Mentoring

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Mentoring an Irish Experience Implement
Workshop Athens Ray Coughlan,
Head Department of Education Development (DEIS
), Cork Institute of Technology 21st
September, 2004
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Cork Institute of Technology
Higher Education Institute CIT - 17000
enrolments 6500 full-time Business, Engineering,
Science, Engineering Crawford College of Art
Design Cork School of Music National Maritime
College of Ireland Academic Staff - 1100
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DEIS Department Department of Education
Development
Mission To innovate in education and training to
make the provision more tuned to the need of a
diverse range of client groups particularly
within the workplace. Research, Design, Pilot,
Evaluate and mainstream innovative
programmes Partnership for programme design,
development and management Assessment of Informal
and Non-formal learning Community Education and
Development Work-based Learning
E-learning Recognition of Prior Learning,
Learning Portfolios and e-portfolios
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Enterprise Ireland

• Help Irish Companies to start, grow
• and sustain in global markets
• Technology innovation
• Business development
• Internationalisation
• Start business
• Grow business
• Export
• Research Innovation
• Source from Ireland

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Mentor Network

• The Mentor Network is designed to give every
  participating company a customised, individual
  support service that meets its specific
  requirements.
• The company is matched with a Mentor from a
  nationwide network - who has the appropriate
  experience and knowledge to give guidance that is
  fully focused on the companys issues and
  priorities.
•  
• The role of the Mentor is to listen and advise,
  to suggest options and help to prioritise
  opportunities.
• The Mentor gives a fresh and objective
  perspective that is backed by significant
  experience while the company owner/manager
  remains in the driving seat throughout.
•  

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Mentor Network

• A wide range of Mentors is available and every
  effort is made to match the Mentor to the
  specific needs of each company.
• From the shortlist of several suitable Mentors,
  the final choice is made by the company.
•  
• More than one Mentor can be involved in an
  assignment.
•  
• If a company feels that the chosen Mentor is not
  meeting needs, a different Mentor can be assigned
  While an assignment has a specific number of
  visits, it can be terminated earlier if
  objectives have been met.

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Confidentiality

• Mutual trust, openness and confidentiality form
  the basis of the relationship between a Mentor
  and a company.
• The Mentor needs to have a detailed understanding
  of the companys background, current position and
  future plans in order to give relevant comment
  and advice.
•  
• Every Mentor signs a strict confidentiality
  agreement with Enterprise Ireland before taking
  on assignments and will not discuss business with
  third parties without permission.
• Confidentiality works both ways Mentors candidly
  discuss relevant past experiences and insights in
  the expectation that such information is treated
  with discretion .

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Mentoring - Back up

• 13 national centres
• 33 international offices
• Business Information Centres - BICs
• City Enterprise Boards
• County Enterprise Boards
• Targeted Enterprise Programmes

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GEP - Goal

• Aim to stimulate and foster business start-ups in
  southwest region of Ireland
• Innovative and knowledge based (higher value add,
  focus on graduates)
• Export oriented (market size)
• Employment creation potential
• Achieved by Partnership of Resources
• Regional educational resources
• Regional and national enterprise development
  resources
• Funded by the Department of Education and Science
  and Enterprise Ireland under the National
  Development Plan 2000-2006.

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GEP - Partners

• Cork Institute of Technology - coordinator
• University College Cork
• Enterprise Ireland
• Institute of Technology Tralee
• CorkBIC
• Udarás na Gaeltachta

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GEP Supports

• Business support
• Technical and scientific support
• Business space services
• Start-up grant
• 50 salary
• Innovative environment
• Access to mentor network
• Currently in 8th Year
• Total Participants to date 129
• Trading Enterprises 106

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CIT Incubation Centre
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Mentoring for Employment Accreditation

• Steps
• Job Roles within sector
• Job Specifications
• Associated Tasks
• Knowledge/Skills/Competencies
• Learning identification
• Self-assessment
• Gap analysis
• Training/Education Path identification

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RPL - Rationale

• Learning has value irrespective of its source
• Formal recognition should be given to reflect
  this value
• Formal recognition within the National Framework
  of Qualifications is reflected in
• admission to a course of study
• award of credits (and grades)
• award of full qualifications

