This qualitative case study responds to calls for research on the ways critical reflection develops in preservice and novice teachers. While evaluating capacity to reflect is a dominant practice in teacher education, few studies explore empirically how different factors impact teachers' reflection. Building from earlier research that…

Institutions that work with teachers and teaching, from school districts to unions to preparation programs, find themselves under enormous pressure to define who teachers ought to be and what capabilities they ought hold, before outside forces define those ideas for them. Still, consensus is hard to find. While other professions "manage…

In California as elsewhere, state policy anticipates that aspiring teachers will follow a uniform, multistep path into the profession. It assumes they will complete a preparation program and earn a preliminary credential, take a teaching job and be assigned probationary status, complete a two-year induction program (the Beginning Teacher Support…

Peer Assistance and Review (PAR) is a local labor-management initiative designed to improve teacher quality. In PAR, expert "consulting teachers" mentor, support, and evaluate novice and underperforming veteran teachers. Evaluations under PAR can lead to dismissals. The authors examine the costs and benefits of PAR, both financial and…

"Harvard Education Letter" is published bimonthly by the Harvard Graduate School of Education. This issue of "Harvard Education Letter" contains the following articles: (1) Taking the Measure of New Teachers: California Shifts from Standardized Tests to Performance-Based Assessment as a Condition of Licensure (Robert Rothman);…

This guide is intended to help the reader understand: the value of teacher induction programs designed to orient, support, train, and assess novice teachers; what makes induction programs work; the essential ingredients of an effective induction program; and how to get started improving efforts to support and assess novice teachers. Six sections…

Surveyed beginning teaches, support providers, site administrators, and program staff in local California Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment programs regarding their perceptions of the effectiveness of various program elements in fostering reflective teaching, examining policy intents, program goals, and teachers' understandings of their…

This report examines key elements of effective new teacher assessment and support, reviews southeastern states' progress in developing quality induction programs, and offers recommendations for action. More dollars are being invested in new teachers than ever before, and some states have markedly increased the quantity of new teacher support…

This report presents the California edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's 2008 "State Teacher Policy Yearbook." The 2008 "Yearbook" focuses on how state policies impact the retention of effective new teachers. This policy evaluation is broken down into three areas that encompass 15 goals. Broadly, these goals…

For five years running, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) has tracked states' teacher policies, preparing a detailed and thorough compendium of teacher policy in the United States on topics related to teacher preparation, licensure, evaluation, career advancement, tenure, compensation, pensions and dismissal. The "2011 State…

Nine articles by California educators are included in this guidebook for the planning and implementation of beginning teacher support programs, with a focus on improving teacher quality and retention. An explicit relationship between the conceptual framework and the operational program increases the effectiveness of such programs. Chapters titles…

This report summarizes the policy framework for operating the California Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) program and interprets information from a statewide evaluation survey of all beginning teachers, support providers, and school site administrators in 34 local BTSA projects. It reviews 3 years of data, emphasizing spring 1998.…

This 3-part developmental support and assessment process program workbook is based on the State of California expectations for beginning teachers. It focuses on interactions between and among beginning teachers and support providers. The workbook has three parts. Part 1, "Gathering Assessment Information: Developing a Professional Growth…

The Inland Empire (California) Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment Project (IE-BTSA) is intended to develop and implement assessment strategies designed for beginning teachers. The IE-BTSA program includes three major assessments used throughout the beginning teachers' induction year: a classroom observation, a learning journal, and a teacher…

As one of several efforts to address the low retention rates of beginning teachers in California schools, the Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment Project (BTSA) is providing support for new teachers along with a component that assesses their classroom competencies. The assessment component and planned evaluation studies are described. BTSA…