Editorial overview: mentoring throughout the process of professional practice

This issue of Mentoring and Tutoring: Partnership in Learning Journal includes research from scholars representing the U.S.A. (four states), Belgium, Germany, and Spain. Typically, the editorial briefly introduces the reader to the articles published in the issue; however, as has been my practice for the past three years, I take more liberty in the final edition of the year to speak more holistically about the constructs of mentoring and tutoring. In this particular case, I want to delve back into some of the seminal literature to speak to the value of mentoring throughout the process of professional practice as an opportunity for continuous growth.

Topically, continuous growth remains at the forefront of contemporary academic discourse, although the nuances of leveraging policy as a critical aspect of job-embedded professional development in the cycle of improving professional practice are often less considered. Encouraging and supporting are well-documented foundational attributes of effective mentoring, but less discussed are the manner in which creating effective policies to support learners in practice can be an effective means for developing various aspects and dimensions of mentoring relationships (Carver & Feiman-Nemser, 2008; Eby, Rhodes, & Allen, 2007; Templeton, 2021). While there is some disagreement within emergent literature regarding the necessary or key elements of an effective mentoring program, the importance of honed relational skills inherent to structured mentorship is a perspective emanating from critical discourse analysis.

While critical discourse analysis focuses primarily on power structures, when mentoring as an initiative is situated to be impactful and designed to transform or shift a change in behavior, it morphs into a multi-level developmental mechanism, highlighted by the need for ongoing support and feedback to facilitate meaningful professional development (Ambrosetti & Dekkers, 2010; Irby, 2008; Templeton, 2021). Arguably, it is the intentionality of ongoing support and feedback that eliminates implied structures within mentoring circles and subsequently becomes the catalyst for improved professional practice.

Moreover, to be impactful on career and professional growth, the improvement of professional practice should be inclusive of personal learning that is beneficial to both mentor and mentee. Navigating time and space is an inherent challenge to any mentoring relationship; however, the quality aspects of learning and growing together are inextricably intertwined with an organizational culture purposefully designed to foster employee growth and organizational effectiveness (Zachary, 2012). Admittedly, there are numerous types and styles of mentoring – both formal and informal, and while this editorial is not necessarily attempting to elicit a discussion of what is or is not effective but rather to focus on mentoring as the byproduct of an ethic of care focused on organically improved individual outcomes rooted in learning from the journey (Templeton, 2022). As you read through the manuscripts in this issue, be challenged to critically examine the authors’ interpretations and experiences with mentoring as a reflexive process in the cycle of continuous learning innately embedded within improving professional practice.

Publishing in mentoring and tutoring

Authors are reminded as they submit their work to the journal to ensure that all manuscripts follow the American Psychological Association’s Publication Manual (7th edition) format. We receive quite a number with APA formatting errors. In Volume 20, Issue 1, we outlined several common concerns with submissions. When writing your manuscript, please remember to check your headings, spacing, table formats, and references for correct 7th edition usage. Because the journal is very popular and competitive, and we are receiving on average three to five manuscripts every week. Please prepare works that are extremely attentive to detail (e.g. current and relevant citations, high-quality writing, careful proofreading, proper formatting style) and that are making specific contributions to the field of mentoring and tutoring. For further information, consult the Taylor & Francis posting of the M&T author guidelines for article manuscripts and book reviews: (http://www.tandf.couk/journals/authors/cmetauth.asp) (ISSN 1361–1267).

We do not conduct pre-reviews; rather, we will be mentoring authors in the publication process within the FastTrack system review process. That said, the Editor reserves the right to conduct desk rejections at the outset if manuscripts do not follow the prescribed guidelines. Please go to the Manuscript FastTrack system to register as a user and then upload your manuscript and any additional information through the system. The FastTrack system helps with the ease of communication between authors, reviewers, and the editor and resolves issues of overloaded email inboxes.

The current requirements for M&T are that the paper, not including references and abstract, should be a maximum of 30 pages, including references, tables, and figures. Depending on the manuscript, we may consider manuscripts that are longer than 30 pages, and certainly, we will accept manuscripts shorter than the prescribed 30 pages. If you have any questions about how to submit your manuscript to M&T, please go to the International Council of Professors of Educational Administration (ICPEL) Publications at http://www.icpel.org. Click on M&T from the Menu of Buttons on the top of that screen. The submission link appears there on the M&T home page. You may, of course, access the journal page from the Taylor & Francis Publisher page at http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/13611267.asp.

Qualified individuals who serve on the Review Board along with select Editorial Board members provide commentaries. We would also like for you to register in the same location as you submit to be considered to be a member of the M&T Journal Review Board. We will be acknowledging the

Review Board at the end of the year and a top reviewer will be honored. The acceptance rate of the journal is currently 10%. Mentoring & Tutoring is abstracted in Academic Search; Australian Education Index (AEI); Australian Research Council (ARC) Ranked Journal List; Cabells; National Database for

Research into International Education (NDRI); British Education Index; Contents Pages in Education; Educational Research Abstracts online (ERA); EBSCOhost EJS; Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI); Education Resources Information Center (ERIC); PsycINFO and SCOPUS®, and Cabell’s Directory of

Publishing Opportunities in Educational Curriculum and Methods. Additionally,

Mentoring & Tutoring: Partnership in Learning is now included in the Thomson Reuters Emerging Sources Citation Index.

Many authors have been turning to the M&T journal as the venue-of-choice for publishing high-quality works for over 20 years. M&T is the longest-running mentoring journal in the field. This refereed, peer-reviewed journal is known worldwide. Authors, readers, and subscribers are from different countries and various types of institutions and professional environments. The editorial team is committed to producing timely, thorough reviews, modeling conscientious guidance and support, and being open to a wide scope of topics and methods related to mentoring and tutoring, collaboration, and learning.

Mentoring Books to be reviewed must be about mentoring and tutoring. Visit this journal’s website, http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/carfax/13611267.html, for more information about M&T, as well as special rates and discounts.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).