There is a developing interest in mentoring in the educational system in Hong Kong, especially in higher education. Mentoring is looked at as a retention and enhancement strategy for undergraduate education. With the setting up of a mentoring system during the freshmen year, it is hoped that student retention can be increased and academic achievement can be promoted. The study aims to find out the current mentoring practices carried out at the Hong Kong Baptist University. Results are based upon quantitative data collected from 456 students and 79 faculty members engaging in the mentoring programme of the University Life Programme at the university in 1998. The author also conducted insight interviews into the student-mentor relationship and the problems encountered by mentors. The study focuses upon students' perspectives of an 'effective' mentor. The implications for resources are discussed as part of a review of the mentoring programme at the university.
[Copyright of Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/1361126032000149319]

This study examines the post-observation interactions between six English as a Second Language (ESL) student teachers and their university tutors during their teaching practicum in Hong Kong. Data consist of interviews with university tutors, transcriptions of recorded conferences and stimulated recall interviews with student teachers. Case studies of two student teachers are used to examine the impact of the tutors' feedback and to highlight the way that the student teachers' response is affected by the power relations involved in the dialogue. The article also considers some areas in which miscommunication occurred between tutors and student teachers and discusses possible reasons for this.
[Copyright of Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13611260500493535]

This study examines the theory‐and‐practice connection model in mentor preparation in the context of two mentor preparation programmes in Hong Kong. The 30‐ and the 60‐hour mentoring support development (MSD) programmes share a common conceptualization of mentoring—with the improvement of teaching and learning as the core of mentoring—yet they differ in objectives, duration and the mentoring practice settings in which structured practical work occurs. This enquiry addresses how the theory‐and‐practice connection model contributes to the construction of professional knowledge in mentoring and the development of mentoring practices in schools. It was found that the organization of curriculum components, such as coursework (e.g., skills of lesson analysis and conferencing), and structured practical work in mentoring, facilitated the connection of the theory and practice of mentoring. In addition, mentor trainees (practising school teachers) developed competence in mentoring through integrating research‐based knowledge and knowledge that grew out of their own mentoring experience. Finally, suggestions for the design of mentor preparation programmes and workplace conditions that facilitate mentoring in schools are discussed.
[Copyright of Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning is the property of Routledge. Full article may be available at the publisher's website:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13611260500206002]