Pedagoginė stažuotė: Jungtinių Amerikos Valstijų ir Vokietijos patirtis

Abstract

Mentors payment depends on the selected model: a mentor may be paid for each mentee separately or s/he may receive a full salary of a teacher but have a reduced pedagogical load-that is, a smaller number of weekly lessons. Novice teachers face a range of difficulties in the beginning of their teaching career. Since not every young specialist manages to cope with these problems, a significant number of novice teachers decide to leave school. The research results indicate that during the first three years the majority of specialists, who resign from school, give up teachers job as well. Seven years later only half of teachers continue working at school. The conducted opinion survey of specialists who left schools revealed that one of the most important reasons for that is lack of support from more experienced colleagues. It should be noted that an appropriately organised internship (practice) for novice teachers had effect not only on their decision to work at school but was also important taking into consideration other aspects. A big number of authors have stated that a properly organised internship is of huge importance to development of novice teachers' pedagogical mastery, it also provides favourable conditions for self-development of a mentor and may have a direct impact on learners' knowledge. Thus, due to internship, the process of education gains a multipartite quality. The article aims at a general overview of experience of pedagogical internship organisation accumulated in some Western countries. The following objectives were determined: to investigate and describe place, duration of pedagogical internship and itsphases,to briefly characterise roles of participants in the pedagogical internship and to define procedure of teacher licensing, to discuss procedures of payment for mentoring activity. Firstly, to achieve the established objectives, it is necessary to define the concept of pedagogical internship. The Lithuanian education documents set forth that pedagogical internship is a part of teacher training lasting for one-year (two semester) or half-year (for teachers of profession) and aimed at accumulation of working experience at school. The analysis of foreign experience shows that a pedagogical internship (pedagogical practice) is an important part of teacher training process and of their adaptation in their workplace. There is no universal model for implementation of internship. Though teacher training practice differs in the USA and Western European countries, in all the countries mentors are of considerable importance. A constant development and improvement of mentoring interaction is perceived as an essential condition for appropriate conduct of pedagogical internship and acquisition of future teachers' practical competence. The analysis of foreign experience reveals that pedagogical internship tnay be conducted in base schools. The advantage of this is that such schools provide a trainee with appropriate conditions, since material resources there are frequently good, academic achievements are high and school communities are ready for it: experienced teachers-mentors are employed there and a trainee may get a qualified help from school directors, administrative staff and other educators. However, the internship may be conducted in a future permanent workplace of a trainee, that is, in another school. In such case, a mentor from the nearest base school is appointed. The most common duration for pedagogical practice is one year and it is implemented following principle of continuity. The first phase with duration of 1-3 months enables a trainee to thoroughly familiarise with school, working conditions of teachers there and peculiarities of his/her educational activity. The second phase lasts 4-6 months. It is a stage, when a trainee learns to work independently under supervision of a mentor. The third phase comprises 7-10 months. During this period a novice teacher strives for independent work: prepares lesson plans independently and teaches during lessons but under a constant observation of a mentor. The most important role in development of professional competences of a novice educator rests with mentors, who have close contacts with a young specialist during the whole internship period and perform various functions: a model oj'activity, consultant, instructor, etc. While conducting pedagogical practice, the activity of a mentor and a trainee is under constant observation of a tutor, a teacher from higher education school. During the internship this activity can be performed by a representative of any other institution, who is legally authorised for such activity. After pedagogical internship a qualification examination is to be passed and a licence of a teacher is issued. The examination includes observation of 1-2 open tessons ccr.ctuctcd live of recorded, discussion on the lessons observed, analysis and discussion of internship portfolio, presentation of trainee's characteristics and discussions with a trainee. Both a trainee and a mentor should be paid for pedagogical internship. A trainee receives higher salary than a grant paid to students at higher education institutions but less than a teacher receives at school.