teacher vs. mentor

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

Since I said I was the antithesis of a teacher I think I need to explain the differences I see between teachers and mentors. Before I do though I want to make it clear that mentors are found everywhere –in schools, in homeschools, at work, in the community, at church etc. Teachers are found everywhere too!

How is a mentor different from a teacher?

A teacher often tells you important information.

A mentor provides the opportunity for you to discover the information.

For example: Teachers spend much of their time in the classroom giving lectures while the students take notes. Mentors give students thought provoking questions and books then wait patiently while the students discover and discuss what they have learned.

A teacher tells you to read a book; then tests you on your retention of the facts.

A mentor reads a book with you; then discusses how that book changed you both.

For example: Both the mentor and teacher might assign Iliad as the next classic to tackle. The teacher would then give a true/false, multiple guess, maybe even short answer or essay questions that ask you about the hero, the plot, the time period, the character tension and the climax. Then assign you a grade on the Iliad, so you can promptly forget you ever read it.

The mentor would read the Iliad with you discussing all these things as they came up, but your “test” on the Iliad would be a written reflection on which character made better decisions and why, or which character are you most like and why, or pretend to be a war correspondent covering the Trojan War. After you turn in this written work the mentor would discuss its strong point points and its weak points with you. Then you would go back and rework your paper, you would repeat this process until the paper is the best it could possibly be. You and your mentor would often refer back to this work as you tackle your future assignments.

A teacher imparts the same information to each student equally.

A mentor observes each student and makes suggestions based on their individual needs, passions, or skill levels.

For example: In a conveyor belt system of education, all 6yr olds must cover a,b,c and then 7 yr olds cover d,e,f and so on and so with topics repeating every two to three years. Teachers are locked into the pages they must cover and the requirements they must reach in each grade or subject.

In a leadership education, there is room for individuality. One 6yr old can be learning to read, while another one is already reading independently. One 14 yr old can be spending all their time studying science and the lives of great scientists, while another is studying history and culture through the humanities. Both will be emulating important people who changed our world for the better.

A teacher understands his/her job to be that of educating.

A mentor understands his/her job to be that of inspiring the students to educate themselves.

For example: Teachers often think of students as empty buckets to be filled, but mentors often think of students as brightly growing gardens that just need a little tending. A bucket can never fill itself, but a flower garden will grow even if left alone. The full bucket’s purpose is to be dumped some day. A garden’s job is to create beauty and seeds for new gardens. With just a little care the garden and the gardener can create something together that is enjoyed by many generations.