Mentoring New Educators: Setting the Tone for Quality Practice

Aug 3 / Belinda Wright
Every new educator who joins an OSHC team brings fresh energy, ideas and potential. They also arrive into a service with its own pace, language, relationships, routines and unwritten expectations. 

A thorough induction can explain the essentials. It can show someone where policies are stored, how sign-in works and what to do in an emergency. 

But induction alone cannot teach a person how quality feels in your service — how educators listen to children and young people, how the team makes decisions, how concerns are raised, or how reflection shapes what happens next. 

That is where mentoring makes the difference. 

Mentoring helps a new educator move from knowing the procedures to understanding the practice.

Mentoring Begins With Belonging 

The first weeks in a new OSHC role can be exciting and overwhelming. A new educator may be trying to remember names, learn routines, read group dynamics, understand boundaries and work out when to ask for help — often during short, busy shifts. 

Before people can confidently reflect, contribute and take initiative, they need to feel that they belong and that questions are welcome. 

A mentor helps create that sense of professional belonging by being a reliable point of connection. They make the hidden parts of practice visible, explain the reasoning behind decisions and help the new educator interpret what they are noticing. 

This does not require the mentor to know everything. It requires them to be present, curious and willing to learn alongside the new educator. 

Connecting Mentoring With the NQF

Mentoring sits naturally within the National Quality Standard’s expectations for professional collaboration, leadership and the development of educators. 
  • Element 4.2.1 — Professional collaboration emphasises respectful collaboration, learning from one another and recognising colleagues’ strengths and skills. 
  • Element 7.2.2 — Educational leadership recognises the role of guidance, mentoring and professional conversations in building educators’ capacity to implement the educational program and planning cycle. 
  • Element 7.2.3 — Development of professionals focuses on regular performance evaluation and individual plans that support learning and development. 
Mentoring can support all three, but it should not be treated as an informal substitute for proper induction, supervision, performance review or leadership support. Each has a different purpose. 

Induction, Supervision and Mentoring Are Different 

Induction explains what a person needs to know to begin safely and responsibly. 
It covers the service context, role expectations, policies, emergency procedures, child-safe practices, supervision arrangements and practical systems. 

Supervision provides oversight, direction and accountability. 
It ensures expectations are understood, practice is safe and concerns are addressed. At times, supervision needs to be direct and non-negotiable. 

Mentoring supports professional understanding and growth. 
It creates space to ask questions, interpret experience, build confidence and connect daily decisions with the service philosophy, MTOP V2.0 and the NQS. 

A new educator may need all three at the same time. The key is being clear about which conversation is occurring and why. 

What New Educators Need to Learn 

New educators need more than a tour of the building. They need help understanding the distinctive professional context of school age care. 
  • The rhythm of OSHC: how before school care, after school care and vacation care differ, and how energy, emotions and needs can shift across the day. 
  • Play and leisure: why children and young people need choice, rest, challenge, connection and opportunities to direct their own time. 
  • Relationships: how trust is built with children, families, school staff and colleagues through consistent, respectful interactions. 
  • Agency and participation: how children and young people influence routines, spaces, experiences and decisions. 
  • Professional judgement: how policies, frameworks, context and knowledge of the child come together in everyday decisions. 
  • The service culture: how the team communicates, reflects, shares concerns, follows through and learns from mistakes. 
These understandings develop over time. Mentoring gives new educators a supported pathway into them rather than expecting them to “pick it up” by watching from the sidelines. 

A Strong First 30 Days 

Mentoring works best when it is intentional from the beginning. A simple first-month rhythm can make the experience more manageable for both the new educator and the mentor. 

1.  Prepare before the first shift. Make sure the team knows who is starting, what their role is and who will support them. Provide essential information in a form they can revisit rather than delivering everything verbally at once. 

2.  Create one consistent point of connection. A named mentor or lead contact reduces uncertainty. Other team members can still help, but the new educator knows who will check in, clarify information and notice their progress. 

3.  Make hidden expectations visible. Explain the reasoning behind routines and interactions. Instead of saying, “This is how we do afternoon tea,” discuss what the routine is intended to support — safety, belonging, independence, connection or choice. 

4.  Model, then invite participation. Let the new educator observe an interaction or process, talk through what they noticed, then provide a supported opportunity to try it themselves. 

