Mentoring as a Protective Relationship and Prevention

/in , , /by

Martins, J., Moreira, T., Cunha, J., Núñez, J. C., & Rosário, P. (2024). Be SMART: Promoting goal setting with students at-risk of early school leaving through a mentoring program. Children and Youth Services Review, 157, 107423. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2023.107423

Introduction

Martins and colleagues (2024) investigated a school-based mentoring program designed to promote SMART goal-setting skills among students at risk of early school leaving. Implemented within a Portuguese national mentoring policy, the program aimed to strengthen students’ self-regulated learning (SRL) by explicitly training them to set specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound goals.

Methods

Using a qualitative multiple case study design, the authors followed 14 elementary and middle school students (aged 12–17) who participated in 20 weekly mentoring sessions over two school terms. Students’ goals were collected before and after the program using life map diagrams and analyzed through directed content analysis based on goal domain (academic vs. non-academic) and SMART characteristics.

Results

Results showed a post-program increase in academic goals and greater integration of SMART characteristics, but only among younger students (ages 12–16). These students set clearer, more realistic academic goals after the intervention. In contrast, older students (age 17) continued to focus exclusively on non-academic goals and showed no meaningful change in goal-setting quality. Improvements in SMART goal setting were limited to academic goals, suggesting restricted transfer to non-school contexts.

Discussion

The findings indicate that a school-based mentoring program emphasizing SMART goal setting can benefit younger students at risk of early school leaving by helping them develop clearer and more academically focused goals.

Implications for Mentoring Programs

Mentoring programs targeting SMART goal setting may be more effective when implemented earlier and highlight the importance of developmentally tailored mentoring interventions for students at risk of school dropout.

Read the full paper here.