Mentorship in School Transition

Mentorship in School Transition

There is a pattern that schools across the nation follow in regards to how students reach the next level of academics. Students transition from elementary school to middle school and from middle school to high school, which, according to Cheryl R. Ellerbrock is “often seminal and challenging transition and is referred to in the literature as ‘one of the defining parameters of development in the second decade of life’” (Ellerbrock Kiefer 170). Ellerbrock worked with Sarah M. Kiefer, both from the University of Florida, to study the current environments surrounding that specific transition from middle to high school. Through the segregation of high school and middle school students, problems arise due to the lack of leadership and guidance. Having a mentor available provides a solution for those exact problems. If middle schoolers have a high schooler to go to when they have questions about the next stages in life, it can remove some of the stress they are facing. Providing mentors “‘offer[s] students a dynamic structure for forging close relationships’” (Ellerbrock & Kiefer 171). According to the research that the pair found, combining these two groups of students in an environment more relaxed than a classroom allows students “to establish and reinforce salient values and behaviors within the peer system, as students are able to interact with one another with relatively minimal adult supervision and intervention (Ellerbrock & Kiefer 172). As students develop relationships on their own time, that transition between middle and high school can be much smoother for not only the students, but also the teachers and parents in various aspects of life. Mentorship can be a beneficial factor in these types of situations because those younger teens can form an idea of what high school life like from older teens.

Often times, schools today focus on benefits of mentorship, but in his research on cross age mentoring, PhD Kevin D. Besnoy acknowledges that “the idea of mentoring is one that dates back to ancient Greece. In fact, the word mentor originates with the story of Odysseus and his son Telemachus. When Odysseus left home to fight in the Trojan War, he entrusted his son’s education to a lifelong friend, Mentor. Mentor’s role was to be Telemachus’ teacher, adult friend, counselor, and protector. Since that time, mentoring relationships have been used to help individuals navigate through life’s obstacles” (Besnoy & McDaniel 18). Just as in many other aspect of life, mentoring is a concept that has grown and developed over the years, but the same core beliefs are still valued in today’s society.  

While building mentorships, students can focus on different strengths and weaknesses for each individual. Looking back at the study that Ellerbrock and Kiefer conducted, their research shows that “individuals have changing emotional, cognitive, and social needs and personal goals as they mature…schools need to change in developmentally appropriate ways if they are to provide the kind of social context that will continue to motivate students’ interest and engagement as the students mature” (Ellerbrock & Kiefer 173). When students receive particular guidelines for behavior, they learn skills that help them later in life. In an article from Sandra Manning where she explains what exactly a mentor is and how to further develop mentoring skills, she theorizes that “if communication and motivation are keys to effective leadership then gifted students’ advanced language skills, persistence, and flexible thought processes can be enhanced through leadership training” (Manning 15). If students are collaborating with each other on a daily basis, they are not only helping each other work through life’s struggles, but they are also forming personal relationships that have the potential to last all throughout high school. While Manning focuses a majority of her article on kids who are especially gifted in their learning, she acknowledges that all of the principles are just as useful for everyday students as well.

Before taking a look at a solution to the problem, one must step back and take a look at all of the factors involved that could be causing children to struggle forming relationships at school. Family interaction plays a significant role in how these middle school and high school students interact with each other. First, if these students are receiving positive interactions at home, that same behavior reflects back at school. However, if these students are not receiving positive interactions at home, school may be the place where the void is filled. These students are obtaining the chance to create their own identity, even when there is no help from a home environment. In the research and studies done by Jennifer S. Cohen and Becky A. Smerdon, it is likely that teens find more about themselves during that “time when [they] are becoming more independent from their families and experience less parental involvement in their schooling” (Cohen & Smerdon 179). This shows that while strong relationships at home can be important, true identity cannot be found there. On the other end of the spectrum, students who are not grasping interaction at home and have troubles in school are in need of some kind of mentor and that is where that high school and middle school interaction comes into place. Further analysis of the research from Cohen and Smerdon shows that “adolescence is a time when individuals being and are expected to develop their own identity; academically and socially prepare themselves for adulthood; and explore and contribute to their families, communities, and society” (Cohen & Smerdon 179). While it may seem like students are displaying more rebellious behavior, a certain amount assists in figuring out who they are. Having some kind of teenager to mentor them helps fill that void they are missing at home and limits that rebellious behavior.

While students work to find their true identity, the development in other areas in their lives also influences the transition problems they may face in the future. Ultimately teachers and authority figures want to see that “healthy adolescents have generally mastered the early developmental stages including basic physical, cognitive, and social attributes that enable them to interact appropriately with peers, master language, and develop empathy” (Cohen & Smerdon 179). Students who are further developed than others, thrive more than those who struggle to find an identity. When those particular students fully develop in the other stages in life, their identity is more easily formed, allowing for relationship bonds to form earlier. Having someone with a skill set that is more developed than their own gives students a chance to see what kind of goals they can thrive for in the future as they start to develop completely. While they are still developing, having a mentor present is beneficial so that they pick up on the right kind of beliefs and values to keep them on the path to success.

