E-Mentoring: Enhancing Special Education Teacher Induction.

Abstract

Teaching in 21st-century schools cannot easily be separated from technology-based solutions. Instead, technology is increasingly becoming an essential tool for any teacher’s toolbox, especially the new teacher who is often considered a digital native (i.e., someone who has grown up with digital technologies) (Prensky, 2005). Whether it is online state assessments, Internet-based grade books, wireless buildings, or technology-rich classrooms, technology is a way of life for teachers and their students. For special education, where teachers strive to meet the needs of diverse learners in a universal manner, technology-based tools continue to offer much needed solutions (e.g., text-to-speech, touch windows, speech-to-text). In teacher education and professional development, technology-based learning, or online/ e-learning, is becoming an accepted mode of course delivery and teacher support. Offering just-in-time learning via the Internet is increasingly becoming a preferred approach for the busy teacher, especially the digital native who is often wired to Web-based resources (e.g., MySpace, Facebook). Most notably, e-mentoring is becoming popular as a means of supporting novice teachers. As new online induction and mentoring programs emerge and attempt to incorporate best practices of both face-to-face mentoring and e-pedagogy, it is worthwhile to examine the growing research on the efficacy of e-mentoring while also using the practical knowledge gained from current e-mentoring programs that support novice teachers. This article briefly describes the growing e-mentoring literature base in teacher development and contextualizes that growth by highlighting particular e-mentoring programs. It is the intent of this review to share knowledge about this growing technology-based solution for furthering mentoring and induction supports for early career special educators.

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