This report describes a study on Arizona's beginning teacher induction, examining how induction program elements vary statewide. It also examines three induction models: the California Model, the Connecticut Model, and a model for science teachers in Arizona. In 2000, researchers surveyed 197 traditional public school districts regarding their…

This paper describes the Beginning Educator Support and Training (BEST) program in Connecticut. In 1999, Connecticut became the first state in the United States to implement mandatory portfolio assessment as a component of its teacher certification program. The BEST program itself has been part of the state's educational reform initiatives for…

For past two decades, there has been a growing national concern about teacher quality. This presentation discusses Connecticut's Beginning Educator Support and Training Program (BEST) and emulation of its assessment component by a medium sized department of education. The support component of BEST requires that all school districts provide…

This two-phase study was conducted to content validate through professional consensus the competencies for use in training and certifying prospective public school teachers in Connecticut. In phase one, a two round modified Delphi approach was used to bring a panel of outstanding Connecticut educators to consensus as to which competencies were…

This paper describes a new portfolio-based assessment program for beginning science teachers who seek a license to teach in Connecticut's middle and high schools. This is part of the comprehensive Beginning Educator Support and Training (BEST) induction program for beginning teachers in Connecticut. The science portfolio assessment requires all…

Development and implementation processes of the Beginning Educator Support and Training (BEST) program, a teacher evaluation and support system in Connecticut, are described. Purposes of the BEST teacher induction program include facilitating the acquisition of effective teaching behaviors, supporting new teachers, and developing veteran teachers'…

Background: For ten years, the National Science Education Standards (National Research Council, 1996) have served as the foundation for Connecticut's teacher certification in science and the expectations of teacher practice secondary science classrooms. Furthermore, beginning science teachers must demonstrate the ability to teach in an…

This study was conducted in the Connecticut public schools during the l989-90 school year to determine why it is so difficult for urban school districts to recruit and retain teachers. The specific purpose was to identify policy-manipulable variables that predict changes in self-efficacy beliefs within first-year teachers in urban schools. This…

This paper describes performance-based assessment of beginning science teachers who are seeking provisional teaching certificates in Connecticut. The assessment is part of the Science Education Support and Assessment Program (SESAP). The project attempts to turn a summative licensing assessment into a formative instrument to improve science…

The Connecticut Department of Education is in the process of generating a new Beginning Educator Support and Training Program (B.E.S.T.), which features a vision for the future, standards for elementary teaching, and performance and portfolio assessments. The aim is to develop a fluid plan for professional development of teachers. This case study…

Two Connecticut programs designed to support beginning teachers, the Beginning Educator Support and Training Program (BEST) and the Cooperating Teacher Program (CT), are grounded in the collaborative leadership concept. A working partnership between principals and mentor teachers shares responsibility with a state assessment team to support and…

The Office of Educational Research and Improvement funded nine projects exploring whether partnerships could help improve teacher education and induction. It created consortia of state education agencies, state agencies of higher education, teacher education colleges, and local school districts to collaborate on improving teacher education and…