Peer mentoring: 1-1 peer mentoring

1-1 peer mentoring is a focused dialogue between two colleagues lasting 10 minutes. One colleague brings up a particular consideration about their teaching or supervision practices while the other colleague listens carefully and adopts a curious attitude to help the colleague explore their thoughts and considerations further. In this manner, 1-1 peer mentoring resembles the principles of coaching (Stelter & Eiberg Hansen, 2006).

1-1 peer mentoring is inspired by “Humble Inquiry” (Schein & Schein, 2021). According to Schein, the humble inquiry is “…the fine art of drawing someone out, of asking questions to which you do not already know the answer, of building a relationship based on curiosity and interest in the other person.” In simple terms, a humble inquiry is an exploratory conversation characterized by an open, humble and curious attitude, and a behaviour that arises from respect and the desire to enhance the quality of a conversation by encouraging openness and sharing task-related information.

Consequently, 1-1 peer mentoring is not feedback. Instead, it is a reflective conversation (Stelter & Eiberg Hansen, 2006) involving one colleague listening and gently asking questions about another colleague's experience of a situation. This aids the colleague to understand and learn from the situation. The colleague listening must engage in active listening, meaning to listen attentively rather than thinking about what question to ask next, and then help the colleague to understand and learn from the situation. One should use open-ended questions when asking about a colleague’s considerations. In this regard, one should not behave as an expert and offer well-meaning advice on the topic of the conversation. There must be time to think instead of trying to avoid pauses. Pauses provide great opportunities for reflection.

Although 1-1 peer mentoring is a very informal practice – or rather, behaviour – it still requires facilitation when the purpose is peer mentoring. Thus, it can be beneficial to point out the specified roles and inform the participants that the next 10 minutes will be spent engaging in peer mentoring (Christensen & Kjær, 2023).

10 minutes of 1-1 peer mentoring

Check in (1 minute)

A colleague takes the initiative and sets the framework for the conversation.
For example: Colleague 1: “Do you have just 10 minutes? There is something I have been thinking of.” Colleague 2 replies: "Yes, I'd like to listen for 10 minutes now", or "Yes, I'd like to listen later today, if that works".
It is an important framework for the conversation that should not take too long, but at the same time be focused and attentive.

Humble Inquiry (7 minutes)

Colleague 2 listens curiously and openly to colleague 1's thoughts and reflections and humbly asks about their possible afterthoughts and understanding of the situation.
For example: "I'm curious about what you think about your role in the situation", or "If you look at it from a different angle, what do you see?"

Check out (2 minutes)

Colleague 2 asks how the conversation has helped colleague 1.
For example: "When you look forward, what do you see?", or "What we have talked about now, what does it tell you about what you have to do now?".
Colleague 1 summarizes the conversation and possibly outlines changes in practice.

Literature

Christensen, M. K., & Kjær, L. B. (2023). Medicinsk didaktik : en guide til lægen som underviser (1. udgave. ed.). FADL.
Schein, E. H., & Schein, P. A. (2021). Humble inquiry : the gentle art of asking instead of telling (Second edition, revised and expand ed.). Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Stelter, R., & Eiberg Hansen, S. (2006). Coaching - læring og udvikling (1. udgave. ed.). Psykologisk Forlag.

Text: Mette Krogh Christensen
Illustrations: Annika Büchert Lindberg

Revised 22.04.2024

Nina Adolfsen