The CPD needs of mentors in post‐compulsory Initial Teacher Training in England

Abstract

This paper discusses the compulsory professional development (CPD) needs of mentors within post‐compulsory Initial Teacher Training (ITT) provision in England. The discussion applies the ideas of Weber, Foucault, Habermas and Bourdieu in interpreting the implications for post‐compulsory ITT mentor CPD training. The paper’s primary and secondary research findings appear to indicate that mentors within this field of education struggle to gain the professional acceptance that Weber has popularised. Alongside struggling to achieve professional recognition it can also be argued that post‐compulsory ITT mentors may not use the same ‘discourse’ or ‘way of talking’ about teaching as their mentees. This finding is relevant to the work of Foucault. The subsequent attempt to achieve ‘collaboration’ and the potential ‘contestation’ that may be experienced links to the work of Habermas and Bourdieu.