EXPLORING THE INTERNSHIP JOURNEY OF TWO PRESERVICE TEACHERS IN INDIA: BUILDING RELATIONSHIP WHILE WALKING ALONG WITH MENTOR

This study explores the school internship journey of two preservice teachers in India enrolled in the Bachelor of Education(B.Ed) program. With the mandate of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, a huge emphasis has been laid on the quality of teacher training especially in the use of tools, technology and practicum or school internships. The study responds to the need of quality teacher training program in the country. Reflection essays written by the preservice teachers in four different school internship courses from first through the fourth semester, and reflection narratives written after completing one year of independent classroom teaching were analyzed using Clandinin’s three-dimensional conceptual framework of narrative inquiry. As a part of the data analysis, first author who is also the mentor of the two preservice teachers, shared her narrative. The findings from the data analysis highlighted guided reflection and affective guidance in mentoring as important aspects in teacher preparation.