This case focuses on one novice school principal's experience with an elopement incident. School elopement sets the background for this case, and in this situation, the principal sees the need to take action to increase school safety and special needs students' teacher support. The authors enumerate leadership practices and organizational…

All but four states in the nation now permit teachers to come into the profession through an "alternate route," compared to only a few 30 years ago. Alternate routes into the classroom have grown so acceptable that about one in five teachers now enters the profession through one of these programs, which offer some real benefits to the…

This Special Issues Brief from the Center on Great Teachers and Leaders (GTL Center) outlines the unique characteristics of high-need schools, supports state and district leaders as they consider their role in implementing initiatives with a focus on equity, and explores how programs can be customized to meet the unique circumstances of a…

Public school teaching is a profession in transition. Already the largest occupation in the United States, it is expanding faster than the nation's student population. Teachers of color are entering the profession at twice the rate of white teachers, reversing an exodus after civil rights victories opened many other doors to African Americans. And…

Research from 6 years of AISD REACH suggested the program likely influenced student performance, teacher practices, and novice teacher retention. However, little evidence showed schoolwide growth or retention stipends facilitated desired results.

This review of teaching standards in six states updates a 2009 review (White, Makkonen, and Stewart 2009) by incorporating California's recently adopted teaching standards alongside those from Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, Ohio, and Texas. The previous review was developed at the request of key education agencies in California to inform the…

The purpose of this study was to identify challenges faced by induction-year teachers in Texas. The target population for the study was induction teachers in Texas during the 2005-2006 school year (N = 98). A census was conducted and 73 teachers responded resulting in a 77% response rate. Data were collected using an electronic questionnaire…

In the USA, the attrition rates of teachers in the first 3-5 years of teaching are around 30%, and in Texas, 73% of teachers who did not experience a formal induction programme left the profession within 2 years. These statistics are a cause for concern and suggest that the first few years in teaching are crucial in teachers deciding whether to…

We examined the five most recent years of data (2003-2004 through 2007-2008) from the Texas Academic Excellence Indicator System regarding new teachers employed at high school campuses. We specifically focused on the extent to which differences were present between high school campuses with the highest new teacher percentages and high school…

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…

It is widely believed that starting public school teacher salaries are too low, and student loan burdens are too high. If true, everyone could be facing a situation in which recent college graduates cannot afford to go into teaching because they will be unable to repay their college debts. Public policies are already being formulated on the basis…

This report presents the Texas 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 examine…

The purpose of this study had two objectives, first to determine the number of new teachers that had left the teaching profession in a five year period (2000-2005), and to learn about mentors teachers' perspectives regarding the mentor training and the program as a whole. Methodology: A questionnaire was administered to some mentor teachers, and…

The Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act and the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 require that students with disabilities be included in statewide assessments and general education accountability systems, thereby placing increased demands on special education teachers. At issue is how new teachers are prepared to respond to…

Every child has the right to a highly qualified teacher, yet as a nation we are reluctant to empirically investigate how teacher preparation programs are succeeding. Results from the present study suggested that (a) traditionally certified (TC) teachers felt better prepared than non-traditionally certified (NTC) teachers on communicating,…