Levels of mentor questioning in assisted performance: what mentors should ask student teachers while co-planning

Abstract

Planning for teaching demands teachers engage as thoughtful practitioners who consider all the complexities of the classroom when making decisions. In this article, the authors analyzed mentor questions and student-teaching intern responses to answer in what ways the types of questions mentors asked interns during co-planning sessions influenced intern growth as thoughtful practitioners. Mentors asked questions to (a) check-in to see if interns knew what they need to know, (b) see if interns were able to apply that knowledge to make good plans, (c) allow interns to make decisions and encourage them to envision possibilities, and (d) probe to see if interns knew why they were making these decisions. However, mentors varied in the types of questions they asked. The type of questions mentors asked greatly influenced the thinking required by the interns in their responses