Teacher collaboration is a topic that, although often studied, understanding teachers' collaborative practices continues to be complex. The study site is no exception. Recent data suggests that while collaboration among teachers is often depicted as "natural" and "easy," fostering rich and authentic collaboration can be…

The high attrition rates of teachers early in their career is a well-documented problem that school districts around the United States have been grappling with for decades with limited success (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2019; Ingersoll, 2003). The COVID-19 pandemic increased the attrition of experienced teachers, with 55% of teachers…

The United States is experiencing a critical teacher shortage impacting public schools in all regions. Unfortunately, high teacher attrition rates can contribute to educational inequity for students, creating situations in which some students receive a higher quality education than others. Unfortunately, teacher attrition tends to be most…

Teacher turnover can have a negative impact on school districts. This study sought to examine the causes for teacher turnover and to find solutions to increase teacher retention. Data collected in Cycle 1 originated from interviews with 10 continuing contract teachers focusing on their experiences in the classroom. From cycle 1 data, action steps…

Purpose: There is a need to support midcareer faculty who have demonstrated scholarly success but require additional development. The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of an initiative for "star faculty" at midcareer, with an emphasis on the role of exceptional others in their professional growth.…

The pandemic revealed inequities facing educators; in response, a district/university partnership hired seven external mentor/teacher leaders (TLs) to support 100+ early career teachers (ECTs). Drawing on sociocultural theories and a critical discourse analysis of 10 hour-long discussions among mentors, we sought to understand their collectively…

The research for this dissertation is presented in manuscript format with an introduction, an in-depth outline of three manuscripts related to this study, and a conclusion that follows. As design-based research serving as the foundation to this work, the first manuscript used networked inquiry to uncover what teachers need in order to transform…

This study explored the lived experiences of experienced educators who support novice teachers to better inform teacher recruitment and retention policies and practices. A qualitative transcendental phenomenological method was used to interview 12 experienced educators from four high schools in one Louisiana public school district to learn about…

Purpose: This article aims to present a unique dimension to mentor studies in that unlike most research that focuses on the novice-teachers-mentee, this study explores the influence of mentoring on the mentors themselves. Two main questions were examined: "Which components of mentoring influence the mentors' professional development?"…

Teachers typically do not enter the profession with an inkling that they will become involved in recurring conflict. In fact, Collinson and Cook (2007) suggested that teachers often prefer working alone and in their own classroom, at least in part because they are often conflict-avoidant. Whereas schools were comparably conflict-free 30 years ago…

The purpose of this study was to engage veteran mentor teachers in a professional development experience through the use of stimulated video recall (SVR) sessions to explore and enhance mentor teacher learning processes and outcomes during a student teaching practicum in an elementary school context. The concept of "mentors as learners"…

Education continues to diversify with the growth of schools and the influx of beginning teachers. The increased presence of beginning teachers emphasizes the need for teacher-mentoring. This systematic review examined what research shows about training and preparation of teacher-mentors in high school education, revealing three themes: mentor…

To aid departments in growing and supporting the potential of novice instructors, this paper shares a peer-mentoring program that has been implemented at three universities over the last five years for graduate student instructors (GSIs, master, and doctoral) within mathematics departments. This paper provides frameworks, curricular topics,…

There is global agreement that schools should be inclusive, however both experienced and inexperienced teachers find this challenging. In this study we explore how experienced teachers working as local mentors for newly qualified teachers (NQTs) address the challenges they face in an inclusive school. The study is designed as a qualitative study…

The purpose of this mixed-methods single case study was to identify the perceived influence of a teacher mentoring program on participants' professional development and retention in the education profession at a small school district in the Southeastern United States. This study sought the perspectives of mentors, mentees, and building…