This paper reports on an element of a long term research project on the development of a conceptual framework for the training of mentors of beginning teachers. Three aspects are being investigated: (1) mentors' perceptions about mentoring; (2) the relation between mentors' perceptions and their actions in practice; and (3) the effect of mentoring…

This study was conducted to examine changes in the self-perceived efficacy of teacher education majors who were surveyed first as student teachers in 1992 and again as first-year teachers in 1993. The instrument used was a survey of 30 items related to the Mississippi Teacher Assessment Instrument competencies and indicators. Thirteen of the…

National teacher shortages have driven the market for alternative means of teacher certification. This study sought to understand what mentorship means to 27 beginning teachers in a university-district partnership Alternative Certification Program (ACP) in an effort to understand the participants' perceptions. The process included administering…

This book surveys the Career in Teaching (CIT) initiative launched in Rochester, New York, looking at its impact on the district since 1987. CIT incorporates support for new teachers, provides opportunities for highly accomplished teachers to share their skills, and offers peer review and assistance to teachers experiencing problems in their…

Challenges for meeting the highly-qualified teacher demand, exacerbated by the critical shortage of teachers, have necessitated a variety of preparation routes for those entering the profession of teaching. This pilot study examined teacher confidence and self efficacy related to teacher preparedness within the first three years of employment.…

In 2003 the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future convened a design team to launch the Teachers Learning in Networked Communities (TLINC) project. The initial one-year phase, funded by AT&T, involved a TLINC design team partnered with four communities, Pueblo, Colorado; Seattle, Washington; Portland, Maine; and Socorro, Texas. The…

This report raises questions about the support given to new teachers who come to teaching through "alternate routes." It focuses on new teachers in high-needs schools, comparing the perspectives of those from traditional teacher education versus those from three alternate-route programs: Teach for America, Troops to Teachers and The New Teacher…

This document responds to the components of North Carolina's Excellent Schools Act that pertain to mentoring. The first section includes tools for the selection of mentors: a listing of mentor selection criteria, a mentor nomination form, a faculty survey instrument for mentor candidates, interview questions for mentors, a mentor application form,…

The stories, anecdotes, humor, and insights found in this book capture what it means to be a teacher. The book begins with common encounters that are the hallmark of the new-teacher experience, but continues into equally entertaining tales that come with years of working with students, parents, staff, faculty, and administrators. "What It Means…

Scarborough (Ontario) School District Area 10 has had a "New Teacher Support Committee" since September 1991, the focus of which is the support of beginning teachers. During the fall of the 1991-92 school year, Area 10 elementary schools participated in a first year teacher orientation program designed to help teachers new to the…

Eleven South Dakota school-based teacher educators and eight principals participating in a mentoring program for beginning teachers responded favorably to a college course in supervision and collaboration and to financial compensation given to offset costs of inservice teacher training. Attitudes were more favorable among rural than urban…

This paper presents the voices of California beginning teachers who completed focus group discussions on their perceptions of their own development as reflective practitioners, analyzing the nature and extent of teachers' thinking. Teachers were part of the California Formative Assessment and Support System for Teachers (CFASST), which is framed…

This paper presents three appendixes from a workshop that addressed how to identify sources of collateral damage in mentoring programs and how to correct them. The first appendix includes a summary of problem areas that mentoring teams may face as reported in the literature (e.g., transition from teacher training to teaching, selection and…

This report is the second of three annual reports to the Montana Certification Standards and Practices Advisory Council (CSPAC) on the effectiveness of mentoring new teachers. Specific research topics for the study were: (1) whether mentoring conducted under an exclusive one-on-one relationship has an effect on the new teacher's development as…

This report is the third of four reports on the Beginning Teacher Support Program (BTSP) on the effectiveness of mentoring new teachers. The paper focuses on technical aspects of the study. Study data are summarized in tables, including a comparison of teacher retention rates over the three years of BTSP, a summary of administrators' evaluations…