experienced teachers
are appointed as mentors. The mentors provide guidance
and advice on teaching, ethics, classroom management,
and the division of school responsibilities. Mentors observe
a novice teacher’s class for one or 2 h each week, demon-
strate their class to the novice teacher for one or 2 h each
week, and provide guidance to the novice teacher after
school hours on the day when the mentor observes or
demonstrates a class. The mentor takes another 1 or 2 h a
week to guide or advise the novice teacher in tasks other than
classroom teaching. Accordingly, novice teacher training has
been an in-depth guiding system.
However, 20 years after the training establishment,
challenges of the OJT system have been identified. For
example, the survey carried out by the Hyogo Prefectural
Board of Education (2007) indicated that novice teachers do
not learn enough regarding subject teaching and student
guidance in training. Compared to mentoring approaches
in other countries, such as teacher residency defining men-
tors’role as co-constructors of knowledge with novice tea-
chers (Roegman et al., 2016), the training of novice teachers
in Japan tends to be an instruction-based, one-way approach
by mentors (Hyogo Prefectural Board of Education, 2007),
which may hinder the autonomous development and moti-
vation of novice teachers. Yufu (2009) demonstrated three
reasons that may hinder the autonomous development of
novice teachers in the OJT approaches: partitioned knowl-
edge and skills, a belief in linear development of novice
teachers, and lack of recognition that learning is interactive.
In the context of teacher training, this may happen as
training programs that focus on discrete teaching techni-
ques or theoretical concepts without providing opportu-
nities for mentees to understand how these elements
interact in the actual classroom (Darling-Hammond, 2010).
In instruction-based mentoring, mentors tend to believe that
novice teachers steadily improve their teaching although
their experiences include periods of growth, stagnation,
and even regression (Yufu, 2009). When novice teachers
encounter difficulties, the mentor and the mentees may
perceive these experiences negatively if they believe that
progress should be always linear (Day, 1999). Researchers
pointed out the problem that mentors tend to speak exces-
sively because the relationship between mentors and men-
tees is inevitably asymmetrical due to the unbalance of their
position and experience (Schein, 2009; Wakimoto, Kariyado,
Yaegashi, Mochizuki, & Nakahara, 2013). In such asymme-
trical relationships, novice teachers may lose interactive
learning opportunities, such as collaboration with collea-
gues, reflective practices, and constructive feedback from
mentors or colleagues (Wakimoto et al., 2013; Yufu, 2009).
To further understand the issue of mentoring, the
Japanese cultural and political contexts should be consid-
ered. First, Japan has strong cultural and social norms that
emphasise appropriate and expected social interactions
(Sugimoto, 2003; Triandis, 2001). The hierarchy among
social positions and authorities is considered important
in the culture (Triandis, 2001). Generally, relationships
between mentors and novice teachers are understood as
instructive, one-way, and sometimes inducting to the men-
tors’ideas and plans. Mentors are usually experienced tea-
chers who have a recommendation from the principal
(Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education, 2018). The men-
tors perform their duties consistent with the intentions and
culture of the principal and the organisation. Since their
social positions are relatively high in the school context,
other teachers have difficulty expressing their opinions to
the mentors and novice teachers (Author).
Second, after introducing a neo-liberally oriented edu-
cational policy, Personnel Evaluation System of School
Management, starting from 2000 (Sugasawa, 2006), muni-
cipal boards of education evaluate how novice teachers as
mentees develop their abilities, including teaching and stu-
dent management. Mentors are expected to report the
development of novice teachers to the principals. The
2Ikuko Goto and Takumi Yada
educational policy could plausibly make mentors feel that
they should be accountable for their instructions to novice
teachers (Edwards & Protheroe, 2004; Wang, Odell, &
Schwille, 2008). As a result, the development of novice
teachers is left only to the mentors, who may impose their
success stories on the novice teachers (Author). Further-
more, novice teachers feel embarrassed and pressured in
such relationships, for example, when a mentor interrupts
in the middle of class (Author). Thus, the hierarchical culture
and neo-liberalistic educational policy leave little leeway to
have dialogue-negotiation between mentors and novice tea-
chers and undermine the professional autonomy of novice
teachers (Lassila, 2017).
Although novice teachers could include teachers who
are in early career stage, in this study, in Japan, novice
teachers refer to the teachers who are in the first year of
teaching, although they may have previously worked in
other fields.
1.2 Problems of Mentoring for Novice
Teachers
Mimicking mentors’managerial and curricular style of
mentors provides novice teachers with rich experience
and a model to solve problems. However, it is insufficient
for the implementation of classroom instruction and the
professional development (Edwards & Protheroe, 2004;
Ingersoll & Strong, 2011). Because teaching is complex
and interactive work, novice teachers may face situations
that they have never been faced (Lampert et al., 2013).
Since novice teachers may struggle to develop classroom
activity without the insight into the rationale behind spe-
cific strategies and teaching value of themselves, they are
required to adjust classroom activities to meet students’inter-
ests based on critical reflection, experimentation, and contin-
uous learning (Ingersoll & Strong, 2011). Although few studies
have investigated the self-directed development of mentees,
previous studies point out the challenges of conventional men-
toring approaches that focus on situational adjustment, tech-
nical guidance, and mental support (Feiman-Nemser, 2001).
