Hitting the trail running

roadmaps and reflections on informal faculty mentorship experiences

Shelley M. Griffin

Rodger J. Beatty

pp. 251-273

in: Margaret S. Barrett, Sandra L. Stauffer (eds), Narrative soundings, Berlin, Springer, 2012

Abstract

Using a shared theoretical framework of personal practical knowledge, we convey a narrative inquiry into our 3-year journey as two faculty members working in relation in a Canadian post secondary music teacher education context. Our personal and professional narratives are interwoven as we were guided by the question: How do personal and professional knowledge perspectives help transform an evolving faculty mentoring relationship? Our experiences offer insight into the complexities of working alongside one another in an informal faculty mentoring relationship which evolved into a collaborative writing partnership. We use a metaphor of running on an academic trail to share our rich experiences through convergent and divergent lenses which contextualise the temporality of our personal and professional narrative journeys. We conclude with enlightenments that emerged from our mentoring and collaborative, side-by-side relational writing endeavours, as well as suggesting possibilities for future collaboration.