I learned through this process that the mentee's learning style is very important to consider when preparing for sessions and discovering how they learn best is a nessecity for achieving success. I also learned that as a mentor I sometimes can fall into the role of care-taker/note-taker and I need to be careful to not assume tasks that the mentee should be doing.
In reflecting back on our sessions together I would say that my style as a mentor did shift slightly in tone and task. After the second session I made more of an effort to learn the technology on my own, I found tutorials to offer as guides for my mentee in our time apart, and I attempted to more greatly direct our focus in our time together. This mentoring assignment was worthwhile for many reasons but the most important reason for me was the effect it had on my ability to empathize with my mentee. This process helped me to see yet another angle on how to approach teaching a new piece of technology.
With this added ability, if I were to do go back and do anything differently I would have started creating action plans after the first session. I think not only verbally concluding our sessions but also creating a tangible document to reference was extremely helpful and could have been utilized earlier.
Overall, if nothing else, I know I was helpful to Jen in helping her find her way through Google Sites. I wish I would have been more in tune with her learning style sooner so I could have provided better guidance earlier. However, I think we were still able to meet our goals and the process was beneficial to the both of us.
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At the conclusion of our final mentoring session Jennifer and I went over the following questions together:
How did you feel about the process as a whole?
Jennifer felt as though the process was very helpful. Without the assistance our sessions provided she stated that she would have been much more burdened about her project.
What did you learn about the mentor/mentee process?
The accountability was very important for Jennifer. She shared that for her, knowing that she would be meeting with me and that I had specific expectations about her progress helped her to stay focused on her project a bit more than she would have on her own. Moreover we both learned that setting expectations at the forefront was crucial for our success. The goal setting we did at the beginning of our sessions was vital in that it assisted us in refocusing and readjusting as we moved through the process.
What did you learn about yourself as a mentee?
As we began to explore new areas of technology, Jennifer stated she came to the realization that she knew a lot more than she thought about technology. However, she also saw that there is still so much to capture in regards to the many, many idiosyncrasies of the Internet and coding. Over all she stated that she is more comfortable with technology and learning how to use it.
Do you feel that the goals of the process were met? Why or Why Not?
The goals for the process were most definitely met. We originally set out to accomplish the broad task of helping Jennifer become more comfortable with online technology so she can use it to her advantage. We later set the more specific task of creating a skeleton website for her Capstone project using google sites. Both goals were reached through our time together. Jennifer now has the design, navigation, and general layout completed for her project and also feels quite comfortable working on her own to spice up her site. She has become much more relaxed with the google sites applications and hopes to continue to utilize technology where it fits best in her personal and professional goals.
Is there anything else you can share with me that would help me understand your perception of this process?
Since playing the role of mentor is a part of Jennifer’s day to day routine, as a director of student affairs, she explained that she often found it difficult to be the mentee. Specifically, it was hard for her to maintain the mindset of a mentee. For example she often found herself trying to find ways to make my job as her mentor easier instead of asking for help even if it created more work for me. Likewise, focusing on learning the technology in the time between sessions was challenging for her but she noted that outlining our tasks for each session was extremely helpful. It kept us on track throughout the process by acting as a reference point when we would assess our status in relation to our timeline.
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Personally, I found it quite helpful to play around with google sites on my own time because it helped me to empathize with Jennifer’s learning process. It also provided me the opportunity to reflect on how I best synthesized the application so I could plan out ways to better help Jennifer with her progress.
I really enjoyed this opportunity to mentor someone in their journey through learning a new piece of technology. I look forward to having the chance to do so again soon. Until then...
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