In this paper on the use of teachers as reflective users of peer clinical supervision, a research and literature review relating to the assumptions of clinical supervision, fostering reflective practice through clinical supervision, and the special potential of peer clinical supervision is presented. Then, a personal account of a beginning…

In many cases the only solution to dealing with unsuccessful teachers is to encourage them to go into some other profession. However, it is also the obligation of principals to make certain the beginning teachers get all the assistance that can be provided them to avoid the pitfalls and difficulties that the challenge of the classroom presents.…

Mentoring programs for beginning teachers are designed to retain good teachers by providing them with psychological support and instructional assistance and introducing them to the cultures of the school and the district. Being a mentor also figures prominently in veteran teachers' professional development. An examination of the literature reveals…

An investigation was made of a school district career ladder plan that includes formal responsibility for the supervision, mentoring, and professional growth of the novice/probationary teachers in the schools as a direct part of teacher leader responsibilities. The district career ladder attempts to address greater initial teaching success,…

This summary paper was distributed to participants in a lecture/demonstration session on the Entry Year Assistance Program in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Central to the program is the Entry Year Assistance Committee, consisting of a teacher consultant, a school administrator, and an educator from an institution of higher education which focuses on the first…

The literature on first-year teachers identifies the difficulties of this transition period and supports the need for first-year teacher-induction programs. Little attention, however, has been paid to the principal's role in the induction of beginning teachers. This paper presents findings of a study that examined the perceptions of principals and…

This study is based on a survey of classroom teachers who identified themselves as having served at least once as a cooperating teacher for a student teacher and at least once as a mentor for a beginning teacher in a formal mentoring program for beginning teachers. Analysis of the study data, based on 157 usable surveys and follow-up interviews…

Despite the recognition of the problems faced by beginning teachers, the provision of effective induction programs both in Australia and other nations has been less than universal, with only approximately one-half of beginning Australian teachers involved in any substantive form of teacher induction program. This paper offers a review of…

The mentoring model described in this paper assumes teachers to be self-directing professionals, and adopts the formalized mentor-protege relationship as the starting point and the individual teacher's professional development as the organizing principle for the induction of teachers into the profession. The essential elements of a mentor's…

An induction system for beginning teachers should provide continued support in the instructional area and also induct the newcomer into the general operational and social milieu of the individual school. The following areas of concern in the process of teacher orientation are discussed: (1) What information is provided regarding the decision…

Findings of a study that examined the school administrator's role in the induction and support of beginning teachers are presented in this paper. Conducted in a school district in southwestern Ontario, Canada, data were derived from interviews with 4 principals who volunteered to develop school-based induction programs in their schools and from…

This paper discusses current and future research on alternative supervisory approaches matched to developmental levels of teachers. The two major questions for research were: (1) Is there an interaction between individual characteristics of teachers and supervisory approach with regard to preference and performance? and (2) Can supervisors acquire…

A forum, convened to consider the subject of beginning teacher induction, focused on questions about: (1) the importance of the induction phase; (2) whose domain induction is; (3) what happens to the teacher in this phase; (4) training that is most needed in this phase; (5) how induction is related to licensure; and (6) whether induction is unique…

Research has shown that the induction period is the most crucial time of a teacher's career. Characteristics of teachers who demonstrate an open, lively, and continuous desire to learn are quite different from those of teachers who remain static after their beginning years. In interviews, four experienced teachers were asked about initial…

This paper discusses the nature of teacher induction programs and of research on this topic in European, North American, and Australian countries. Research studies and induction program content and processes in the various countries are explored and compared. Among assertions and conclusions made from this study, which is meant to stimulate…