| A common rationale behind new teachers' induction programs is that the primary personnel objective of any organization is to attract the most qualified people and move them toward competence and personal satisfaction within their professional assignments.;This study focused on the perceptions and opinions of administrators, mentors, and beginning teachers about certain aspects of mentoring and the attributes of effective mentors.;Schools were sampled to represent the different types of schools found in Ohio including urban, suburban, and rural; high school, middle school, and elementary school; and, large, medium, and small sizes.;One hundred mentors and 100 beginning teachers were chosen from the following school systems: Columbus, Toledo, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Dublin, and Upper Arlington. One hundred administrators identified by the Ohio State Department of Education were randomly selected.;A total of 201 educators responded to the survey for a response rate of 67%.;A descriptive survey instrument was developed by the investigator. The instrument consisted of three sections: (1) socio-demographic information, (2) an inventory of four distinct orientations towards mentoring by administrators, mentors, and beginning teachers, and (3) issues attached to the mentoring process. The instrument was piloted for content validity with experienced teachers. Cronbach reliability coefficient alpha showed an internal consistency of 0.633.;The analysis performed on the data included the use of descriptive statistics, discriminant analysis, pair-wise multiple comparison technique, and multiple analysis of variance.;This study revealed the three role groups to be practically eclectic, if theoretically inconsistent, in their orientations towards these aspects of mentoring which included: (1) central focus of mentors, (2) general assistance provided by mentors, (3) mentor's focus when observing beginning teachers, and (4) core ability of mentors. For example, all three role groups were behaviorally oriented in terms of the general assistance provided by mentors.;The study also identified major issues in terms of the functions of mentors, the preparation and selection of mentors, and the conditions for effective mentoring to occur. Based on the findings in the study, policies, practices, and conditions that should be attended to to ensure the successful entry of beginning teachers into the teaching profession are reviewed. |
