ACE Mentor Program

1
ACE Mentor Program
2
The Alliance for Catholic Education

• 3 Pillars
• Professional Development
• Graduate level training (Master of Education
  degree) and immersion teaching experience
• Two intensive summer programs at Notre Dame
• Community Life
• Houses of 4-7 ACE Teachers
• Building Communities of Faith, Hope, and Love
• Spiritual Growth
• Retreats
• Community Prayer
• Develop reflective professional educators and
  people of faith

3
Mentoring and Research

• Mentoring energizes schools and teachers. Strong
  mentors
• cut new teacher attrition rates in half
  (Ingersoll, 2000)
• improve teacher quality - often moving the skill
  level of a teacher finishing the first year to
  that of a 4th year teacher (Villar, 2004)
• improve student assessment and achievement
  (Claycolmb Hawley, 2003)
• benefit veteran teachers through new leadership
  opportunities and time for professional
  reflection and development (Villar, 2004)

4
Mentors

• Act as a Trusted Supporter
• Orient Novice Teachers to the School Environment
• Meet Consistently with the Novice Teacher
• Assist with Planning and Curriculum
• Help Analyze Student Work and Achievement Data
• Conduct Non-Evaluative Observations

5
ACE Mentor Responsibilities

• Orient ACE Teacher to their School
• Meet Consistently with the ACE Teacher
• Observe and Conference with ACE Teacher
• Provide Feedback in a Timely Manner

6
Orientation
7
Orient ACE Teacher to School (pg. 10)

• Acculturation to the School and Diocese
• Local history, customs, important dates
• Checklist for Classroom Organization and
  Procedures
• Resources, procedures, paper work, classroom
  set-up
• Meeting to Discuss ACE Teachers Classroom
  Management Plan

8
Consistent Meetings
9
Meet Consistently with ACE Teacher (pg. 11)

• Strong mentors help new teachers address timely
  issues before they become problems
• 1st Year, 1st Semester - Meet Weekly
• 1st Year, 2nd Semester and 2nd Year Meet Every
  Two Weeks
• When to Meet?
• Before or After School, Lunch
• 20-30 minutes to check for questions and
  reflection

10
Monthly Meeting Log Calendar (pp. 11-13)

• Monthly calendar provides timely topics for
  discussion
• Meetings may pinpoint areas for improvement,
  problem-solve management issues, brainstorm unit
  activities, identify growth, or analyze student
  achievement

September (Example)

• Log meeting dates in log and email to ACE TA

11
Always Timely -Planning Units Lessons

• Units
• Effective way to engage students beyond learning
  at the memory level
• Centered around a unifying concept or essential
  question
• Excel Template for both unit and lesson planning

12
Example Unit Planning Template (pg. 34)
13
ACE Planning Unit Goals and Assessments (pg. 33)

• Unit Goal
• Uses clear, observable, challenging verbs
• States what students will know and be able to do
  at the units conclusion
• Student-centered written as SWBAT - Students
  will be able to
• Middle School American History
• SWBAT analyze three reasons as causes for the
  decline and fall of the Roman Empire.
• Unit Assessment
• Satisfies the unit goal
• Student works independently and individually
• Framed in a real life situation
• Example for above goal
• Given a description of four major policies and
  practices in the United States today, students
  will independently and individually analyze how
  these may have delayed or hastened the fall of
  the Roman Empire.

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Lesson Plans and Sequencing (pg. 35)

• Charts the task, time, and methods used for daily
  activities
• 2-4 day plan focusing on a major idea and its
  parts
• Lesson Plan Objectives
• Use clear, observable, challenging verbs
• Represent the steps necessary to achieve the unit
  goal
• Objective is assessed in some manner
• Early Lesson plans are often teacher centered and
  focus on acquiring knowledge
• Later lesson plans shift to a group or individual
  focus and extend the knowledge and use it
  meaningfully

15
Example Lesson Planning Template (pg. 36)
16
Observations Conferences
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Observe and Conference with ACE Teacher (pp.
14-16)

• Non-evaluative - an instrument for growth
• Pre- and Post-Observation Conferences encourage
  self-reflection and articulation of goals
• Use open-ended probing questions
• Let the ACE teacher steer the conversation
• Remain non-judgmental
• An informal observation early in 1st semester, a
  formal observation in October again in March
• Focus on strengths and areas for improvement
• Focus on areas discussed in the pre-observation
  conference.

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Provide Feedback in a Timely Manner
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Provide Feedback in a Timely Manner (pg. 17)

• Complete Mid-Semester Feedback Form each
  semester. This asks you to provide strengths and
  areas for improvement in the following domains
• Planning and Preparation
• Classroom Environment
• Instruction
• Professional Responsibilities
• Contributions to the Community
• Fostering Spirituality
• Not based solely on Mid-Semester Observation, but
  on entire semester so farobservation only one
  element used for feedback
• Stored in permanent electronic portfolio (p. 3)
  provides a developing two-year record of growth
  and challenges to be met.
• Remarks non-judgmental and non-evaluative

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Submitting Mentor Forms and Logs Electronically
via Email (pg. 3)

• Accessing Forms
• 1. Go to ace.nd.edu
• 2. Click on the lower left red box titled
  Service Through Teaching Program
• 3. Click on blue Principals, Mentors, and M.Ed.
  Faculty button in upper right-hand corner.
• 4. Download correct Form to your Desktop.
• The direct URL for the Mentor and Principal Forms
  is
• ace.nd.edu/academic-programs/teacherprogram/princi
  pals-mentors
• Filling out and Saving Forms
• 1. To insert comments, type in the gray
  expandable boxes.
• 2. For checkboxes, place an x in the box or
  click on the appropriate box.
• 3. Please save the form by adding the ACE
  teachers name to the name of the form.
  Example Sarah Lamphier Mentor Mid-Semester Form
  09.doc
• Submitting Forms
• E-mail all forms as an attachment to the ACE TA
  at aceta_at_nd.edu
• The ACE TA will upload these forms to the
  portfolio for you.
• 3. Please keep an electronic copy or paper
  copy for your own files.

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Expectations for the ACE Teacher
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Expectations for ACE Teachers

• Abide by the diocesan and school calendars and
  policies
• Work toward improving in the areas of the 3 ACE
  pillars Professional Teaching, Community, and
  Spirituality
• Turn in all forms and assignments online in a
  timely fashion
• Provide aid in accessing all online forms for
  mentors and principals
• Submit guided reflections every two weeks
• Consult with mentor teacher, principal, and other
  colleagues to improve planning and teaching
• Provide classroom portfolio for University
  Supervisor visits

23
From ACE Teachers, Faculty and Staff

• Thank you for your commitment as an ACE mentor
  and for your contributions to Catholic Education.