Mentoring at UCL IOE

For partner schools, colleges and early years settings.

IOE’s Educative Mentoring Approach

A developmental journey: mentors shift over time from more directive guidance toward greater facilitation as student teachers grow in confidence and autonomy
Co‑learning relationships: mentor and mentee engage together in situated inquiry, professional dialogue and critical reflection which is foregrounded in pupil learning
Makes explicit the implicit: mentors articulate their thoughts and questions about practice, providing a rationale for their teaching and modelling reflection
Integration of research and practice: mentors support student teachers in connecting evidence, theoretical perspectives, and practical classroom knowledge
Supports professional autonomy: mentors provide supportive guidance while also enabling student teachers to think, reason and make principled decisions
Mentors as committed learners: mentors continually develop their own expertise, modelling reflective, evidence‑informed professional practice

The following roles work together to ensure a consistent, high-quality learning experience across university and setting-based learning.

Placement Mentors (PMs) mentor student teachers on a day-to-day basis, modelling expert practice, fostering reflection and supporting and assessing progress
Lead Placement Mentors (LPMs) – Primary and Secondary only oversee school-based ITE, supporting PM development, ensuring mentoring quality
University Tutors have overall responsibility for the formative and summative assessment of student teachers in conjunction with mentors and ensure curriculum coherence
Mentor Leadership Teams: Every partner setting has a Mentor Leadership Team which has oversight of mentoring, quality assurance, curriculum alignment and student teacher progress. This team is made up of key individuals from the setting and IOE as explained in programme-specific guidance

We support mentors through a comprehensive, research-informed development offer as follows.

Joint mentor–university tutor dialogue, co-observations and in-setting support
Live and asynchronous online support and guidance
A focus on developing mentoring practice and understanding the student teacher curriculum to support learner progress

CPD for mentors and wider school/setting staff to tailor to their own professional interests
Subject/phase updates and research-informed online and in-person development opportunities
Mentor forums, reading groups and professional network

Top to bottom: Mat Wright for UCL IOE, Lucy Pope for UCL IOE.