For example, Edwards and Protheroe (2004) identified that
one challenge of mentoring that mimicking the mentor’s
teaching style may lead the novice teacher to interact with
students and address class management and the curriculum
using practices designed by the mentor with superficial under-
standing pedagogy. Similarly, Wang et al. (2008) argue that
successful mentor–mentee relationships explore teaching by
reflecting, observing, modelling, and supporting one another’s
teaching, not merely adapting mentors’approaches. Other
research demonstrates that mentors tend to take a leading
role in the dialogue and dominate the conversation during
interventions (Mena, Hennissen, & Loughran, 2017). Such a
mentor-directed approach can be problematic because it
makes the mentee dependent on the mentor and hinders
the mentee’s development of professional autonomy (Har-
rison, Lawson, & Wortley, 2005). Although the mentor does
not adopt a mentor-directed approach, the mentor may have
ambivalent relationships with mentees where the goals of
them are different (Vaitzman Ben-David & Berkovich, 2021).
To overcome a mentor-directed approach, researchers
argue the skills of mentors: co-thinking about teaching
with novice teachers rather than imposing ideas; concen-
trating on fundamental teaching challenges of novice tea-
chers that they may not have realised; assisting novice tea-
chers in framing their self-identified teaching; and modelling
teaching that exemplifies good teaching ideas (Feiman-
Nemser, 2001; Wang et al., 2008). Based on the skills, dia-
logue-based mentoring encourages professional autonomy
characterised by interaction and will be formed among social
relationships (Heikkinen, Pennanen, Markkanen, & Tynjälä,
2020). When practising dialogue-based mentoring, finding a
balance between dialogue and strategy becomes the purpose
of mentoring (Heikkinen, Wilkinson, Aspfors, & Bristol, 2018).
That balance can be understood as the conflict between sup-
port and evaluation or between the two roles of mentoring
andevaluating(Heikkinenetal.,2018).Furthermore,they
argued that the balance could be achieved only in the una-
voidable tension between the mentor as support and an eva-
luator. Thus, the mentor is required to manage that tension in
dialogue-based mentoring to support the self-directed devel-
opment of novice teachers (Fantilli & McDougall, 2009; Heik-
kinen et al., 2018).
1.3 Formative Intervention for Mentor
Intervention
Since mentoring centred on instruction-based and one-way
approaches postulates linear development of mentees, few
mentoring programmes emphasise novice teachers’agency
and self-directed learning through relationally working with
mentors (Edwards, 2017). The approaches often overlook
that mentors and mentees are purposeful and interactive
human beings who continually interpret and reinterpret
situations in their own ways (Engeström, 2011). According
to the previous studies (Burger, Bellhäuser, & Imhof, 2021;
Richter et al., 2013), teacher mentoring can be divided into
constructivist- and transmission-oriented mentoring. While
transmission-oriented mentoring style is based on a
Mentor Teachers’Experiences and Practices in Japan 3
behaviourist concept of learning, meaning that knowledge is
provided by the expert and transferred in a directive and
unilateral manner to the rather passive novice, constructi-
vist-oriented mentoring, on the other hand, implies colla-
borative reflection and exploration with the understanding
that learning is a bidirectional and interactive process (Burger
et al., 2021). The expansive learning theory can help solve the
difficulties involved with mentoring by focusing on the rela-
tionship and dialogue between the mentor and the mentee
(Figure 1) (Engeström, 2020; Engeström & Sannino, 2010). The
constructivist process of expansive learning that produces
development through active practices is the process of
forming agency (Engeström, 2020). Therefore, the agency
can be regarded as the self-directed development of the
novice teacher (Engeström & Sannino, 2010; Eteläpelto, Vähä-
santanen,&Hökkä,2015),whichcanbesupportedbymen-
toring as described in this study.
The formative intervention aims to generate the self-
directed development of mentees by encouraging the active
behaviour of the mentee arising from dialogic communica-
tion and mutual negotiation (Engeström & Sannino, 2010;
Sanninoetal.,2016).Theformative intervention suggests a
learning cycle that occurs as a process of expansive learning.
Thecycleincludestheprocessesofquestioning,analysing,
modelling,examining,implementing, and reflecting (Figure 1)
(Engeström&Sannino,2010).First,intheprocessofques-
tioning, a mentee and a mentor criticise or reject several
aspects of the previously accepted practice and existing
knowledge. Second, they try to analyse the problematic situa-
tion by explaining the mental, discursive, or practical trans-
formation of the situation. Third, they model an explicit and
simplified idea that offers a solution to the situation. Fourth,
the solution is examined to understand its dynamics, poten-
tials, and limitations. Fifth, the mentee and the mentor reflect
and evaluate the solution to form a new suitable practice.
The conditions and contexts surrounding mentors and
mentees, such as knowledge, abilities, relationships, and
the school organisation, differ, leading to the assumption
that no absolute mentoring style exists. Engeström and
Sannino (2010) claim that the expansive learning cycle does
not represent a generalised formula of learning phases. Since
no previous study examining the relationships between men-
tors and novice teachers has used the expansive learning
cycle, this study regards the processes of questioning and
analysing as designing a class,modelling,examining,and
implementing as determining teaching methods,andreflecting
as reviewing a class when considering the context of men-
toring for novice teachers (Figure 1). In designing class, a
novice teacher is motivated when they face practical chal-
lenges and conflicts in preparing a class with a mentor. The
content and direction of the intervention depend on mutual
negotiation between a novice teacher and a mentor (Enges-
tröm & Sannino, 2010). In determining teaching methods, the
novice teacher makes a lecture plan with a mentor’s support
and conducts it. The mentor prioritises the novice teacher’s
initiative for problem-solving, negotiates understanding of the
Figure 1: Conceptual model of sequence of learning actions in an expansive learning cycle adapted from Engeström and Sannino (2010).
