Modelling and scaffolding in co-teaching by mentors and student teachers

This study explores the experiences of mentors and student teachers while engaging in co-teaching as a mentoring activity. Mentoring was aimed at sharing practical knowledge by modelling and scaffolding during student teachers' teaching. Co-teaching provides opportunities for learning to teach in close cooperation with pupils and subject matter. Four teams (student teacher and mentor) each enacted two co-taught lessons. We analysed whether and how co-teaching was realised and whether and how mentors modelled teaching (teacher role) and scaffolded their student teachers' teaching (mentor role). Three teams actually enacted co-teaching. All mentors modelled their practical knowledge implicitly and in two teams modelling was more explicit. Only one mentor used scaffolding as a mentoring tool. The transition between the roles of teacher and teacher educator proved difficult for mentors. Nevertheless, most participants saw co-teaching and the use of modelling and scaffolding as a promising mentoring activity.