The Center for Science & Mathematics Education at the University of Utah

Math for America: Utah

Information for Mentors

The Role of Mentors

The role of the Math for America (MfA) Utah mentor is to teach, inspire and help prepare MfA Utah fellows for the real world challenges and experiences of a secondary math teacher. The mentor is extremely important in the transition from content and theory to actual teaching and practice.

Mentor teachers will be compensated up to $5,000 per year, depending upon the level of involvement. We anticipate that the one on one relation will continue, and that this will be supplemented with continued professional development for all MfA Utah fellows and their mentors. The program will also pay any tuition for mentors who enroll in a masters program as well as fees related to the National Board Certification should you choose to pursue it.

Responsibilities

1. Provide 10 hours of instruction time weekly for the fellow’s observation and participation.
2. Spend 3-5 hours weekly one-on-one with the fellow to discuss the observations (of fellow by mentor as well as of mentor by fellow) so as to illuminate nuances of classroom management and student learning.
3. Provide the fellow, when appropriate, opportunities to work directly with students in a variety of ways: as co-instructor, in problem-solving sessions, in presentations, both as part of a particular lesson and in an independent lesson.
4. Allow the fellow to take over, as an instructor, two courses for an extended period of time. The mentor should observe these classes and discuss fellow’s performance during individual consultation period.
5. Regularly report on fellow progress, on the development of the fellow’s journal, through online forms created for this purpose.
6. Alert (in a timely way) the MfA Utah administration of emergent issues.
7. Participate in MfA Utah workshops held during the academic year.

Would you like to be an MfA Utah mentor?

In order to complete the selection process and match master teachers with our fellows, please submit the following:

1. Lesson plan for a lesson that is representative of your teaching style, as well as representative of your planning practices.
2. A current resume.
   
3. A letter of interest.
   
4. Response to a classroom scenario provided by the selection committee.
   
5. Other requirements: our goal is to match mentors and fellows so that the mentoring relationship is as successful as possible. If there are any requirements you would like us to be aware of, please let us know at this time.

Please submit the above materials to Gwen Allen.

Required Reading

Required reading for all mentors, and for your information:
MfA Utah Mentor Roles and Responsibilities (PDF)

Further Information

Back to Math for America Introduction
Information for Current Fellows
Information for Prospective Fellows