Describes efforts of Montgomery Township (New Jersey) school district to attract and retain good teachers. District actively seeks high-quality candidates, provides support for beginning teachers' emotional and professional needs, establishes positive mentor relationships, and offers sustained professional development opportunities. (PKP)

As a beginning teacher, the author gladly adapted companies' complimentary kits, snacks, and fast-food ads to her own purposes. She later realized that every corporate calendar, filmstrip, and free admission came with a price tag: corporate promotion. She now shields her students from advertising and creates many of her own materials. (MLH)

Two education professors developed New Teacher Groups to offer a safe place where beginning teachers can voice their concerns, share their joys and frustrations, and help one another deal with problems. Interviews with participants revealed that nearly two-thirds attended for personal and professional support they could get nowhere else. (MLH)

Article based on Public Agenda study of attitudes and feelings of new teachers that found them highly motivated, committed, and enthusiastic about their chosen profession. Study also found that school administrators were equally positive about new teachers. Challenges widely held assumptions about decline in supply and quality of new teachers.…

The Jefferson School District in Daly City, California, uses a systematic procedure for selecting and pairing master teachers and novices. (Author/TE)

There are six basic qualities of good mentoring: commitment to the mentoring role, acceptance of beginning teachers, proficiency at providing instructional support, interpersonal effectiveness, skill at modeling continuous learning, and ability to communicate hope and optimism. A sidebar explains the Mentoring Leadership and Resource network. (10…

In "The First Year of Teaching: Real World Stories from American Teachers," editor Pearl Rich Kane collects 25 stories probing male-female differences, moral classroom dilemmas, and teacher training deficiencies. In "A Lifetime of Teaching: Portraits of Five Veteran High School Teachers," Rosetta M. Cohen examines outstanding teachers' passionate…

Linguistic coaching is a comprehensive approach to effective communication that helps teachers cope with stress, establish teaching-role authority, and improve their overall outlook and performance. The three principles of linguistic coaching are identifying the performance needing improvement, establishing interpretations behind the performance,…

Discusses research related to the cost, causes, and consequences of teacher attrition especially in high-poverty schools. Includes four major factors influencing teacher attrition: Salaries, working conditions, teacher preparation, and mentor support. Draws implications for educational policy and practice. (Contains 28 references.) (PKP)

In "Snapshots from High School: Teachers' vs. Professors' Views," Dona Kagan describes an indirect dialog that she orchestrated between two Alabama high school teachers and two unnamed education professors ("Educational Leadership," March 1993). Burch says that Kagan misrepresents and oversimplifies university/school-classroom…

Teaching portfolios are making their way into today's classrooms in three important ways: as habits of mind helping teachers define good practice; as processes teachers use for reflecting on their own teaching and learning; and as new teaching strategies mirroring student learning practices. (MLH)

Nearly 2 million new teachers are projected to enter U.S. schools in the next decade. Currently, 30% of beginning teachers leave during their first five years. To support new teachers, schools should carefully consider novices' teaching schedules, cooperate with university training programs, and provide mentors. California's state-supported…

In 1986, the Columbus (Ohio) Public Schools established the Peer Assistance and Review (PAR) program, cooperatively developed by teachers' union representatives and district administrators. The idea was to help interns (new teachers and those experiencing particular difficulties) become effective teachers. Interns do not perceive a conflict…

As a beginning teacher, the author did not recognize that knowing her students was as important as knowing her subject. Teachers should personalize assignments and ask students to write a letter about themselves, write notes explaining tardiness or late homework, create learning logs, and help solve classroom problems. (MLH)

A study examined ACT and SAT scores of candidates taking a test from the Educational Testing Service's Praxis II series for teachers in 1995-1997. People who pass teacher-licensure tests have academic skills comparable to those of the overall population of SAT takers. Whites have higher pass rates than do minorities. (MLH)