In this chapter the notion of assemblage is put to work in order to understand how the early career researcher-musician-educator comes to be formed from the milieu. An analysis of the relationship between research as knowledge production and the artistic desire for aesthetics and affectivity is undertaken to trouble the boundaries that separate…

The use of collaborative writing partnerships is frequently cited as an effective strategy to increase the productivity and quality of academic writing (Austin & Baldwin, 1991). However, developing and utilizing these relationships effectively can prove challenging to early-career academics. This article used Boud, Keogh, and Walker's (1985)…

Teach For America (TFA), founded in 1989, has grown to become one of the largest providers of educators in the country for high-needs, under-resourced schools. TFA recruits high-performing college graduates and professionals and prepares them for teaching during five to seven weeks of intensive pre-service training at one of its regional or…

This paper examines the social tie formation of 18 novice teachers in the United States. The authors use a novel interview technique to understand the relationships among organizational structure, individual agency, and experience in how early career teachers (ECTs) construct and maintain their social networks. This analysis yielded several…

Teacher self-efficacy is critical because it predicts teachers' future behavior and impacts teacher turnover. Most teachers begin their career with moderate to high self-efficacy for teaching, but often experience a sharp decline during the first year of teaching. After the first year, their self-efficacy begins to increase but rarely rises to the…

The last three issues of "Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD)" have featured perspectives from a diverse set of contributors on how the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) is being impacted by COVID-19. As four newly appointed faculty members with diverse backgrounds, the editor of "IDD"…

This article presents an overview of literature on special education teacher burnout and attrition, which has historically been a significant challenge that culminates in a cycle of teacher shortages and subsequent negative outcomes for students with disabilities. As a proactive measure to combat special education teacher stress, burnout, and…

This article focuses attention on influences that affect Early Career Teachers' (ECTs') professionalism during their process of learning to teach. The main purpose is to generate an approach informed by Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) and evaluate the relevance of this approach to research influences affecting ECTs' professionalism and…

This paper presents the start-up methodology for a project that leverages the opportunities that social media affords to give teachers voice and agency. In response to negative press about teachers in mainstream media, coupled with research that shows that teachers are working hard to meet student academic and wellbeing needs, the researchers…

This paper examines the complex interweaving of the 'personal' and 'professional' in the affective labour of teachers. In line with theorisations of affective labour, contemporary school-teaching involves practices of self-work and self-making, as much as practices of curriculum and pedagogy. One emergent form of self-work, reflective of…

In this paper, I use an autoethnographic approach to explore my everyday experiences as an early career lecturer at a UK-based university. I uncover some of my underlying experiences of imposter syndrome, presenting the ways it manifests in my teaching activities. This paper recommends areas in which higher education institutions can offer support…

Burnout is a significant problem that continues to plague the teaching profession. In this essay, I argue that the burnout of early-career teachers is not solely a function of personal factors (e.g., their knowledge, their beliefs, their pedagogical skills, their commitment to the teaching profession) but also a function of the organizational…

Mentors for beginning teachers in schools are often unacknowledged middle leaders in their schools. Through their work with beginning teachers, they not only provide local leadership in their contexts, they influence and shape the work of the next generation of teachers. Government-funded mentor training for the purpose of supporting beginning…

Novice teachers bring new energy and ideas to schools and classrooms that could improve the learning environment of students, if harnessed correctly. At the same time, novice teachers are, by definition, inexperienced in some aspects concerning classroom practices and schoolwork. As is the case for any other profession, novice teachers need time,…

Three new physics teachers graduating from a university provider of initial teacher education in England were paired with a recently retired physics subject specialist teacher in order to provide informal mentoring during their first year of teaching. The aim of this was to explore if a mentoring intervention of this kind could support teacher…