Beginning teachers enter the classroom with diverse backgrounds, training, expectations, and needs. Yet too often, write the authors, induction programs resemble a one-size-fits-all poncho rather than a well-tailored coat. Reviewing the research, the authors write that high-quality mentors, a focus on improving instruction, and allocated time are…

Districts nationwide are implementing teacher induction programs as a strategy to increase both beginning teacher retention and student achievement. The induction of beginning teachers has been widely acknowledged as important for teachers' feelings of success and their retention (Darling-Hammond, 1994; Huling-Austin, 1989; Smylie, 1994).…

Student teaching is a cornerstone of teacher preparation, yet it remains one of the most difficult experiences to understand. Calls for an ecological approach to research on student teaching prompted this study in which the experience is examined from the perspective of the three key triad members. Using activity theory, this study explores how…

Examines the role that policies concerning curriculum, professional development, and mentoring in two reform-active districts played in shaping the experiences and concerns of two first-year language-arts teachers. Finds that the two districts served powerful roles as teacher educators, even if the first-year teachers are only dimly aware of…