Note: This program closed on April 22, 2024. We are no longer accepting mentors or mentees.
Getting Started
If you have a solid theoretical grounding and considerable experience implementing project based language learning (PBLL), you might consider serving as a mentor in this program. If you are a less-experienced practitioner looking for support and guidance as you plan and deliver PBLL, you might consider joining as a mentee. Read below for more details!
Program Description
The Mentoring PBLL Teachers program leverages the experience and expertise of a skilled cadre of veteran PBLL practitioners as resources supporting the professional learning of the rising generation of new PBLL practitioners. The mentors will be world language teachers who have completed the NFLRC PBLL Summer Institute, professional development offered by the Buck Institute for Education / PBLWorks, or other extended professional learning, and have implemented PBLL in their classes. The mentees are world language teachers who are interested in learning about PBLL and how to implement PBLL in their classrooms. One mentor will be paired with one mentee through a semester to provide support and consultation about PBLL. Mentors will also share their personal experiences and knowledge in adopting PBLL. Mentors and mentees will use open educational resources (OERs) on PBLL developed by NFLRC as supporting materials. The mentoring will be conducted virtually via email, phone, or videoconferences. After completing the mentoring program and submitting an evaluation survey, the mentor will be awarded with a digital badge as a PBLL Mentor.
The NFLRC invites prospective mentors and mentees to sign up as part of the mentorship database. The NFLRC performs mentor-mentee matching based on requests submitted by mentees. Mentor-mentee matches are based on mentees’ preferences to the extent possible. See below for more information on adding yourself to the database.
The materials used for the mentoring experience have been exclusively created to meet the professional learning needs of less-experienced PBLL educators. The first four of the ten available lessons are remixes of material featured in previous NFLRC PBLL professional learning events. Six additional lessons feature interviews with experienced practitioners addressing a range of topics in PBLL praxis. Interviews were conducted by Marisa Varalli, a PBLL practitioner in the San Francisco Unified School District.
The mentor and the mentee will work together over a period of one semester. A first meeting will help them establish their connection. In at least three subsequent meetings during the mentorship, the mentee will complete a selection of at least three of the online lessons. The mentor and the mentee will collaborate to determine which online lessons will be the most beneficial for the mentee to complete. In addition, if possible, the mentor will embed the mentee into one of his or her online language classes. Similarly, if the mentee’s institution permits it, the mentor could be embedded into the online language course that the mentee is in the process of developing. If neither option is possible (depending upon the institutional policies of the mentor/mentee), then the mentor and the mentee will spend their meeting time together discussing planning and execution of PBLL projects. The mentorship will conclude with one final (fifth) meeting to wrap up details of the internship and to check that all badging requirements have been fulfilled.
The mentor and the mentee will communicate throughout the program on a regular basis so that the mentor can answer questions and check that the assigned tasks were completed. Upon completion of the program, both the mentor and the mentee will fill out an evaluation form.
Important Links
Resources for the Mentoring for PBLL program
The Resources webpage contains links to the lessons specifically designed to support the professional learning needs of online world language educators. The mentor and mentee will decide together which lessons will be completed each semester. Please note that the mentee must complete three lessons and fill out a 3-2-1 Report (see below) and submit it to the mentor in order for the mentoring experience to be complete and for the mentor to earn a digital badge.
PBLL Mentor Badge Criteria
This document contains the description and criteria for earning the PBLL Mentor digital badge.
3-2-1 Report Template
The 3-2-1 Report Template is a Google Doc for mentees. Each mentee is required to make his/her own copy of the 3-2-1 Report Template (by following the instructions in the template) and complete the report for each lesson. In each 3-2-1 report, the mentee is expected to reflect on (a) three things or ideas learned from the lesson, (b) two things or ideas from the lesson that he/she is planning or would like to implement in an online class, and (c) one question that the mentee still has about the topic discussed in the lesson. The mentee will then share and discuss the completed 3-2-1 reports with his/her mentor during their meetings.
Final Meeting Checklist
The Checklist will be used by mentor and mentee at their final meeting to determine whether the mentee has completed all the requirements for the mentor to receive the associated badge.
Other NFLRC Mentoring Resources