Introduction
It all began with the OnEdMentors podcast, so it made sense to share and celebrate where we started and where we’re going on the 3rd Anniversary Radiothon on voicEd Radio. Having this special edition of OnEdMentors was a great way to transition OnEdMentors Connect under the umbrella of The Mentoree. You can listen to the audio from the episode when Leigh and I welcomed Helen DeWaard, Bernadette Smith and Greg Sykes to the panel.
Some highlights from the Special Radiothon episode of OnEdMentors Featuring the Team Behind The Mentoree:
The origin story of OEMConnect
Leigh and dHL
How Helen DeWaard began as a critical friend to our collaborative inquiry and then became so integral to our growth by partnering with us through Lakehead University, first on her syllabus and now help us to become one of the Personalized Professional Learning sources for second year teacher candidates
Bernadette Smith is a principal in York Region as well as a thought leader, advocate, OEMConnect Mentor, and a part of the Leadership Team at The Mentoree
Greg Sykes’ perspective as a teacher candidate who is interning at The Mentoree and recording our OEMConnect Mentors in terms of what they believe mentorship is and why they became part of OnEdMentors Connect (OEMCOnnect)
The value of building connections, inviting perspectives, and fostering mentorship relationship relationships before you need them
Why self-direction is key
OEMConnect invites personalized professional learning
Our Mentor and Mentee Kits support the how to build a mentorship relationship including where to begin, potential questions to ask, and goal-setting sheets to work from
How technology can be leveraged to bring people together to develop and sustain relationships
Evolving an openly accessible space with a series of different offerings that support the essential notion that: We all have something to teach, and we all have something to learn
We are redefining mentorship as a reciprocal and non-hierarchical relationship
Educators should be given credit for their self knowledge and be given the autonomy to drive their own professional learning
Going Back
In an effort to broaden their reach and impact, Leigh and I wanted to explore how mentorship could be a source of professional learning and change for educators. We wondered how to create a place for teachers to go to when they wanted support to learn and grow on their own terms and in their own time. That’s how OnEdMentors Connect (OEMConnect) came to be. Leigh’s digital Human Library would house a catalogue of mentors that could be searched, so mentees could find the best person to help them self direct to meet their learning needs. The vision was first formed in January of 2018, and Phase 1 officially launched that September. We started with a concept that evolved into a collaborative inquiry and became a community.
Thinking Forward
After Phase 2, Leigh and I realized that this was more than an inquiry. We saw that we were building something was was really missing from the educational landscape, so we began designing a space that could be an umbrella for all things educational mentorship. We played with names, one of my favourite things to do. Our first idea was to call it The Complementory to show that both parties positively impact and support each other. Then, the latter half of the word started to grow on us. It literally blended the words mentor and mentee. Calling it The Mentoree would say everything we wanted it to. It showed a reciprocal, non-hierarchical mentorship space that blurred the lines between mentor and mentee because, at any stage of a career, we all have something to teach and we all have something to learn.
Where We Are Now
The Mentoree is a collaborative community that promotes professional learning and efficacy through mentorship. There was a small handful of us at the start, and then we invited more educators and formed our leadership team. Every single teacher that has been a part of this experience, for a short time or a long time, has contributed to making it a place for all of us. We are now a growing community that promotes self-directed mentorship opportunities in a supportive and caring environment.
We keep learning how to best communicate and collaborate with everyone in the community and grow The Mentoree to meet the needs of educators. Follow our journey on Twitter, Instagram, and through our site.
Check out this quick video that captures the WHYs of a few of our OEMConnect Mentors.