Mentoring triad: an alternative mentoring model for preservice teacher education?

Within many preservice teacher education programs in Australia mentoring is used as the overarching methodology for the professional placement. The professional placement is considered to be a key component of learning to teach, and typically a dyad mentoring model is utilized. However it is reported that many preservice teachers experience a less than successful placement when a dyad model is used. This research explored an alternative mentoring model that placed two preservice teachers with a classroom teacher and investigated the mentoring that transpired. The research examined the interactions that occurred between the triad members, in particular those that took place between the two preservice teachers as peers. A theoretical framework that focused on a holistic mentoring model was utilized to frame the research and analyze the data. It was found that the use of a mentoring triad extended the scope of mentor support that can be provided to preservice teachers.