Teacher induction programs have been used by districts and schools to help respond to high turnover and inadequate preparation among beginning teachers. These programs are offered to novice teachers entering their own classrooms and are designed to provide professional development (PD) and support. Although most districts use some form of teacher…

Partnership in teacher education is usually seen as needing to occur between the university and a school. This teacher education program, however, considers partnership across many stakeholders, in addition: employer authorities, community agencies and pre-service teachers themselves as active partners. Using Wenger's (1998) concept of communities…

Induction and mentoring of novice teachers have gained considerable worldwide attention. However, in the United Arab Emirates, graduates from teacher education programmes are recruited as teachers without being provided with any formal school-based support. They suffer from stress, overload, and low self-esteem and a high percentage leave…

This article explores the nature of the reflective learning undertaken by pre-service trainee teachers training to teach in the lifelong learning sector in the UK. The argument made is that reflecting on the student voice can support novice teacher's boundary-crossing and legitimate peripheral participation (Lave and Wenger, 1991; Heggen, 2008).…

This article discusses results from a study on beginning teachers who developed university interns as a focus of their induction program at their schools. For 13-weeks, four novice physical educators (who were considered highly skilled pedagogically) received support from prior university faculty as interns worked with them twice weekly. Results…

This paper argues that given the complexities and contested nature of contemporary higher education, induction programmes for new academics should move beyond generic approaches to teaching and learning and engage academics in considering the contexts in which they are practising, focusing on developing their agency in these complex contexts. A…

In the new political landscape, lawmakers in state after state are anxiously sponsoring legislation eliminating "last-in, first-out" policies. News reports would have people believe every untenured teacher, with just a few months of experience, is a "Teacher of the Year" candidate, while every tenured professional is a money-grabbing, lazy and…

Five years ago, few would have predicted that expenditures for public education would be at the same levels, or perhaps even lower, particularly with growing numbers of "at-risk" students, rising accountability benchmarks, and a nationwide challenge of aging buildings and infrastructure. Yet, in these grim economic times, quality classroom…

Building upon previous literature reviews, this article highlights research and evaluation efforts regarding the effectiveness of mentoring programs for new teacher retention in the USA since 2005. Through the analysis of various mentoring program components, different research methods used, and major findings from these studies, we discuss the…

New special education teachers (SETs) face some typical challenges as well as ones that are specific to their particular work settings. Providing support that addresses teachers' unique needs is important for increasing their effectiveness, helping them make a smooth entry into teaching, and reducing their stress and turnover. Nearly 20 years ago,…

Teacher attrition is a growing problem in the United States, especially in urban, low-income schools. Research indicates that up to 55% of new teachers working in urban, low-income schools quit within five years; 17% before the end of the first year. Unfortunately, a teacher's potential is not fully known until the teacher's fifth or sixth year of…

Most states have policies for new teacher induction and mentoring programs that districts use as a foundation when designing and implementing local programs. Although most state policies do not differentiate programs for novice special education teachers, there are particular aspects of their experience--discussed in this Brief--that may affect…

Increasingly, principals play an important role in new special education teacher induction. Although novice special education teachers benefit from the same types of support and induction that their general education colleagues receive, certain aspects of their experience require additional attention. This Brief summarizes what principals can…

Although novice special education teachers benefit from the same types of support and induction that their general education colleagues receive, certain aspects of their experience require attention. This Brief summarizes why a mentoring model is needed for novice special education teachers and what teacher educators can do to help establish a…

In this article, the author describes her induction years in high school teaching, reporting the frustration in lacking a suitably matched mentor, and her determination to attend to her own professional growth. Her story reveals characteristics common among "stayers," those who continue beyond their induction years and thrive for a long time as…