Competencies
At Cottonwood Classical, both subject area mentors and the Mentoring Coordinator will engage first-year teachers in reflective conversations on an ongoing basis. Support aligned to the Educator Effectiveness system are outlined below.
Each first-year teacher is assigned a subject area mentor (Level 2 or 3 teacher) from their department who is able to help them with:
- Domain 1- best practices in planning and preparation for the subject area,
- Domain 2- best practices in managing the classroom for their specific subject area,
- Domain 3- best practices in teaching and learning for the subject area, and
- Domain 4- best practices in professionalism, specifically professional development, in the subject area.
Each first-year (as well as all Level 1 teachers) works with the school their mentor and the Mentoring Coordinator, a Level 3a and 3b teacher and administrator to help them with:
- Domain 1- the creation of comprehensive lesson plans with CCSS artifacts to enhance lessons. The Mentoring Coordinator and their mentor reviews lesson plans and offers suggestions for improvement before the plans are submitted for formal evaluation,
- Domain 2- classroom management and classroom procedures. The Mentoring Coordinator/mentor completes several walkthroughs, offers feedback, and looks for improvement in subsequent walkthroughs,
- Domain 3- best practices in teaching and learning. The Mentoring Coordinator/mentor completes several walkthroughs, offers feedback, and looks for improvement in subsequent walkthroughs,
- Domain 4- what defines professionalism for teachers at Cottonwood Classical Preparatory School. The Mentoring Coordinator/mentor trains first-year teachers in documenting professionalism with lists of duties and professional actions aligned to the Domain 4 rubric.
Training for Mentors
At Cottonwood Classical Preparatory School, designated mentors engage in the following evidence-based trainings:
- Giving descriptive and timely feedback,
- Use of the Educator Effectiveness System (Danielson rubric) to understand how to coach a teacher in advancing levels (for example, from applying to innovating), and
- Train mentors to offer choice in growth goals so first-year teachers can self-audit using data, feedback, and their burgeoning professional judgment,
- Staff is trained in International Baccalaureate “Approaches to Teaching and Learning” and mentors help new teachers to implement these metacognitive processes in the classroom,
- Staff is trained and mentors guide new teachers in implementing Dr. Sharroky Hollie’s “Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching and Learning” in order to use research-based strategies for improved instruction and relationship-building,
- Staff received advanced training from the National Paideia Center for classroom seminar strategies and practices with students. Mentors have extensive experience running classroom seminars and provide modeling and guidance for new teachers in this practice.
Requirements for Mentors
Cottonwood Classical designated mentors are selected based on the following:
- Teachers are licensed in the state of New Mexico (Level 2 or 3) in the subject area and grade level they teach,
- Teachers have overall met or exceeded standards on their previous Educator Effectiveness System evaluations,
- Teachers have been at the school for at least two years to provide induction for first-year teachers,
- Teachers have demonstrated leadership (Domain 4 indicators) in their professional behavior.
Compensation
At Cottonwood Classical, designated mentors will be paid a yearly stipend of $500 per school year. Mentors are paid through the Operational Fund. Mentors are encouraged to continue to assist the same Level 1 teacher until the mentee moves to the Level 2 license. Mentor teachers attend regularly scheduled meetings with Level 1 teachers, including monthly department meetings, professional development training (both all staff and those specific to Level 1 teachers), and professional learning community meetings. Mentor teacher attendance is checked as well as feedback collected from the mentor teacher regularly regarding the progress of their Level 1 mentee teacher.
Requirements for Program Completion
At Cottonwood Classical, Level 1 teachers will complete the mentorship program when they have:
- shown growth in all four domains of the Elevate NM evaluation rubric by scoring at the “applying” level or higher,
- consistently demonstrated the ability to contribute professionally to the school community (Domain 4), and
- been granted the Level 2 license.
