The chess coach: what can we learn
from mentoring as an educational
process?
Kate Philip, The Rowan Group
CISCCON International Conference
University of Aberdeen
30th August – 1st September 2007
This presentation will
Explore dimensions of youth mentoring
Relate these to approaches to informal
education
Raise questions about how mentoring
processes might interact with the role of the
chess coach
Researching mentoring
Previous work - young people’s
perspectives on ‘natural mentoring’
processes
Typology of informal mentoring
Study of organised mentoring (Sharing a
Laugh)
Where has mentoring emerged
from?
– Arguably based on ancient myths
– Waves of youth mentoring
– A response to fears about and for youth
– Perceived decline in intergenerational
relationships and in neighbourhood
– Broad appeal to a range of interests
– Idea of community base and link with
Puttnam’s notion of social capital
What is Youth mentoring?
The mentor is someone with greater experience or
wisdom than the mentee. Second the mentor offers
guidance or instruction that is intended to facilitate the
growth and development of the mentee. Third, there is an
emotional bond between mentor and mentee, a hallmark
of which is a sense of trust
(Dubois and Karcher, 2005:3)
Themes
A ‘protective’ factor or a ‘steeling
mechanism (resilience)
A consistent and continuing presence
(attachment)
A guide, adviser, broker, supporter (social
support)
Community based (ecological)
Informal Education
Emphasis on dialogue between teachers and
learners and learners themselves
Experiential and grounded
A co-operative process
Aim of critical reflection
Mentoring – informal education
You do the stuff that you are meant to do but with
(the mentor) it is different and you’re doing it
because you want to
A starting point for educational processes to begin
Negotiated agenda and boundaries
A bridge to new experiences and sometimes social worlds (for
mentors and mentees)
A catalyst to build up new skills
A means of ensuring compliance or critical thinking?
Informal and Formal mentoring
Distinction between informal mentoring and
formal mentoring
Both have educational aims although these
are often implicit
Planned mentoring often explicitly based on
a deficit model of young people
Informal Mentoring
Active participation
Resolving conflict, renegotiating
relationships, trying out new identity
A ‘safe setting’ in which to take risks in
learning – leaving the ‘baggage behind’
Chess as a starting point?
Mentoring Classic Individual/ Best Peer Long term
Forms Team Friend Group ‘risky
adult’
Gender Male Female Female Both Both
Context Home Youth Home Street Home and street
based Groups based
Life Empathy Acceptance Rehearsa Managing Recognition
events Recognition of peer l reputations and life crises
Of Group for action Identity
aspiration and Lifestyle
to role Youth
models Culture
values
Qualities Advisory, Mentors Recipro Reciprocity Reciprocity
Sought guide, Empatheti city And and
/identified outsider c And equality Non
equ conformity
ality
Findings: formal mentoring
Many in the sample had poor educational
experiences and were excluded from
mainstream
Mentoring offered some young people a
means of developing alternative forms of
relationship
Successful mentors went beyond traditional
professional boundaries
The importance of relationship
Reciprocity – sharing a laugh
A voluntary relationship
Negotiating boundaries and agendas
An alternative to sometimes difficult peer
and family relationships
Qualities of trust, shared interests, challenge
and respect
ted unity
behavi
ours
Underlying Deficit model of Remedy absence Deficit model: lack Disruptive/ Yp alienated
assu yp/family of or missed social capital challenging from
mptio opportunities and access behavi mainstr
ns to build to networks. our eam
expertise often commu
linked nity –
to often
school linked
s with (i)
Theoretical Attachment Mentoring as Ecology of Cognitive Ecology of
frame theory/res ‘professional development behavi develo
work ilience/so friendship’- Social capital and oural pment;
– cial Youth transitions social therapy Attachment;
(expli capital Social support inclusion ; resilien
cit or (bridging) resilien ce;
implic /develop ce;
it) mental social
psych capital
Target Children from ‘underachievin ‘underachieving’ NEET; Yp from
Groups single disadvantaged, Possible school substa margin
(mentees) parent potentially at risk, problems, nce alised
family; esp young poor misuse groups
isolated men background rs, yp eg
yp; in minorit
known crimina y
family l justice ethnic
difficulties system
Target Male ‘role Volunteers and Volunteers ideally volunteers to ‘community’
group models’ sometime with business comple membe
s favoured paid staff. background/k ment rs –
(ment but Skills in key nowledge. work of often
ors) majority areas, ability Complement paid unclear
women to relate to work of paid staff which
yp staff commu
nity
Strategies Building social Develop Link with Confidence/r Confidence,
skills relationship individuals/ag esilienc solidari
via shared encies and e, ty,
interest/activ young explore strengt
But caution needed
Moving on and moving out
Coercive mentoring and ‘unfriendly contexts’
Unsuccessful mentoring can undermine
confidence and capacity
A ‘risky’ process for all involved
Building a mentor rich
environment
Assumption that young people have few
opportunities to develop informal
relationships with adults
Capitalising on shared interests and
capacities
Offering a link between individual and group
Need for longitudinal insights
Mentoring and coaching
What does youth mentoring have to offer in
this field?
– Mentoring as an educational intervention
– The importance of relationships to learning
– A community based approach
– Links with coaching practices
Mentoring and chess
Does chess playing offer a means of engaging
with young people who may wish a mentor?
To what extent should peer mentoring be
developed within chess playing groups?
Could chess playing offer a setting in which
mentoring relationships could be developed for
excluded young people?