There continues to be a public outcry concerning the quality of education in our nation. These concerns have translated into numerous programs to improve teaching in the public schools, many of which have focused on mentoring for beginning teachers. The proliferation of programs has shown the need for research investigating the effectiveness of…

Until the beginning of 1994, federal law permitted mandatory retirement of tenured faculty at age 70. The Committee on Mandatory Retirement in Higher Education, formed by the National Research Council, was charged by Congress to examine potential effects on colleges, universities, and faculty members of ending the exemption for tenured faculty…

This presentation discusses strategies upon which to base teacher incentives, and also assumptions within these strategies. The first strategy, influencing teacher turnover rates so that good teachers remain in the profession longer and poor teachers leave teaching sooner, includes consideration of occupational rewards, career structure, benefits,…

This publication analyzes the current status of the teaching profession in California, emphasizing what makes it attractive and satisfying or discouraging to teachers. Important trends in public attitudes about the teaching profession are explored, as well as teachers' perspectives on recruitment and retention. Among the serious problems noted…

Eleven recent reports related to excellence in education were examined, and their implications for vocational education were interpreted. Commonalities and differences among the studies were identified, and a selection of these was developed further with major emphases on teaching and learning. Topics were selected according to their immediacy and…

A State Issues Clearinghouse was established by the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education Combined Task Force on Governmental Relations to monitor and track state activities that impact upon teacher education. This report presents the results of the first survey of the fifty states undertaken by the Clearinghouse. The nine policy…

Reports on a nationwide survey of the teaching profession that compares personal profiles and salaries of public school teachers and 4-year college graduates employed year round. Discusses issues of supply and demand, motivation and morale, job satisfaction, and teacher training. Six charts are included. (IW)

In the spirit of educational reform efforts, public schools have national goals for the first time and are under pressure to adopt a national curriculum, national testing, and parental choice of schools. School reform depends on upgrading teacher education. Only a more carefully recruited, better prepared, and more professionally rewarded teaching…

A research study of 300 Georgia first-year school teachers sought: (1) to identify first-year teachers' perceptions of their undergraduate education curricula; (2) to determine whether significant differences in perceptions exist among groups of first-year teachers categorized on the basis of background information; and (3) to determine which…

Addresses the needs of beginning special education teachers in small, rural school districts; describes strategies for recruiting special education teachers in rural areas; describes programs that small and rural school districts can use to orient new teachers to the school and community; and identifies strategies for retaining teachers in rural…

This presentation examines teacher attrition and defines policies that could help reduce attrition. It first presents a theory of teacher attrition that explains what patterns to expect in teacher attrition and turnover and why some teacher attrition may be inevitable. It presents findings from a longitudinal study of Indiana teachers,…

This paper discusses issues in the recruitment, retention, and training of Native college students as teachers and school administrators. The number of Native educational professionals serving schools for Native students is extremely small, and there is evidence that even this number is declining relative to the increasing Native school…

Projected teacher shortages are due to an expanding need and teachers leaving the profession. With the extreme pressures on beginning teachers, a large percentage of them leave the profession within their first 5-6 years. Causes for leaving the profession include school staffing actions; personal reasons; pursuing another job; and dissatisfaction.…

This paper presents, first, the statutory entitlement authorizing support to educators of children affected by drugs or alcohol; then, a population overview which covers family characteristics, infant, preschool, and classroom needs; and finally, suggestions for recruitment and retention strategies in personnel training and direct service…

This report presents a literature review that was initiated to provide Virginia school districts with information about attracting and retaining quality teachers. The review addresses what school divisions are doing to retain teachers in the first 5 years; teachers' perceptions regarding school division retention strategies; and reasons teachers…