4Ikuko Goto and Takumi Yada
teaching situation, and collaboratively participates in the
activity to generate the novice teacher’s capacity for teaching
and creating lectures for student learning (Engeström & San-
nino, 2010; Sannino et al., 2016). In reviewing a class, the
novice teacher and the mentor collectively assess what they
achieved and can improve next. The key point of the inter-
vention is to create a formative process that values the novice
teacher’s initiative, rather than a one-way instructive and
evaluative process in which the novice teacher listens to the
mentor’s guidance and advice (Engeström & Sannino, 2010).
This process creates a new concept, which can be applied in
other teaching situations as a framework for designing new
solutions (Engeström & Sannino, 2010).
According to Engeström and Sannino (2010), a case
representing practical activities provides valuable data
for solutions and possible theoretical concepts. Moreover,
the case study method is especially useful in exploring
deep knowledge of mentoring in a certain context (Wang
et al., 2008). This case study pursues interventions by men-
tors that promote the self-directed development of novice
teachers by following two research questions:
(1) How do the mentor teachers experience their men-
toring practices for mentees’self-directed development
when mentoring utilising the formative intervention?
(2) What kind of mentoring based on the formative inter-
vention for the mentees’self-directed development do
the mentors conduct when they are designing a class,
determining teaching methods, and reviewing a class?
2 Methods
2.1 Research Design
This case study comprises two parts: a preliminary survey
and main fieldwork. The aim of the survey was to grasp
mentors’challenges. After clarifying mentors’challenges
in the survey, mentoring intervention in the fieldwork
was developed according to the formative intervention
(Engeström & Sannino, 2010). The survey contained three
questions. The first was closed-ended with six options:
“What is your focus during mentoring?”The answering
options are drawn from teachers’duties defined by the
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Tech-
nology (2006) in Japan including lecturing, managing stu-
dent discipline, communicating with parents, conducting
school administrative work, and communicating with col-
leagues. Participants who chose “other”option used a free
descriptive format to explain their focus. The second and
third questions were open ended: “What challenges do you
face when you are mentoring?”and “What competence do
you think is required for a mentor?”
Fieldwork data were collected by recording the men-
toring discussions between the mentors and mentees and
through semi-structured interviews with the mentees to sup-
port crystallisation with multiple data sources (Creswell &
Poth, 2018). The mentoring discussion records comprised 3.5
h for Mentee A and 4.5 h for Mentee B. Individual semi-struc-
tured interviews lasting approximately 1 h were conducted
between one of the researchers and each mentee after the
intervention process.
Concerning research ethics, permission to conduct this
study was gained from the ethical committee of the uni-
versity where the first author works. The committee fol-
lowed the Declaration of Helsinki. In both the survey and
fieldwork, participation was voluntary, and the partici-
pants were informed that any data could be withdrawn
at any time.
2.2 Participants
The preliminary survey component sampled mentors working
in elementary schools in Tokyo. A convenience sampling
method was adopted to identify the sample population from
one prefecture in Japan. We first contacted the concerned
authorities for permission to administer the survey. After
obtaining the permissions, one of the researchers contacted
the school principals and informed them of the study’saim.
We provided the principals with a set of paper-and-pencil
surveys, along with self-addressed, stamped envelopes, which
the principals delivered to mentors who accepted to partici-
pate. We sent the request to 81 schools; 28 schools replied, 3 of
which did not have mentors. Thus, 25 mentors from 25 schools
participated in the study. The demographic and background
information on the participating mentors is presented in
Table 1.
The fieldwork component of this study was conducted
during a teaching practice period at an elementary and a
junior high school affiliated with a national university in
Tokyo. Two mentors (Mentor S and Y) working at the
schools were selected as a sample because they have par-
ticipated in a monthly study group for 7 years where they
studied the formative intervention (Engeström & Sannino,
2010) with university researchers and other teachers from
different schools. Since each participant gives presenta-
tions about their practices using the formative interven-
tion in the group, the authors and the mentors shared an
understanding of the theory. Moreover, the two mentors
scrutinised the outline of this study before the study.
Mentor Teachers’Experiences and Practices in Japan 5
The two mentor‒mentee pairs were observed during
the practice period: (1) Mentor S and Mentee A, and (2)
Mentor Y and Mentee B. While Mentee A and Mentor S
were engaged in a class for ethics where the students learn
to have loyalty to their hometown, Mentee B and Mentor Y
did a class for life environment studies where the students
observed animals and plants living in the local environ-
ment. Mentoring discussions as mentoring opportunities
were held for the following three instructional situations:
(1) designing a class, (2) determining the teaching method,
and (3) reviewing a class. Two 30-day fieldwork sessions
were conducted to cover all the situations of each men-
toring pair. The first fieldwork session was held in June
2018; the second was conducted in May and June 2019.
2.3 Data Analysis
Regarding the preliminary survey data, descriptive statistics from
the closed-ended survey question were presented. Responses to
the two open-ended questions were thematically coded using an
inductive approach (Braun & Clarke, 2006).
