Mentoring Can't Do It All

By Harry K. Wong

Moving. After 26 years in one house, I allowed myself the luxury of having a moving company pack my office. So opening each box has been an exciting surprise. What a nice discovery, for example, to find an article written in 1980 that talked of "dissemination." A smile crossed my face as the word brought back memories of so many other buzzwords and catchphrases. Quickly, "paradigm shift," "locus of control," "self-esteem," and "prioritize" flashed through my mind. And "rubrics" came and went faster than a struggling dot.com company.

The buzzword of the moment seems to be "mentoring." When it comes to the support we provide to new teachers entering the profession, everyone is usually referred to as a mentor, support person, or facilitator. No one is called simply a teacher. Yet, we dignify the teaching profession when teachers teach other teachers. Novice teachers want teachers—teachers they can watch teach in their rooms, teachers who will give them activities and lesson plans, teachers who will tell them what to do with those kids who challenge even the best in the field.

What they don't want are platitudes such as "providing a struggling new teacher with a forum for...