Mentoring guidance
A guide to leading and supporting peer learning using our coursebook
This is a live document that mentors are encouraged to feedback on.
Please read these notes and check with the course facilitator before your week starts with any clarifications, questions and/or thoughts.
Before Your Week:
Ensure Ownership: Make sure you are an owner of the cohort's GitHub organization.
Familiarize Yourself: Read the workshops, solutions, project details, and learning objectives for your week. Note any changes made since your cohort started.
Communicate with the Course Facilitator: Check in with the course facilitator for support before, during, and after your week.
During Your Week:
Delegate Responsibilities: Decide who will lead specific portions of your week. Refer to the day-by-day checklist for a detailed breakdown.
Review Recent Projects: Take a look at the cohort's most recent projects and inquire about any relevant feedback from the previous week's SGC (Student-Generated Content).
Additional Preparation:
Understand Cohort Expectations: Read the cohort expectations document located at
GitHub>fac#>cohort>expectations.md.Read User Manuals: Familiarize yourself with the cohort's user manuals. Access them as raised issues on
GitHub>fac#>user-manuals.
Being a Good Mentor:
Share Experiences Mindfully: Avoid creating unnecessary expectations based on your own experience. Frame your experiences as such and only share when directly asked.
Avoid Negative Opinions: Refrain from dismissing or criticizing course material. Present the curriculum and allow learners to form their own conclusions.
Empower Through Questions: When approached with a problem, ask questions to guide learners in finding the answer themselves.
Focus on the Problem, Not the Solution: Encourage learners to explain the purpose behind their actions and focus on the problem at hand rather than the specific solution.
Encourage Collaboration: Suggest seeking input from team members or other teams who have encountered similar problems.
Visualize Solutions: Keep a notepad and pen ready to visually aid explanations by drawing out problems and solutions.
Embrace Not Knowing: If you don't know the answer, admit it honestly and collaborate with learners to find the answer together.
Break Down Big Problems: Help learners tackle overwhelming tasks by breaking them down into smaller, manageable steps.
Allow Room for Mistakes: Let learners stumble and learn from mistakes. Provide support and encouragement during their problem-solving journey.
Embrace Different Approaches: Avoid immediately rejecting learners' methods. Be open to the possibility that their way could be right. Ask them to explain their steps to foster learning.
Collaborate with the Cohort: Work with all members of the cohort and encourage those who understand a concept to assist others.
Note: learners may initially expect you to have all the answers, which may lead to frustration. Clarify your role as a mentor and emphasize working through problems together.
What you will do through the week
Monday
Join the conversation with the cohort about the previous Friday's Workshop
Introduce the Project and Spike - share your experience of how that project went for your cohort.
Tuesday
Join the Zoom call in the morning and check in on the teams every 30/45 minutes to address any questions or concerns they are having throughout the day.
Wednesday
Work your way around the room and ask the teams if there is anything they need help with.
At the end of the day you will be doing a code review of the two teams. It is best to spend 30 minutes on one and then move onto the other team.
Thursday
You do not come in on Thursday
Friday
You do not come in on Friday
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