Talking from experience, I should be the first to admit that take off of a beginner is usually rough, a little turbulent and understandably riddled with daunting teething challenges. This is the more reason new and inexperienced teachers require a mentor to hand hold them in their fledgling careers. So it is ideal for teachers beginning their teaching duties to find a welcoming and readily available shoulder to lean on. But the stark reality at the work environment is that the supporting environment is not assured. New employees, especially those kick starting their professional lives with high sounding qualifications, suffer from benign neglect.
The assumption is that since new arrivals who present sound academic credentials are over qualified for the jobs they have been offered, they should therefore be able to stand on their feet, unaided ,right on day one. But nothing can be further from the truth. The truth is that new arrivals badly need experienced professional anchors to show them the ropes and how best to navigate their way in their unfamiliar territory. But in the dog eat dog work milieu, people just mind their own business and space. Silos are fully entrenched resulting in a situation where seasoned and veteran employees shirk their responsibility of showing the new entrants the ropes. Personally, I suffered from some degree of neglect when I started my teaching career. I began my teaching job at a time when most, if not all teachers at the junior secondary schools, were diploma holders. As the only degree holder at the time, I was treated differently and with indifference. To be fair to my colleagues, I don’t think the ‘treatment’ was out of any malice. Rather it was a sign of respect for the qualification one had and the university that produced it. Little did they realise that I needed them perhaps more than they needed me.
