The majority of newly qualified teachers in New South Wales, Australia, begin their careers as casual teachers in fragmented employment contexts which make it difficult to build on the knowledge base gained at university through continuous, and continuously evaluated, practice in a classroom. This study explored the experiences of early career…

The authors examine the literature that sets the foundation for a self-actualization model for teacher induction. The model is analyzed in light of data from a successful induction program designed to keep special education teachers in the profession. (Contains 1 table and 1 figure.)

Using hierarchical linear modeling, student standardized test scores are analyzed to determine the impact of mentoring first- and second-year teachers on their students' achievement. The contrasting group used for comparison consists of experienced teachers in matched schools, grade level, and content area. The study contains data from 300…

Teacher compensation schemes are often criticized for lacking a performance-based component. Proponents of merit pay argue that linking teacher salaries to student achievement will incentivize teachers to focus on raising student achievement and stimulate innovation across the school system as a whole. In this paper, we utilize a policy experiment…

Australia is a multicultural country. In the ten years to November 2007, there were 647,000 migrants who entered Australia (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008). Of these migrants 76% were born in countries other than those identified by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS, 2008) as main English speaking countries (the United Kingdom, The…

This paper discusses the issues inherent in the teacher induction stage based on a literature review. Literature on organizational socialization is utilized as the theoretical framework and for informing the teacher education literature. A conceptual framework of teacher development is proposed to illustrate the stages from teacher preparation to…

The influences that shape beginning teachers' professional identity have been described as part of a changing landscape (Connelly and Clandinin, 1999). When pre-service teachers transition into the role of beginning in-service teachers the landscape changes dramatically. Aspects or features of the landscape that were once familiar may be confirmed…

This study examined new teacher perceptions of the impact of mentoring as evidenced through their experiences in the Louisiana Teacher Assistance and Assessment Program. Primary questions were whether participants experience mentoring as an aid in successful completion of their certification and whether the mentoring component increased teachers'…

This study examined new teachers' perspectives of the mentoring they were or were not receiving, who their mentors were, types of mentoring they were receiving, and roles played by facilitators at the Teachers College New Teacher Institute (NTI). Data came from focus groups and interviews with nine past NTI teachers, needs assessment focus groups…

We use value-added models to calculate measures of effectiveness for new elementary school teachers in Florida between 2001-02 and 2005-06, then compare the attrition and mobility patterns of more and less effective teachers overall and across various types of schools. While we do not find evidence that schools are disproportionately losing their…

This study investigated what new Korean elementary teachers wanted to learn and what experienced teachers, regarded as potential mentors, expected to teach to beginning teachers. The study was conducted to help determine the contents of a mentoring program being developed for new elementary teachers by using needs assessment. Separate…

This paper describes the New Educator Orientation Project at Leland Middle School, North Carolina. Created by a collaboration between school faculty and faculty from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, this inquiry project was intended to develop an interactive orientation manual and accompanying CD-ROM for new faculty joining the…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the confidence levels of new teachers and related factors. Seventy-seven first and second year teachers participating in a new teacher retention project filled out a survey. Teachers felt most confident in their communication with colleagues, sensitivity to the needs of a multicultural classroom, and…

This study examined advice-seeking by beginning teachers. Researchers surveyed 128 beginning teachers and their mentors who were participants in the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater's Beginning Teacher Assistance Program, a university-based program that offers support to small- and medium-sized local school districts. Beginning teachers were…

Over the last two decades, the notion of teacher leadership has emerged as a key concept in both the teaching and leadership literature. While researchers have not reached consensus regarding a definition, there has been some agreement that teacher leadership can operate at both a formal and informal level in schools and that it includes…