Training and Mentoring Novice Instructors at the University Level

The purpose of this paper is to show that graduate students in foreign language departments in the US, who cannot teach in their first year due to accreditation requirements, need to be trained, mentored, and evaluated during their first year of graduate school under the direction of a Master Instructor. To earn their stipend, novice instructors are assigned to a master instructor, take a methodology course, observe classes taught by experienced faculty, do guided grading, and begin to teach sections of a class. At the end of their first semester these instructors teach a full week on their own. In the second semester, novice instructors teach independently under the supervision of the Master Instructor. This method gives hands-on experience in a controlled environment. Time investment for mentors is significant with such models but mentees gradually gain confidence in teaching, departmental policies, and are prepared to teach independently in their second year. Mentors benefit from the positive relationship developed with their mentees who contribute ideas and insights as members of a team. Students benefit because they attend smaller classrooms and receive individual help. This method provides a cohesive training across languages in the same department.