Mentoring programs for beginning teachers are designed to retain good teachers by providing them with psychological support and instructional assistance and introducing them to the cultures of the school and the district. Being a mentor also figures prominently in veteran teachers' professional development. An examination of the literature reveals that veteran teachers frequently characterize working closely with beginning teachers as a source of new ideas about curriculum and teaching. Mentors report that mentoring has forced them to be reflective about their own beliefs about teaching, students, learning, and teaching as a career, and provided them with opportunities to validate the experience they have gained over the years. Prospective mentors, however, need early training and ongoing support as mentors. A major pitfall for mentoring programs is failing to understand the role of mentoring within the broader context of beginning teacher induction; e.g., it is inappropriate to view the primary role of mentors to be the remediation of weak teachers. Moreover, if beginning teachers are not adequately committed to teaching, mentoring may actually lead them out of a teaching career rather than into one. (Contains 19 references.) (ND)