Chapter 11: Creating a Supportive Virtual Mentorship Community for Educators Through the Mentoree

Student wellbeing has taken an increasingly prominent place in K–12 education in Canada and worldwide (Anderson & Graham, 2016; Forshaw & Woods, 2022; Montemurro et al., 2023; Shavard, 2022). On a global level, “good health and wellbeing” is one of the United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals. In UNESCO’s “Strategy on Education for Health and Well-being,” one of the strategic priorities focuses on “all children and young people hav[ing] access to safe, inclusive, health-promoting learning environments” (2016, p. 12) to support their health and wellbeing. Despite this increased global focus on student wellbeing, Canada is not faring well. According to the most recent United Nations Report Card which measures child and youth wellbeing in wealthy countries, Canada ranked 28th out of 39 countries (UNICEF Canada, 2022). Solutions are needed to ensure that the conditions required to enhance student wellbeing are put in place. Schools are recognized as a critical setting for efforts to improve mental health and wellbeing (Joint Consortium for School Health [JCSH], 2010; Montemurro et al., 2023). In Canada, evidence of this amplified focus on wellbeing can be seen across the country (Ahmed & Schwind, 2018; JCSH, 2010, Montemurro et al., 2023). For example, the Ontario Ministry of Education (2020–2023) recognizes that,