A closer look at the role of mentor teachers in shaping preservice teachers' professional identity

• The impact of mentoring relationship on professional identity of seven preservice was examined.
• When the mentoring relationship was positive the confidence level grew in the participants.
• But some participants experienced negative mentoring relationship and they felt less like a teacher at the end of the course.

This paper focuses on the extent to which mentoring relationships played a role in creating changes in the professional identity of seven preservice teachers. Semi-structured interviews, observations and reflective journals were used to document the changes experienced by participants as they went through their two placements during their one-year teacher education course. The data indicated that when the mentoring relationships were positive and expectations were met, preservice teachers felt more confident as a teacher. However, for some participants, who experienced a partially negative mentoring relationship, their confidence declined and they felt they did not improve. Implications for practice are discussed.