Concerning the fieldwork data, the researchers manu-
ally transcribed the fieldwork data before analysing it using
the thematic analysis method (Braun & Clarke, 2006). First,
the researchers extracted the data per sentence corre-
sponding to each situation: (1) designing a class, (2) deter-
mining teaching methods, and (3) reviewing a class. Next,
the sentences were inductively paired with codes that repre-
sented certain meanings as subthemes. Finally, the sub-
themes for each situation were conceptualised as a theme
supporting the self-directed development of mentees. When
conducting inductive coding, the researchers discussed and
reflected on the codes and the analysis to ensure the trust-
worthiness of the findings (Creswell & Poth, 2018).
The original data were collected in Japanese. To pre-
sent the results of the current study, first, the results were
translated from Japanese to English by a professional
translator retaining the original meaning of the results.
After that, one of the authors, who is a native Japanese
speaker and fluently uses English, checked the contents
and the quality of the translated results to ensure the cred-
ibility in terms of the research context.
3 Findings
3.1 Survey Results
Analysis of the responses to the closed-ended question
displayed that most participants focused on instruction
concerning lectures (Table 2), indicating the mentors con-
centrated on mentees’classroom practices.
Analysis of responses to the second open-ended ques-
tion revealed two major challenges mentors faced when
mentoring: hesitation in advising mentees and difficulty in
transmitting teacher professionalism (Table 3). Although
the mentors ranged in age and level of experience, they
appeared to agree on the challenges faced when men-
toring. The first challenge ‒hesitation in advising mentees
‒indicates the mentors felt irresolute and encountered
difficulties when considering the development of mentees.
Table 1: Survey participants’demographic and background information
Demographic and background information N
Gender Female 19
Male 5
No answer 1
Age 30‒39 8
40‒49 6
50‒59 3
60‒69 8
Teaching experience 5‒9 years 3
10‒19 years 10
More than 20 years 12
Experience as a mentor 0‒1 year 7
2 years 8
3 years 3
4 years 2
5 years 5
Table 2: Mentors’focus during mentoring
Survey question 1 answer
Options
Count Percentage of
mentors (%)
(1) Instruction concerning lecture 22 88
(2) Instruction concerning student
discipline
728
(3) How to communicate with
parents
416
(4) How to deal with school
administrative work
520
(5) How to manage
communication with colleagues
28
(6) Other 14
–Issues about health and well-
being
416
–The importance of active
behaviour
14
–Priority of work 1 4
–Work etiquette 1 4
–How to learn in the school 1 4
6Ikuko Goto and Takumi Yada
The second challenge ‒difficulty in transmitting teacher
professionalism ‒illustrates that, since the mentors want
to train the mentees on aspects of professionalism based
on the mentees’agency, the mentors’approaches usually
expected by the cultural and political contexts conflict with
what they want to do.
Concerning the question regarding the required abilities
of mentors, the theme “the ability to intervene according to
the mentee’ssituation”was extracted (Table 4). The mentors
experienced conflict between instructing on a precise teaching
plan and acknowledging mentees’agency when they inter-
vened. This preliminary analysis uncovered the mentors’
need for intervention models to follow.
3.2 Mentoring that Encourages Self-Directed
Development of Novice Teachers
The key mentoring themes elicited from the records from the
teaching practice period were found in each process: (1)
designing a class, (2) determining teaching methods, and (3)
reviewing a class. The findings are summarised in Table 5.
3.3 Mentoring Themes During Designing
Class
During her interview, Mentee A said that she experienced a
conflict between her “motivation to create a draft of a
teaching plan and expectations of a class”and “concerns
about a class”when she was designing her class. When
asked whether she felt confident or anxious during her
preparation for the class, Mentee A answered that she
was motivated to design a class and elaborated on the draft
using her ideas. She explained that she had expected to
teach the class based on her plan, but she was uncertain
and concerned about proceeding because she had planned
for a predictable reaction from the students, but she was
not sure if she sufficiently understood the students. The
conflict between confidence and anxiety is reflected in
the following comments she provided:
•When I came up with an adequate configuration of the
class, questions, and work, I felt as if I had successfully
added a piece of a jigsaw puzzle.
•Intuitively, I thought that the plan would work, but I felt
anxious about whether I could induce positive comments
or activities from the students since I did not know how
close I was to them.
Under these circumstances, Mentor S and Mentee A
discussed setting a time for effective group discussion in
class and discussed students’thoughts, activities, and pre-
dicted reactions. In the interview, when asked whether she
believed her thinking had changed after the mentoring
experience, Mentee A observed, “I can find time to allo-
cate,”“I can imagine the students’attitudes,”and “I can
clarify what to prepare before a class,”which demon-
strates that Mentee A’s anxiety changed to motivation to
create a specific class plan. This sentiment was echoed in
the following comments from Mentee A:
•I was most encouraged by the mentor’s words, “sounds
interesting.”Mentor S said that students do not usually
Table 3: Perceived challenges faced when mentoring
Theme Hesitation in advising mentees Difficulty in transmitting teacher professionalism
Quotes –“I am not sure to what extent I should instruct on
classroom practice and student discipline.”
–“I wonder how much I should help the mentee.”
–“It is difficult to estimate how much the mentees
solve problems on their own.”
–“It is difficult to balance development of the mentee
with classroom management.”
–“They need to be more responsible as professional teachers.”
–“My mentee could not change easily when I provided advice on work
etiquette, like communicating with colleagues and keeping deadlines.”
–“It is difficult to convey what I am thinking.”
Table 4: Required abilities of mentors
Theme The ability to intervene according to the mentee’s situation
Quotes –“The ability to give instructions and show a model after discerning to what extent mentees can do by themselves.”
