Nicole-Maree Mason, Werrington Public School

Question: How does mentoring support your role at school?

My name is Nicole-Maree Mason and I work as an APCI which is assistant principal, curriculum and instruction. So my role at school is very much mentoring and coaching every single day at school, and I coach and mentor a range of different people in the school. So from beginning teachers up to assistant principals. So mentoring and coaching is very important to my role, what I do every single day.

Question: Why did you apply for LAMP?

It's really interesting. When I applied for LAMP, I had already done a mentoring program, but that was 7 years ago and I knew that a lot of research had changed since then.

And also wellbeing has come to the forefront of when we're working with our teachers. So I knew that I needed to really deepen my understanding and look at current research to upskill myself.

And what was interesting, a long time ago when I first did it and coaching were actually separate. And I had come to realise through this course that you actually shift between mentoring and coaching and they are linked together.

So that's why I applied for it, to have that deeper understanding.

Question: How has LAMP impacted your professional practice?

I actually have a deeper understanding of the role of mentoring and coaching within a school and the importance of it having a specific place and the need to find time for that.

What I found is that we really need our teachers, and we need to support them in their job, and that through mentoring and coaching that has had the impact of providing that support for teachers, whether it is in a wellbeing space or whether it is in a teaching strategy space, LAMP has provided that.

Question: What impact has LAMP had on your leadership and your school community?

For my school community, what that has helped is to improve those, that relational trust between myself and the teachers that I work with and the different staff members.

Through LAMP and mentoring, you learn how to be vulnerable yourself and to open that door and have a two-way conversation as well.

For the school community, it means that we've actually had a focus on collaboration and that it's not just one person's job to run curriculum or wellbeing in a school. It's actually collaboration where you work together, you make mistakes together, you're vulnerable together, and you actually learn together.

Kerryn Carter, Windsor South Public School

Question: What difference has LAMP made to your leadership practice?

It's really strengthened my ability to be confident in my leadership of coaching and mentoring.

Prior to experiencing the LAMP program, I hadn't really reflected on my capacity as a leader to be able to have these conversations.

I was a a teacher, not from a substantive leadership position. So, coming into the program has enabled me to develop those skills to be able to, to work with colleagues at a higher level and to ensure that I'm having that impact.

Question: Would you recommend LAMP to other teachers and leaders?

Absolutely.

It equips you with the tools and frameworks that you need as a leader in a curriculum instruction space to have really reflective and evaluative conversations on teacher practice.

I think it would be a must for any teacher to, who is supporting colleagues in this manner to engage in the LAMP program in, in order to be able to facilitate and guide those conversations to make sure that there's, there's impact on teacher practice.

I would highly recommend the LAMPprogram to any leaders in this position where there's, they're influencing colleagues and supporting colleagues with practice. It's a must to understand in this position how we can ensure that we're actively listening and in, in supporting those conversations to improve practice.

Previously I didn't have any experience in training in the coaching and mentoring space and I felt like a good supporter and a good listener and advocate for teacher practice but I didn't actually effectively know how to guide that for improvement and to be able to flip thinking and be able to, to direct through questioning and actively listening how to support teachers to improve.

So as a result of that program, I'm now more attuned to be aware with those processes that lead teachers to that improvement process.

Question: What changes have others noticed since you undertook LAMP?

The greatest change now after experiencing LAMP and putting things into practice as a result of experiencing the program, teachers are actually actively seeking me out for feedback.

So that that's the greatest difference because the experience has been a positive one. So being able to have those coaching conversation where goals are isolated and we're able to put some structures in place.

So we're working together to be accountable for those goals and then going into the classroom to play that out and experience that in practice and coming back to have those conversations around.

Well, what was the result? What was the impact? Teachers are really valuing that whole cycle of collaboration and feedback.

And even when it's not an official demonstration or I've actually even popped in just for a quick, a quick visit or a walkthrough during practice, teachers are coming back saying, So what did you notice?

What did you see that I was doing? What, what did you notice that students are doing?

So it it it really has enhanced teachers’ confidence to be able to talk about their practice and and articulate strengths and developments as a result of of participating in the LAMP program.

Nerina Bridges, Samuel Terry Public School

Question: What made you apply for LAMP?

I heard about LAMP through the HALT Association, one of the meetings that we had, they had mentioned about this mentoring opportunity through the School Leadership Institute.

And I really thought in terms of my role as APCI, and also as a highly accomplished teacher, that formal training in mentoring would really support my role in being able to work with colleagues.

So, I put in an expression of interest. I was fortunate to have an opportunity.

Question: How do you feel LAMP has impacted your practice?

Doing the course has really helped me professionally in the way I approach staff and my body language and things like that.

I'm really mindful of how I come across when I'm working with colleagues and I think that's a really important thing to factor in.

I'm also to the type of person who, I kind of want to solve problems like so, you know, so when a staff member comes to me and probably could do with just some active listening, I'm now more conscious of being able to be that person and and help them through what's going on for them rather than try and give them those answers.

Question: What was a highlight of LAMP for you?

I think the highlight for me was being able to bounce off my colleagues who I was working with.

I found too, that particularly in the HALT space as a HALT mentor, it was really great to be able to speak to other HALTS like myself and see the challenges that their mentees were having and be able to support them with that as well.

I think to being able to learn from other colleagues. Again, like I said, I know I've mentioned that before, but getting, getting insights and this valuable knowledge from what other colleagues were saying about the professional readings and things like that was really good.

The fact that it's evidence based was fantastic as well.

It's, I haven't actually had any formal training in mentoring before.

So I really appreciated the insights into what I learned about the programme and, and how to improve my practise as a support in, in a school.

I, I feel like in leadership roles, when you're, when you're supporting colleagues, lots of people have different personalities and you know, you, you deal with a lot of things in leadership besides your own perspective. And you really have to put that bias aside.

And I think this has really given me an opportunity to reflect on how I can perceive things, you know, or situations that happen with staff and just giving them an opportunity to be able to find solutions for themselves and, and learn for themselves with me guiding them rather than always trying to find a solution.