Pre-lesson discussion, lesson observation and post-lesson discussions in mentoring beginning science teachers

Lesson observations of a beginning teacher and constructive feedback on that lesson are crucial for beginning teachers to develop as reflective teachers and to achieve the teacher standards that will enable them to acquire qualified teacher status (QTS). In this context, your mentoring role starts before the lesson observation. It does not end at the end of the lesson but continues (McNally, 2016) through discussion and feedback as part of a lesson and series of observed lessons. This is a cycle of pre-lesson discussion, lesson observation and post-lesson discussion, leading into the next cycle (note: post-lesson discussion is called lesson debrief in Chapters 7 and 9 in this book). Typically, mentoring discussions achieve more if they provide a safe space for dialogue (Bradley‐Levine, Lee & Mosier, 2016, p. 80) and when they focus on agreed areas for a beginning teachers’ development (Hudson, 2016b).