–“The skill to grasp situations and determine whether I should help or let the mentees proceed on their own.”
–“The ability to encourage mentees’agency, regardless of the situation.”
Mentor Teachers’Experiences and Practices in Japan 7
have an opportunity to talk about their hometown, so the
topic would liven up the class, so I can feel confident and
have a clear image of a successful class.
•In addition, I can establish the structure of the entire
class by being aware of how to proceed and what to
consider.
Analysis of the interview demonstrated that Mentor S’s
intervention while discussing designing a class activity
addressed the anxiety and needs of Mentee A and provided
a significant opportunity for the relationship between
mentor and mentee to deepen. Namely, the intervention
fostered a trusting relationship. Thus, the subtheme was
represented as (a) building a relationship of trust.
In addition, careful listening was symbolic in that many
of Mentor S’s remarks were dialogical, such as “Isee”and
“uh-huh.”All were uttered with a positive listening attitude,
as displayed in the following transcribed conversation:
Mentee A: For example, first, have the students read the text and
then think about why people living around Cape Erimo have
contributed to the Erimo district without leaving the district …
Mentor S: Uh-huh.
Mentee A: Next, have the students think about what is inconve-
nient and what should be improved…
Mentor S: Good.
Mentee A: …and how to resolve the inconvenience. Mentor S: I see.
Mentee A uttered 36 remarks that expressed her thoughts
and vision, which was more than Mentor S uttered. The
content and length of the remarks represented Mentee A’s
active involvement in designing the class and suggested
that the mentoring meeting was based on the proactive
class design, or agency, of Mentee A. Mentor S carefully
listened to Mentee A’s ideas about class design, saying
“Yes”and “I see.”As a result, Mentee A was able to find
solutions, such as “I can imagine the students’attitudes”
and “it became clear what to prepare.”Mentor Y also dis-
played careful listening with a positive attitude, as illu-
strated in the following exchange:
Mentee B: I want students to have interests in many things. For
example, a student collecting insects in a sandbox says that there
is a line on their body. I want to appreciate this kind of voice and
viewpoints.
Mentor Y: I see, so you want students to deepen their insights and
interests.
Thus, the subtheme in designing a class was represented
as (b) positive listening to the novice teacher in dialogic
communication.
Furthermore, the mentors urged the mentees to deter-
mine a future direction. For example, Mentor Y tried to
clarify the direction of the next lesson by asking Mentee
B, “What is the aim of tomorrow’s life sciences lesson? It
doesn’t have to be concrete but let me hear what you are
thinking.”Mentee B demonstrated the core idea of creating
her lessons in her remarks, “I want students to be inter-
ested in various things…Students’interests, I want to
cherish those things.”Therefore, the subtheme was repre-
sented as (c) encouraging novice teachers to set a direction
for future lessons.
The mentors’actions represented by the subthemes
allowed the mentees to obtain suggestions for solutions
and some class models, while their proactive, independent
attitudewasrespected.Inthisway,thementeescouldsetthe
directions of their solutions independently. Consequently, the
subthemes were distilled into the theme for designing a class
as setting the direction for self-directed problem-solving.
3.4 Mentoring Themes During Determining
Teaching Method
While determining the teaching method, Mentor S’s ques-
tions allowed Mentee A to clarify a specific method. Mentee
A specifically devised ideas about proceeding with a class,
gave adequate instructions, and effectively used the mate-
rial. The conversation between Mentor S and Mentee A that
follows illustrates Mentor S’s process of questioning used
to clarify the teaching method:
Mentee A: Focusing on feedback may be effective.
Mentor S: What do you mean by feedback?
Mentee A: For example, have the students look back on their own
attitude, and then I make comments on the statements written by
the students, or have them read my comments and look back on
their attitude.
Mentor S: Uh-huh.
Mentee A: For example, subsequently introducing what other
students thought may be effective.
Mentor S: I see. Good.
This questioning approach allowed Mentee A to clearly
describe the significance of looking back and gave shape
to the teaching method for the learning activity. This men-
toring approach is demonstrated in the following remarks
made by Mentor S:
•How do you approach the students about love for their
hometown?
•What do you mean by feedback?
•Could that also be done in the affiliated junior high
school?
•How do you ask the first question?
•Then, how do you attract the students’attention?
8Ikuko Goto and Takumi Yada
•…16 min are enough for students to express opinions.
•It may take less than 1 min for each group to express an
opinion.
•How about introducing this first?
Mentor Y’s question also enabled Mentee B to grasp a
teaching circumstance more accurately, as displayed in the
following transcribed conversation:
Mentor Y: Have you checked the school yard for extracurricular
learning? Do know what are blooming now? Have you decided on
the rules concerning picking up weeds and flowers without permission,
and have you talked about the responsibility for taking them home?
Mentee B: Yes, I think the students need insect cages, nets, plastic
bags for their belongings, right?
Because of these situations, the subtheme for determining the
teaching method was represented as (d) asking a question to
clarify the teaching method.Specifically, the action reflected in
this subtheme enabled the mentees’descriptions of their ideas
about teaching methods to help them to understand who
should actively solve a problem. Namely, the mentees found
a process for forming an agency that actively solved the pro-
blem. Moreover, the mentors asked questions concerning the
mentees’decisions to prompt further decision-making:
Mentor Y: There are 9 insect cages and nets in each student
group. But. what would you do?
Mentee B: Let’s keep one cage for one group.
