Mentor’s guide: Pre- and debriefing check-ins

What is this practice?

Pre-briefing and debriefing check-ins refer to short discussions you have with the teacher candidate before and after a teaching episode, an encounter with a student, or an interaction with a parent. These can be episodes where either the mentor or the TC takes the lead in enacting something that is worth observing and reflecting upon.

Why is it important?

Pre-briefing check-ins help you identify what is worth observing in the upcoming enactment (enactment = what you or your TC will be doing). A pre-briefing check-in focuses the perception of the person doing the observations, so that they can attend to the most relevant aspects of the situation and give the person doing the enactment useful feedback. Similarly, debriefing is important because structured reflection enables TCs to make sense of what happened.

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