Mentoring and Informal Learning as Continuing Professional Education

Mentoring relationships are widely accepted as fundamental to fostering the development of professional knowledge and expertise in the workplace. This chapter will examine the role of mentoring in CPE, its psychosocial and developmental benefits, transformative potential and limitations. The author adopts a critical perspective, highlighting the potential of mentoring to enhance as well as hinder learning in CPE, for example, addressing diversity and power in mentoring relationships. The chapter will profile and critique new and innovative mentoring opportunities and practices that encourage self-directed learning, reflectivity, and critical thinking in professional practice. The voices of mentors and mentored professionals are interwoven to highlight the lived experience of practitioners.