Mentee B made her decision based on the information
presented by Mentor Y. The subtheme here was portrayed
as (e) prompting mentees’decisions.
Furthermore, the mentors’suggestions and affirmative
responses encouraged the mentees and the mentors to col-
laboratively find the direction for specific solutions. This is
highlighted in the transcribed conversation that follows:
Mentee A: Time allocation may be difficult…
Mentor S: There are eight groups. If it takes 2 min for one group
to move into position, present their opinion and move out of
position, 16 min will be enough to have eight groups present their
opinions.
Mentee A: Yes.
Mentor S: It may take less than 1 min to present opinions.
Mentee A: Then, have one group present their opinion within 1 min.
Mentor S: Sounds good.
Mentee A felt conflicted and anxious about the time alloca-
tion. Responding to Mentee A’s remark, Mentor S clarified
the actual time allocation in more detail. By saying “sounds
good,”Mentor S affirmed Mentee A’s decision. Accordingly,
Mentor S facilitated a collaborative process to create the
learning framework with Mentee A.
Table 5: Themes related to mentoring novice teachers from the teacher practice period
Designing a class Determining teaching methods Reviewing a class
Theme Setting the direction for self-directed
problem-solving
Collaboratively clarifying unclear and
ambiguous aspects of teaching method
Assessing effective instructions and
providing clues for further growth
Designing an opportunity for learning in dialogic
communication and mutual negotiation
Subtheme (a) Building a relationship of trust (d) Asking a question to clarify the teaching
method
(g) Valuing the good teaching points (i) Attempting to learn from the novice teacher with
a modest and sincere attitude
(b) Positive listening to the novice teacher
in dialogic communication
(e) Prompting mentees’decisions (h) Addressing problems identified
together with the novice teacher
(j) Creating a place to talk about one’s educational
value as a teacher with each other
(c) Encouraging novice teachers to set a
direction for future lessons
(f) Agreement and suggestions to create a
collaborative learning activity
Mentor Teachers’Experiences and Practices in Japan 9
Another conversation between these two teachers
demonstrated that Mentor S’s suggestion and affirmative
response enabled the pair to collaboratively find the
direction of the solution:
Mentor S: First, have the students read the textbook […] How do
you ask the first question?
Mentee A: Well, why did they aim to reactivate Cape Erimo?
Mentee A: To confirm what the students understood by reading
the textbook.
Mentor S: I see. They can understand by reading the textbook.
Mentee A: I do not intend to focus on having them read the
textbook.
Mentor S: Well, this is not a language class.
Mentee A: We may make use of this opportunity to have the
students think about it more realistically…
Mentor S: Not only the photo of Cape Erimo…How about
asking them how to get to Cape Erimo?
In her response to Mentor S’s question, Mentee A
clearly expressed her opinion that confirming the material
content was sufficient, and Mentor S agreed. In the end,
hearing Mentee A’s remark, “we may make use of this
opportunity to have the students think about it more rea-
listically…,”Mentor S perceived that Mentee A was anxious
about subsequent steps and suggested a solution. Then,
they collaboratively found the direction of the solution.
Another example of this type of intervention was demon-
strated by a conversation between Mentor Y and Mentee B.
When seeing a picture of a dandelion drawn by a student,
Mentor Y said from his experience and knowledge, “This is
not a single petal but a Sympetalae. There may be a child
who notices this when disassembling the dandelion flower.”
On the basis of this comment, Mentee B developed her lesson
plan, commenting, “Then, even though it is not mentioned in
the textbook, I can point it out and confirm it when they actu-
ally see it.”Based on the examples, the subtheme in problem-
solving was described as (f) agreement and suggestions to create
a collaborative learning activity.
The findings suggested the mentors’interventions during
discussions on determining teaching methods were collabora-
tive and negotiative, sometimes showing a solution and clar-
ifying unclear points in the teaching method. Thus, the sub-
themes were conceptualised as collaboratively clarifying
unclear and ambiguous aspects of the teaching method.
3.5 Mentoring Themes During Reviewing
Class
During discussions to review a class, the mentors’inter-
ventions valued what the mentees had done in the class.
For example, in the following conversation, Mentor S
found value in Mentee A achieving the main purpose of
having the students think of the example as their problem,
which Mentee A regarded as the core of the class:
Mentee A: I think the class went well in the sense that I achieved
the aim of the class.
Mentor S: Yes, I think your story made the class go well. Just
focusing on Cape Erimo would not lead the students to think
about the situation as their own, since there is a gap between
the situation of Cape Erimo and their own situation. However,
when you talked about your neighbourhood, the Tamagawa
River, and Germany where you lived as a child, the students
were relaxed and lit up, which made me feel that the students
came to think of the situation of Cape Erimo as their own.
Mentor S also valued Mentee A’s work in the remarks “…
you prepared the photo instead of just telling the students
to open to xx page, which was more effective than having
them read the textbook without any information”and “…
whether there is an image or not makes a significant differ-
ence.”Thus, the subtheme from discussions on reviewing a
class was represented as (g) valuing the good teaching points.
In addition, when reviewing the classes, the mentors focused
on the problem identified by the mentees and addressed it
together with them. Although Mentee A was able to teach a class
by using her prepared material, she was not entirely satisfied,
believing she could have taught a more satisfying class. The
following conversation displays how Mentor S focused on the
problem together with Mentee A:
Mentee A: I can make a big difference in the class if I could draw
upon the students’memories.
Mentee A: There may be various approaches…
Mentor S: What approach at what time do you think should be
taken?