5.  Debrief briefly and often. A five-minute check-in after a shift can be more useful than a long conversation weeks later. Ask what felt clear, what felt difficult and what they want to understand next. 

6.  Increase responsibility gradually. Confidence grows when expectations stretch at a manageable pace. Avoid leaving someone dependent on constant direction, but do not confuse silence with readiness. 

A Simple Mentoring Conversation 

Mentoring conversations do not need a complicated framework. A short rhythm can help keep them reflective and action-focused: 

1.  Notice. What happened? What did the educator see, hear or experience? 
2.  Wonder. What questions does the situation raise? What might have been happening for the child, group or educator? 
3.  Explore. What other perspectives, framework connections or service expectations might help make sense of it? 
4.  Agree. What is one practical action, question or focus for the next shift? 
5.  Revisit. What changed? What did the educator learn? What support is needed next?  “I noticed the group became louder during the transition from outdoor play. What did you notice? What do you think they needed at that point? Let’s choose one change to trial tomorrow and check in afterwards.” 

This approach keeps the conversation grounded in practice while helping the new educator develop their own professional thinking. 

Feedback That Builds Confidence and Accountability 

Supportive mentoring does not mean avoiding difficult feedback. New educators need clear information about expectations, especially where safety, children’s rights, professional conduct or policy requirements are involved. 

The goal is to combine clarity with dignity. 
Instead of: “You handled that badly.” 
Try: “I need to be clear that we do not speak to children in that way. Let’s unpack what was happening, what the expectation is and what support will help you respond differently next time.” 
Specific feedback helps the educator understand what needs to change. Reflective questions help them understand why. Follow-up shows that growth matters and that the issue has not simply been left behind. 

Mentoring is strongest when it recognises progress as well as gaps. Name the specific practice you want to see continue: 

“You gave that child time to answer instead of stepping in. That supported their agency and helped the conversation stay calm.” 

Common Mentoring Traps 

  • Information overload: trying to explain every policy, framework and routine in the first few shifts. 
  • Shadow and copy: expecting the new educator to imitate the mentor without discussing the thinking behind the practice. 
  • Rescuing too quickly: stepping in before the educator has a chance to try, reflect and build confidence. 
  • One-size-fits-all support: assuming every new educator has the same experience, learning preferences or development needs. 
  • Inconsistent messages: different leaders giving contradictory directions without clarifying the agreed service expectation. 
  • No ending point: continuing an informal mentoring arrangement without reviewing progress, changing goals or recognising growing independence. 

Supporting the Mentor 

Mentoring asks something of the mentor too. They need clear expectations, access to relevant information, time for brief check-ins and a leader they can approach when concerns arise. 

A capable educator is not automatically a confident mentor. Mentors may need support to ask reflective questions, provide feedback, set boundaries and distinguish between a learning need and a performance concern. 

Formal leaders should also make sure mentoring does not become invisible labour carried by the same person every time. Rotate opportunities where appro

Questions for Team Reflection 

  • What do new educators need to understand about quality in our service beyond policies and procedures? 
  • Who is responsible for induction, supervision and mentoring — and are those roles clear? 
  • How do we make our unwritten expectations visible? 
  • What opportunities do new educators have to ask questions without feeling judged? 
  • How do we know when someone is ready for greater independence? 
  • How are mentors supported, recognised and given time? 
  • What feedback do new educators give us about their first month? 

Why It Matters 

Mentoring shapes more than an individual educator’s confidence. It shapes the professional culture they learn to participate in. 

When new educators experience clear expectations, thoughtful guidance, honest feedback and genuine curiosity, they learn that quality is something the team discusses and develops together. 

They are more likely to ask for help, contribute ideas, reflect on their impact and grow into greater responsibility over time. 

For children and young people, this supports more consistent, responsive relationships. For the service, it strengthens continuity and reduces the risk that professional knowledge sits with only a few experienced people. 

Strong mentoring does not create educators who need a mentor forever. It creates educators who know how to keep learning. 

Ready to strengthen mentoring in your team? 

Listen to the OSHCology MicroCast: “Mentoring in OSHC — Setting the Tone for Quality Practice.” 

Further Reading 

ACECQA — Element 7.2.3: Development of professionals 
ACECQA — Element 7.2.2: Educational leadership 
ACECQA — Element 4.2.1: Professional collaboration