One of the key challenges facing educational institutions today is ensuring a strong faculty that can support quality teaching and learning. This appears to be a challenge considering that the quality of teaching can only be the result of a strong teaching staff integrated into the knowledge of school culture, curriculum, policies and an ever-evolving learning environment in which teachers can grow professionally . Considering the changes in licensing policies and expectations of ministries of education in the current scenario, teacher retention and enrichment is a matter of utmost concern in most schools in the UAE. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayIn my article I wanted to examine the challenges faced by school leaders when creating a mentoring program that is not viewed in isolation but as an ongoing process that further enriches the learning environment. Being part of the SLT I always returned to the key questions of why, despite having a team to bring in new teachers, in recent times the process has failed to retain good teachers for a longer period. I wanted to further explore those practices of the mentoring process that are directly related to the decisions exercised by key policy makers. I wanted to be more critically aware of the mentoring process to ensure support for a mentee that results in long-term professional growth for both the mentor and the mentee. The literature I reviewed showed a common set of factors that needed to be considered as it had a direct link to the issues faced in the mentoring process. Before I dive into my research, I also like to establish a fact from my review on the concept of mentoring. Although mentoring is an age-old practice, mentoring is defined in multiple contexts depending on the extent of the role it plays in providing a strong workforce that is both effective and efficient. The literature shows the diversity in the definition of mentoring from the beginning: mentoring is a complex social learning process provided in both a formal and informal context, usually provided by an experienced senior to a novice or less experienced with the aim of developing skills based on a mutual partnership with an agreement on shared objectives to be achieved by the end of a fixed period – Blackwell, J (1989); Moore and Amey (1988); Wegner (1998); Jacobi, M. (1991). Institutions must be able to establish a mentoring process in which both the Mentor and the Mentee feel stimulated, valued, challenged and engage in more authentic dialogues that enable learning and above all professional development. Whether it is a formal or informal context, it is necessary to understand that learning is a very complex process since it is closely related to social relationships, past experiences, sharing knowledge and skills through interaction. Hobson, A. J., Ashby, et al (2009). Wenger's model of 3 related concepts, namely: mutual commitment, joint enterprise and shared repertoire. I believe they are key elements that also lay the foundation for creating a compatible mentor and ensuring the mentoring process incorporates good communication channels that allow for professional support. Wenger, (1999). Before we can expand and relate the commonalities in the area highlighted by theliterature, I like to outline the challenges identified in the absence of a good mentoring process and how it relates to my area of ​​interest. Challenges in the absence of a mentoring process for new teachers in schools: Lack of adequate staffing - Shortage of qualified candidates Increased costs due to compromised quality Basic safety protocols compromised due to lack of less and inadequately qualified staff trained Overwhelmed staff Dissatisfied mentors who lack knowledge about reflective practice or critical reflection More directive than leading Work-life imbalance for new and mentors Mentors who feel isolated Mentors who report a heavy workload Lack of reflective feedback and inability to understand the key role questions play criticism and reflection.Lack of a system to recognize suitable leaders or mentors to improve the systemAs mentioned above, it is evident that learning requires both when people are placed in groups in a practical environment to observe and learn together or to be drive. It is not a mandate that the mentor must be matched with mentees, but there must be an opportunity for new staff to choose a mentor who they believe will broaden their knowledge skills in the area of ​​interest and help them progress professionally. New staff can usually be probed regarding this thirst to engage in a professional context and push to excel only if they feel they are placed in an environment with highly knowledgeable and experienced staff who are not only just familiar but have in-depth knowledge of how the process works. works and knows how to show the process in a constructive way. New teachers starting to work in schools begin work with almost the same responsibilities and expectations as any experienced school staff. The vast majority are said to leave the profession quite early, i.e. within the first 4 years of the profession, as they are placed in the "Sink or Float" approach by most schools. This is mainly because induction programs focus primarily on infrastructure and school culture rather than actual attention to knowledge and how to provide quality teaching and curriculum delivery. Ultimately, teachers' growth perspective lies in the opportunity offered to them to improve the quality of teaching and directly leads to the improvement of the overall quality of the teaching and learning process in the school. Schools must be able to engage quality mentors who can guide the new teacher from an early stage in the ability to find solutions, engage in critical thinking and problem-solving strategies to deal with the real situation in relation to school practices. The school must identify a whole school approach in which existing staff willingly understand the need to guide and engage new teachers in authentic professional dialogue essential to growth. The characteristics of a good mentoring process: It must have a clearly defined objective, approach or purpose. Must have a procedure for identifying the selection of mentors Must have a procedure for complimenting mentors Must have adequate cognitive training for mentors on how they can see the procedure as a 2-way growth process for both the Mentor and the mentees Mentees Should be able to inform the Mentors to properly start the process importance of working in a group and sharing experiences and suggestions and reflect the same approach on the mentees. Must be able to inform mentorsof the importance of keeping a reflective feedback record of their training and guidance. Must be able to create the space, time and resources available for the process Must be able to enable and promote professional communication Create a mutual agreement (willing to teach and willing to learn) between Mentor and Mentee Must be led by a capable leader who is able to evaluate and monitor program progress in the school as real-time data for mentors and leaders. It is clearly evident from the literature that when it comes to schools, effective mentoring programs are those that focus on the development of key pedagogical knowledge and behavioral management. Leaders must be able to select mentors who are capable but also willing to model the right practices, recognize development on how to do better, provide mentees with information on teaching practice objectives and curriculum expectations as it plays a vital role in ensuring that students do not feel lost, isolated or stagnant in their profession. Looking back on my personal experience as both a mentee and a mentor, I am ready to relate to how Wenger 3's interrelated concept is able to create an umbrella and channel across concepts on the functional aspect of mentoring, mentors' expectations and the key role of communication for the success of the program. I found this article very useful in outlining and relating the disadvantages of the existing program in our school. In the readings the importance of mutual commitment could not be more elaborated. The mutual agreement between mentor and mentee lays the foundation to be able to deal with complex situations of poor quality teaching, lack of commitment, very early abandonment of training by teachers and lack of willingness of mentors to share their experience. The need for mutual agreement should emerge as leaders, teachers and principles develop the program. Leaders need to create common ground with prospective teacher mentors about the need and positive benefits for the school, themselves, and new teachers. Mentors need to feel valued and leaders need to ensure the program makes them proactive in taking that extra step to mentor outside of their normal teaching. In school every teacher needs to be made aware of the importance of sharing best practice rather than working in isolation, this lays the basic foundation for being able to take that availability to guide those who struggle in the same area. The environment must be an open learning environment that engages and stimulates teachers into authentic academic dialogues from the beginning. In such a scenario, leaders have a broader pool to select potential mentor candidates who value the importance of sharing knowledge, enabling professional growth for themselves and those they are responsible for mentoring. In this concept I was also able to explore the expected qualities of a good mentor. Considering the fact that mentoring is more manpower-intensive (involves the presence of the individual to enable the mentee for a fixed period) and a time-consuming process (a 4-level meeting model, understanding the common ground, learning and incorporating the change, providing developmental feedback) are only expected to have these qualities: patience, humor, being an advocate, knowledgeable, respectful, enthusiastic about the system, and a positive attitude. The key aspect that differentiates the mentoring process from training or induction is where mentors are expected to guide and provide timely and thoughtful feedback on.