Mentor S: You prepared and showed the photo displaying Cape
Erimo subject to desertification to the students instead of telling
them, ‘Open to page xx to learn the xxx today’. I think your
approach was more effective than simply having the students
read the textbook.
Mentor S: And I think it was good that you used the video. Don’t
you think so?
Mentee A: As we started class 5 min late, I talked at a too hurried
pace while showing the video.
Mentor S: Well…You could take more time to show the video.
Mentee A: Oh, I see.
Mentee A: It would be better if I could explain it in detail more
carefully.
Mentor S: Maybe you’re right.
When Mentee A could not converge the points to be
improved in the class, Mentor S asked, “What approach at
what time do you think should be taken?”Mentor S then
informed Mentee A that displaying the photo perhaps illu-
strated a memory related to environmental contamination
10 Ikuko Goto and Takumi Yada
for the students. Mentor S’s intervention intended to make
the class more sophisticated by focusing on the environ-
mental issues that Mentee A aimed to have the students think
about as their own and for which she had put much effort
into preparing. Simultaneously, Mentor S’s intervention can
be regarded as an approach related to Mentee A’sobjective.
This intervention drew a reflective remark from Mentee A, “I
talked at a too hurried pace.”Mentor S shared Mentee A’s
reflection by saying, “Maybe you’re right.”This kind of inter-
vention, which focuses on a problem that the mentee identi-
fies and addresses with the mentor, was also observed
between Mentee B and Mentor Y. When Mentee B reflected
that she could not handle a situation between students,
Mentor Y advised, “There is also learning how to overcome
these problems. I think this is one point of view.”Thus, the
subtheme for reviewing a class was represented as (h) addres-
sing problems together that the novice teacher identifies.These
two subthemes (g and h) were distilled into the first theme for
reviewing a class as assessing good instructions and providing
cluesforfurthergrowth.
Mentoring during the review of a class was also recog-
nised based on the subthemes of building a relationship of
trust and positive listening to the novice teacher in dialogic
communication and had significant meaning for the evalu-
ating process. This was found in the equal footing of mentors
and mentees present in a relationship of trust, acknowledging
that the mentor is also a learner, as illustrated by Mentor S:
Mentor S: Mentee A, your talk was effective. I would not be able
take such an approach. I would only be able to talk about my
hometown. Your talk was a key point. You prepared the photos
and data in advance for clarity, and you provided the opportu-
nity for the students to predict and raise their hands to express
their opinions on the subsequent situation. I think you have
successfully achieved your purpose through these approaches.
…As I’m always too busy with work, I learned a lot today.
Mentee A created the teaching material by herself because
she aimed to allow the students to think about the Cape Erimo
environmental issues described in the textbook as familiar
rather than as an issue detached from their daily lives.
Mentee A displayed examples of where she had lived and
written about her daily life abroad and environmental con-
servation for Tamagawa River, which was familiar to the
students. Mentor S was very impressed by Mentee A’sefforts
to devise ways to have the students think of the topic as their
own by talking about the environment in which Mentee A
grew up and preparing materials that allowed the students to
understand the situation easily. Mentor S was also impressed
by the originality, noting, “Your talk was effective”and “I
would not be able take such an approach.”These remarks
indicate Mentor S modestly and sincerely learned from
Mentee A’s approach. Thus, the subtheme for reviewing a
class was described as (i) attempting to learn from the novice
teacher with a modest and sincere attitude.
Furthermore, relationships in which a mentor and a
mentee learn from each other were observed. Mentee B
realised what a teacher should be when seeing Mentor Y
enjoying himself while exploring a wildflower garden and
saying, “I enjoyed it the most.”Mentor Y said he wanted the
students to have fun observing and exploring wildflowers.
By touching the wildflowers, Mentor Y conveyed to Mentee
B the importance of piquing students’interest in learning.
Thus, the subtheme here was described as (j) creating a
place to talk about one’s educational value as a teacher
with each other. These two subthemes (i and j) were distilled
into the second theme for reviewing a class as designing an
opportunity for learning in dialogic communication and
mutual negotiation.
4 Discussion
This study is the first study that investigated mentors’
experience and the kinds of mentoring aimed at self-
directed development for novice teachers by applying
Engeström’s formative intervention.
Regarding the first research question, analysis of the
survey data revealed that the mentors mainly focused on
how novice teachers develop their lectures. This result was
supported by the earlier findings that the role of mentors is
mainly to support how to teach students (Feiman-Nemser,
2001). The survey results also suggest the mentors felt
ambivalent because they wanted novice teachers to be inde-
pendent, but simultaneously, they believed novice teachers
need instruction from their mentors. This also accords with
the previous studies (e.g., Vaitzman Ben-David & Berkovich,
2021) saying that mentors and novice teachers could have
ambivalent relationships caused by their different expecta-
tions. Therefore, the survey results demonstrated that although
the mentors recognised the importance of novice teachers’
agency, the mentors were struggling to intervene in novice
teachers’self-directed development.