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Prior Learning - Elements

• Prior Experiential Learning - achieved via life
  and work experience
• Prior Certificated Learning-certification has
  already been awarded
• Formal - within a recognised study programme and
  for which credits have been awarded
• Non-formal - within a study programme with no
  formal certification
• Informal - gained through work and life experience

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RPL

• Instrument for the recording of learning -The
  Learning Portfolio
• A structured collection of evidence of learning
  with reflection on that learning in relation to
  the outcomes of the course for which recognition
  is sought

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Learning Portfolio - Contents

• Evidence
• Of learning, not only of experience
• Organisation
• Of the evidence in relation to learning outcomes
  of the subject for which recognition is sought
• Verification
• Of the evidence presented
• Declaration
• By the student of the authenticity of the
  evidence
• Documentation
• An appendix containing cross-referenced mateials
  to support the evidence presented

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Learning Portfolio - Structure

• CV
• Evidence
• Of learning, not only of experience
• Extra element
• Analysis of training needs

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Learning Portfolio - Uses

• To identify learning achieved
• To increase confidence
• To enter employment
• To identify education/training needs
• To gain entry to education
• To gain credits/grades
• To achieve qualifications

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Supports

• Supports available
• Template for Learning Portfolio in electronic and
  paper forms
• Training for Learning Portfolio preparation
  Formally accredited
• Mentor support for portfolio preparation on a
  group andindividual basis
• Learning Resources on RPL in general
• These will be available online by end 2005

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Mentoring

• Specialist mentor appointed
• Provides advice/support on portfolio development
• Provides examples of portfolio content
• Liaises between academic department and learner
• Provides training for institute staff

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Outcomes

• 1000 students awarded credit on basis of prior
  learning
• 12 academic departments
• Over 200 students involved each academic year
• Number of students increasing every year
• Five programmes up to Honours Bachelor Degree
  level with assessment and qualifications based on
  learning portfolio

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Mentoring General Roles

• Advising Helping the subject to decide on a
  specific course of action
• Counselling A non-directive process dealing with
  particular element of personality, performance,
  career.
• In a non-judgemental manner the subject is helped
  to address problems or feelings in a given
  situation.
• Options are identified and the individual matches
  these with the resources at their disposal.
• Mentoring is sometimes seen as a sub-set of
  counselling where the view taken is short term.

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Mentoring General Roles

• Coaching This involves the teaching of
  particular skills, the monitoring of their
  performance, their evaluation and the provision
  of ongoing feedback with a view to their
  improvement
• Training Sometimes used synonymously with
  coaching in the commercial/industrial
  environment. Training is directed atimproving
  skills by instruction, demonstration and
  practice. It normally does not encompass the
  long-term improvement proccess involved in
  coaching.

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Mentor Characteristics/Selection

• Ability to
• Listen
• Question
• Show leadership
• Empower
• Create and use network
• Empathise

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Mentor Characteristics/Selection

• Qualities of
• Experience
• Passion/enthusiasm
• Time efficiency
• Sense of humour
• Capacity for enjoyment
• Sense of equality
• Ethical behaviour
• Humility
• Energy and availability

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Mentor Characteristics/Selection

• Attitudes
• Respect for mentee
• Openness to criticism
• Honesty
• Caring
• Supportive
• Commitment to programme objectives
• Facility for self-assessment

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Mentee Requirements of mentor
Listening Questioning Competence Technical
skills Empathy Guidance Contact
network Analytical ability Broad
perspective Varied perspective
Stimulating Available Approachable Respectful Cons
tructively critical Forthright Positive
attitude Supportive
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Mentor Training Programme

• Introduction to mentoring
• Knowledge, Skills, Competencies
• Job roles and specifications
• Learning and learning outcomes
• Learning portfolio structure and contents
• Mentoring practice
• Code of conduct
• Organisation
• Communication
• Timescales
• Conduct of meetings
• Preparation and submission of LP, CV etc
• Feedback and closure

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Mentor training on-line
Partly developed under EU SOCRATES Grundtvig
funding within the ADEPT Project Completed
during current academic year Uploaded to the
WebCT LMS Accreditation to be sought as elective
module at level 78 of the National Framework of
Qualifications in Ireland ie at Bachelor Degree
and Honours Bachelor Degree levels These
articulate with ECTS
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CONTACTS
Ray Coughlan rcoughlan_at_cit.ie 00-353-21-49211
72 Deirdre Goggin dgoggin_at_cit.ie 00-353-21-49
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