In 1985, North Carolina established a program known as the Lateral Entry Policy (LEP), which allows schools to hire non-certified individuals to teach in classrooms. This study was conducted in order to learn more about the individuals, the school systems, and the training process involved in LEP certification. A group of 758 teachers with a…

This document is a compilation of 11 separate reports on the Houston Independent School District (Texas) support program, 1989-90, which paired over 300 first-year teachers with mentors who usually taught the same subject or grade level, were assigned to the same school, were experienced, agreed to work with beginning teachers, and were paid a…

This study was conducted to: (1) determine the concerns of beginning elementary teachers; (2) identify perceived successes of novice teachers; (3) learn the extent of orientation provided; (4) ascertain the kinds of professional support received from fellow teachers and administrators; (5) identify the kinds of professional assistance needed; and…

This part of the Papua New Guinea new secondary teachers study aimed at finding out more about why teacher trainees at Goroka Teachers College chose teaching as a career. One of the important factors about whether students stay in teaching for a short or a long time is the way that their choices of school are dealt with administratively. Students…

In the continuing effort to raise the academic performance of public schools, improving teacher retention could be an important strategy for California. Keeping new teachers in the classroom could improve academic performance, because experienced teachers are, on average, more effective at raising student test scores. Better retention of teachers…

This report describes challenges facing the East Baton Rouge Parish School System, Louisiana, highlighting teacher turnover and teacher preparation and support. Findings are based on national, state, and local studies that investigated the status of teachers and teaching in the community (preparation, recruitment, retention, certification,…

This guide for beginning teachers provides assistance in the following areas: (1) "Physical Environment and Materials" (e.g., room arrangement and bulletin boards); (2) "Setting Expectations" (e.g., rules and consequences and early parent communication); (3) "First Days of School" (e.g., activities and teacher daily…

Research shows that teacher quality may be one of the most significant factors in student achievement. This report includes five chapters that focus on: (1) "Introduction and Executive Summary"; (2) "Coordinating K-12 and Higher Education to Support High-Quality Teacher Preparation" (e.g., coordinating teacher candidate experience in K-12 and…

This document responds to the components of North Carolina's Excellent Schools Act that pertain to mentoring. The first section includes tools for the selection of mentors: a listing of mentor selection criteria, a mentor nomination form, a faculty survey instrument for mentor candidates, interview questions for mentors, a mentor application form,…

This paper discusses how the collaboration of several educational groups (the Illinois Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, Illinois Association of Teacher Education, Commission for Quality Teacher Education in Illinois, Golden Apple Foundation, and Illinois Staff Development Council) has helped influence public policy. The…

This monograph discusses the Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) program, a new vision of doctoral education that seeks to broaden the traditional preparation of students who become faculty members. Chapter 1 reviews the four phases of the program, beginning with phase 1 (1993-96) to phase 4 (1999-2002). The program involves a group of cooperating…

This paper discusses reported strengths and weaknesses in models for university involvement in preservice teacher education and support for new classroom teachers, models that tend to be either institutional and continuous or independent and transitory, and examines an alternative approach that combines institutional independence with the…

This paper discusses recent Illinois legislation related to education reform and some collaborative approaches being used to impact public policy. It shares implementation updates regarding the rules and regulations attached to the legislation and how these changes could impact educational excellence, equity, and accountability in the 21st…

Illinois, in partnership with the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, is transforming its teacher preparation and training sequence into a strong teacher development system that will result in improved teacher recruitment, preparation, induction, certification, professional development, and retirement. This paper outlines the…

One of five articles on professional development schools in this theme issue. Describes the experiences of University of Massachusetts at Amherst with a collaborative, internship-based secondary teacher education program--Math English Science Technology Education Project (MESTEP)--and the university's collaboration with a high school science…