A Helping Hand: A Practical Blue Print for Establishing a Successful Mentoring Program.
1998; Volume: 26; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
2326-9618
Autores Tópico(s)Diverse Education Studies and Reforms
ResumoA majority of the Hollywood (California) High School students representing the 9th through the 12th grade face going home after school to empty houses because both parents work at least one job to support their households. This means that students lack the same adult mentoring that took place in homes in previous generations. This, despite the fact that all students need at least one thoughtful adult who takes the time to talk with students about academic issues and personal problems (The Carnegie Council on Adolescent Development, 1989). So we find more and more students rely on their teachers and other adults in the school to act as their mentors. Every student must be able to rely on a small, caring group of adults who work closely with each other to provide coordinated, meaningful, and challenging educational experiences. In turn, teachers must have the opportunities to get to know every one of their students well enough to understand and teach them as individuals. Unfortunately, with large class sizes, the small group atmosphere is more difficult to achieve. Program: One-Reach The Hollywood High School mentoring program was developed as a part of our Career Academy in order to meet two student needs: First, as determined in the California Partnership Academy model, the students needed to be introduced to the world of work. Secondly, most of the Career Academy students come from families where both parents work at least one job. Many of these families are fairly new to this country and are not knowledgeable about the local work mores. Considering the HHS Career Academy student needs, the following goals were adopted by the HHS Each One-Reach One mentoring program: 1. Provide a caring adult for each qualified student. 2. Introduce the workplace - help to broaden the horizons of the student. 3. Provide cultural and educational activities for the student. Mentors and Their Commitment The mentors were recruited from the Hollywood community. The coordinators were provided with opportunities to speak at different organizational meetings such as the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce and the Lions Club. In addition, the coordinator presented the One-Reach mentoring program to employees of many of the Career Academy business partners including Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios Hollywood, and the Hollywood YMCA. The majority of the HHS One-Reach mentors who initially participated were recruited from Universal Studios Hollywood and the Hollywood YMCA. More recently, Paramount Pictures has provided the coordinator with opportunities to recruit mentors. In addition, Paramount has also developed a flyer for their internal computer system advertising the need for mentors. The mentors agreed to meet with their mentee a minimum of four hours per month during the academic year. During the intercession time the mentors talked to their mentees on the telephone and possibly planned other activities. The mentors and the mentees established personal goals that they would pursue during the course of these relationships. The mentor and the mentee mutually agreed upon the activities in which they participated while the mentors also agreed to introduce the mentees to their profession. The mentor program was described to the students during an 11th grade class meeting with an opportunity for the students to ask any questions. Any students interested in participating in the One-Reach program needed to complete the form requesting a mentor. Once the student and the mentor had an opportunity to begin to develop their relationship, usually after a few meetings, the mentor and mentee were asked to complete the Student Plan which included personal goals for the mentor and the mentee. The mentor and the mentee also were asked to develop a list of possible activities they would like to pursue together for pleasure as well as other activities that may help them reach their goals. …
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