Furthermore, when those mentors are spending time with the mentees, they are sharing their own lifestyle with them and this has an affect on how the mentee lives out their life. Depending on what crowds middle schoolers start hanging out with, their personal viewpoints and life values will be continually altered and that can play a factor in their transition into high school. Students behaviors start forming to fit the groups they spend the most time with. If these students behaviors are changing, that leads back to finding personal identity, but if those behaviors are completely out of control there is a chance that their education is struggling as well. Victoria Roybal, a member of the Washoe County School District, compiled research on what kind of transition programs were the most beneficial for students. In her research she found that “one critical factor is a sense of belonging or connection to school, which has been shown to be directly related to academic success. Other factors are associated with roles that educators play and structures within the educational system designed to facilitated a sense of belonging” (Roybal 475). Often times if a student is struggling in a classroom, it means that something is going on in their lives to affect learning. This revolves back around to students not having strong relationships in their own homes, they are struggling to find their identity. However, when students feel a connection to their school, it gives them a sense of purpose that can override that outside influence to settle for just an average level. Also, if these students have success in school, there is less of a chance for them to drop out or transfer schools. This is an issue that the community of Lincoln Lutheran faces. Students often times leave the school after eighth grade year because there is no connection with the high schoolers. If middle schoolers are introduced to an element of the high school atmosphere before they truly immerse themselves in it, they may be more inclined to further their education at Lincoln Lutheran.

As a matter of fact, if middle schoolers are spending time with high schoolers, those personal viewpoints and life values will start to coincide. Students are able to break away from what the teachers are introducing as far as life values and look at what fellow students value and in the end, think for themselves. A study done by the American Secondary Education “suggest that expectations for high school are related to experience already set down in 8th grade and that such expectations may influence the way that high school is experienced by youth” (Stein & Hussong 74). Learning about high school as soon as possible can mold positive hope for what the future holds. While teachers have a substantial impact on students and how well they excel in their education, Amy Langenkamp introduces the idea that “social relationships with peers may be even more powerful than bonds with teachers” (Langenkamp 3). Langenkamp took a step back and examined the vulnerability and resilience of a teen during that transition time period in high school to further understand what methods will work the best. When students are comfortable enough around each other, they push each other to work harder in a classroom. This parallels with the importance of students feeling some kind of connection within their school. The research from Roybal is reflected in the research from Langenkamp in acknowledging that “affective ties to teachers and classmates within schools are an especially crucial element of school integration” (Langenkamp 2). Obviously at smaller schools those connections are easier to make, but at larger schools those transitions may be harder and it presents a challenge to pinpoint others with similar interests with that of your own.

Additionally, one main factor that affects how smoothly the transition between middle and high school goes is that of feeder schools. Depending on how large of school district a child is a part of in middle school, the more diversity there is between the students that feed into the high schools in the area. The role of those districts in young teenager’s development is prominently shown “when multiple middle schools feed into one high school, middle school social relationships are reconfigured more dramatically than in the more basic feeder pattern” (Langenkamp 2). These students are ripped away from the relationships they have already formed and are forced to create new relationships with the other students in the high school. However, if there are less middle schools in a district feeding into a limited number of high schools, these students have a better chance at integration. They already have strongly developed relationships and they are able to carry those with them to the next stages of life. Wherever a student ends up, it is no question that “the environment, expectations, structure, and culture of high schools are different from middle schools” (Roybal 475). At Lincoln Lutheran, a majority of our students continue their education within the same school, so there are relationships that last much longer than the average teenager. Whether students have a large or small feeder pattern, having some kind of mentorship between the transition can make those relationships stronger, or even aid in making new ones.

There are many problems that arise through the transition from middle to high school and finding ways to ease those transitions can greatly impact a school community. Through the segregation of high school and middle school students, problems arise due to the lack of leadership and guidance. Having a mentor available provides a solution for those exact problems. The core values of mentorship remained solid throughout the years, allowing students to specify their own strengths and ares of weakness, opening the doors for help from mentors. Knowing that family interaction cannot always fulfill the needs a student has when establishing true identity, having a mentor present, along with positive peer groups, helps shape what personal viewpoints and life values are important. If feeder schools allow it, sticking with those peer groups for years at a time allows students to develop socially at a more in-depth level. Overall, mentorship bridges the gap that students may struggle with in physical, cognitive, and social areas of their lives. As students learn to grow and develop for themselves, they can look back on past experiences with mentors who both obviously and subconsciously affected who they developed into as a result of those interactions.

Works Cited

Besnoy, Kevin D. and Sara C. McDaniel. “Going up in Dreams and Esteem.” Gifted Child Today, vol. 39, no. 1, Jan. 2016, p. 18. EBSCOhost.

Cohen, Jennifer S. and Becky A. Smerdon. “Tightening the Dropout Tourniquet: Easing the Transition from Middle to High School.” Preventing School Failure, vol. 53, no. 3, Spring 2009, p. 177. EBSCOhost.

Ellerbrock, Cheryl R. and Sarah M. Kiefer. “The Interplay between Adolescent Needs and Secondary School Structures: Fostering Developmentally Responsive Middle and High School Environments across the Transition.” High School Journal, vol. 96, no. 3, Feb/Mar 2013, p. 170. EBSCOhost.

Langenkamp, Amy G. “Academic Vulnerability and Resilience during the Transition to High School: The Role of Social Relationships and District Context.” Sociology of Education, vol. 83, no. 1, Jan. 2010, p. 1. EBSCOhost.

Manning, Sandra. “Young Leaders: Growing through Mentoring.” Gifted Child Today, vol. 28, no. 1, Winter2005, p. 14. EBSCOhost.

Roybal, Victoria, et al. “Effective Ninth-Grade Transition Programs Can Promote Student Success.” Education, vol. 134, no. 4, Summer 2014, p. 475. EBSCOhost.

Stein, Gabriela Livas and Andrea Hussong. “Social and Academic Expectations about High

School for At-Risk Rural Youth.” American Secondary Education, vol. 36, no. 1, Fall 2007, p. 59. EBSCOhost.

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