Concerning the second research question, the findings
of the fieldwork indicated a proper understanding of men-
toring that promotes novice teachers’self-directed devel-
opment based on the formative intervention. Themes were
identified according to the teaching situations. During
designing a class where the mentors and the novice tea-
chers considered the aim and the main pillars of the class,
setting the direction for self-directed problem-solving emerged
as an important theme. Previous studies exploring mentors’
Mentor Teachers’Experiences and Practices in Japan 11
practices observed consistent results that co-thinking with
novice teachers entails understanding their concerns,
explaining their self-identified difficulties, or clarifying the
challenges when framing and solving problems (Feiman-
Nemser, 2001). Mutual interaction and negotiation encour-
aged by the mentors were key when focusing on issues the
novice teacher put effort into preparing. By focusing on the
issue, the novice teachers could provide an appropriate
viewpoint, thereby raising aspirations and drawing out
reflections towards future lessons, emphasised by the for-
mative intervention (Engeström & Sannino, 2010). This point
is vital for mentoring relationships in certain cultural con-
tests where the relationships tend to have one-way inter-
actions that could not lead to new knowledge creation
(Asada, 2012).
In determining teaching methods, collaboratively clar-
ifying unclear and ambiguous aspects of teaching methods
emerged as an important theme. The novice teachers were
unsure whether their practices were appropriate and effec-
tive for students’learning. The mentors’role in determining
teaching methods was found to help the novice teachers
clarify the teaching method and support the novice teachers’
decision-making. The results supported earlier findings inves-
tigating directive and nondirective mentoring by Mena et al.
(2017). Their study found that mentors who use directive men-
toring skills, such as giving opinions, tend to dominate the time
of dialogue. Non-directing skills, such as questioning, enable
mentees to discuss their concerns. Since dispositions of what
and how novice teachers learn can affect their learning and
classroom instruction (Wang et al., 2008), collaboratively deter-
mining teaching methods would be important for not only
novice teachers’but also students’development overall.
Two important themes were found during reviewing a
class: assessing effective instructions and providing clues for
further growth and designing an opportunity for learning in
dialogic communication and mutual negotiation.Thenovice
teachers in this study felt that they could have done better
with several points. This may come from their anxious
feeling as a novice teacher. Thus, an important role of
mentors in reviewing a class is to let novice teachers recog-
nise what they achieved and encourage reflection with
future-oriented words. These findings correspond with the
previous studies’claim that reassessing the mentors’own
established guiding methods and valuing the novice tea-
cher’s position encourage the novice teacher’s self-directed
actions (Engeström, 2020; Sannino et al., 2016). This finding
further supports the idea that constructivist-oriented men-
toring supports mentees’needs of their autonomy and
expertise (Burger et al., 2021; Richter et al., 2013). In this
study, the cultural and political context emphasises vertical
relationships and accountability, which may make the
mentors demonstrate their modest and sincere attitude
leading to mutual respect (Asada, 2012; Sugasawa, 2006; Tri-
andis, 2001). Mentors may struggle with an emotion that they
must ensure the expertise of novice teachers with a pressure
from the teacher shortage and feel that they should guide and
lead novice teachers in the Japanese vertical culture that
focuses on seniority and hierarchy. However, the mentors in
this study could create mutual respect based on emphasising
dialogic communication and negotiation with the viewpoint of
constructivist-oriented mentoring (Burger et al., 2021). This
requires metacognition, where the mentor reflects on the rela-
tionship with the mentee and their own values. These are
particularly valuable findings because the mentoring that
encourages mentees’self-directed development was shown
effective even in the cultural and political context that empha-
sises vertical relationships and accountability.
Since this study is not without limitations, directions
for future research are suggested. First, although multiple
data sources allowed the elaboration of the findings, data
were collected from only two pairs. However, the finding sug-
gests that, for example, such self-evaluation meeting is essential
to any creative or developmental process in Japanese contexts.
Thus, future research will confirm whether the practices
including self-evaluation meeting found in this study are domi-
nant in mentor–mentee relationships in other Japanese
schools. The trustworthiness and generalisability of the
findings would be enhanced by collecting data on various
mentoring cases with or without the value of self-directed
development of novice teachers and sharing an under-
standing of the formative intervention.
Second, this study sought to explore mentors’chal-
lenges with the open question survey, although the survey
might not be enough to understand the challenge. Further
studies should seek a deeper understanding of mentors’
challenges with other qualitative methods, such as inter-
views. Third, this study sampled data from the mentor
and mentee teachers working at an elementary and junior
high school in Japan. Thus, the findings may not be gener-
alisable to mentoring settings in other levels of education in
Japan or other countries. Future research is recommended
to study the issue in a larger context and different geogra-
phical areas.
Although Engeström and Sannino (2010) stated that no
fixed pattern exists for formative interventions, this study’s
findings could indicate a guiding method for mentors. The
findings demonstrate a mentoring intervention to support the
self-directed development of mentees, illustrated through the
mentee’sprocessoffinding a proactive solution through
mutual negotiation with the mentor as an original learning
activity created within their relationship (Engeström & San-
nino, 2010). The mentoring practices found in the themes can
12 Ikuko Goto and Takumi Yada
overcome problematic mentoring interventions where men-
tors dominate conversations with novice teachers based on
the mentors’experiences. Since the mentors’agency was con-
sidered a crucial key, the mentors’interventions focused on
expectation and endorsement of the mentees’actions. This
study contributes not only to the national discussion but also
to the international literature in that the formative interven-
tion works, although the contextual challenges exist.
Funding information: This work was supported by Japan
Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI (Grant
Number: 18K18631).
Author contributions: Goto and Yada conceived of the con-
ception and design of the work. Goto collected the data
collection. Goto conducted the analysis and drafted the
article. Yada verified the analytical methods and critically
revised the article. Both authors discussed the findings and
contributed to the final manuscript.
Conflict of interest: The authors state no conflictofinterest.
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