The Role of the Host Teacher in the Student Teaching Experience

he hallmark of preservice education is the student teaching experience, for it aids in the development of values, beliefs, and teaching skills (Koskela and Ganser 1998). In fact, inservice teachers deem student teaching "the most valuable and helpful component of their total preparation program" (Watts 1987, 151). Because the experience offers such a vital transition, it is imperative that those who monitor the program be aware of its significance. The quality of the student teaching experience depends on the efforts of the university supervisor, the cooperating teacher, and the student teacher. The cooperating teacher sets the tone for the experience. It is her or his approach to mentoring that determines whether their relationship will be patriarchal, collegial, or collaborative. As one's teaching style is reflective of one's beliefs about teaching and the role of the teacher, one's mentoring style is reflective of one's beliefs about mentoring and the role of the mentor. To clarify differences in mentoring styles, it is important to examine what host teachers perceive to be their roles in the supervision of student teachers. This study grew out of our desire to better understand the perceptions of host teachers of their roles as mentors and the extent to which those perceptions were grounded in reflection on theory and practice. The primary questions guiding the study were (a) To what extent does supervising student teachers result in reflection on theory and practice? and (b) What do cooperating teachers perceive as their roles in the mentoring process?