Mentorship as a Transformative Catalyst: Teaching Challenges and Adaptive Strategies of Pre-Service Teachers in Tubo-Tubo National High School

Pre-service teachers transitioning from theoretical preparation to classroom practice often encounter significant pedagogical challenges. This qualitative study examined the teaching obstacles and adaptive instructional strategies employed by three pre-service teachers during their field-based internship at Tubo-Tubo National High School, with the goal of identifying how professional support structures facilitate early career success. Data were gathered through open-ended survey responses and analyzed using thematic analysis to identify recurring patterns related to classroom experiences, instructional practices, and adaptive teaching strategies. The analysis followed the Braun & Clarke thematic approach, systematically organizing responses according to the study's research questions. Findings revealed that pre-service teachers encountered significant difficulties in explaining concepts clearly, maintaining student engagement, managing diverse classroom behaviors, and addressing heterogeneous learner needs. However, structured mentorship and collaborative guidance from cooperating teachers transformed these challenges into manageable situations, enabling teachers to reframe obstacles as professional development opportunities. Through this supportive framework, pre-service teachers employed deliberate instructional strategies—including guided practice, group discussions, problem-solving activities, and step-by-step teaching—that directly enhanced pedagogical competencies in classroom management, lesson planning, and communication. As these strategies were implemented iteratively and reflected upon with mentor guidance, pre-service teachers progressively developed an integrated adaptive system encompassing time management and lesson preparation, understanding of student diversity through observation, and flexible teaching grounded in reflective practice. Effective pre-service teacher development requires comprehensive, integrated support combining mentoring structures, challenge-oriented professional development, and reflective experiential learning, enabling pre-service teachers to develop technical teaching skills alongside the emotional-psychological resilience necessary for sustainable career commitment