Mentor Wasn’t Always Available: Challenges of Pre-Service Teachers on Supported Teaching in Schools

Abstract

: The goal of the study was to identify the difficulties that pre-service teachers encountered while participating in supported teaching in schools. Using a phenomenology design, the study utilized a qualitative approach. Convenience sampling technique was used to sample twenty (20) level 100 pre-service teachers (12 males and 8 females) who were enrolled in a bachelor of education program. Data was gathered through extensive, semi-structured interviews. The majority of the challenges encountered by student-teachers were related to the attitude of the mentors such as mentor absenteeism, mentor lateness, mentor inability to provide student-teachers with necessary information they needed, mentor inability to assist student-teachers