Insights into a critical friend practice: Closing reflections

Abstract

Traditionally the professional development of mentors is largely driven by researchers taking on the role of leader or facilitator of workshops or group sessions. This role in the mentor literature is rarely conceptualised beyond: providing support, meeting and liaising with or leading the group. Working as a critical friend in a participatory action research with teacher mentors I explored and postulated this role as part of my identity as a researcher, artist and educator. "Insights into the critical friend practice: Closing reflections" is a digital presentation of eleven abstract collaged images interspersed with text, which act as a vehicle to communicate my professional growth and learning from working as a critical friend with teacher mentors. Embodied in the work are culminating reflections of my emerging identity as a critical friend to teacher mentors. To add to the current mentoring and critical friend research literature it concludes with a conceptualisation of the critical friend who supported the professional growth of mentors (beginning or experienced teachers) while working in a participatory action research as a contextualised professional development. This conceptualisation provides a model for other researchers, who professionally develop mentors.