Do Mentors and Trainees Agree? Insights Into the Processes of Becoming a Teacher

Abstract

Abstract. The paper focuses on the results of a piece of research carried out in Transcarpathia among school mentors and pre-service teach-ers on the process of becoming competent teachers. An attempt has been made to clash the various opinions and to clarify what type of help trainee teachers require from the mentors and what kind of support the mentors give to will-be teachers during their teaching practice at the school. The study also points out that mentors’ support may positively infl uence the process in question. The participants of the present study were 45 graduate students of the Ferenc Rákóczi II. Transcarpathian Hungarian Institute majoring in various subjects (Year 4 and Year 5 students studying for their bachelor and specialist degrees). In addition, fourteen mentors were also surveyed about the main topic of this research, so that it could be analyzed from the mentors’ point of view, as well. Two different questionnaires were applied in the survey: one for the traineesand another one for the mentors. One of the most crucial conclusions of the survey was that the mentors applied the so-called developmental model of mentoring, i.e. they pointed out the fundamental aspects, but they mainly allowed the trainees to unfold as individuals while unnoticeably directing them on the right track.