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…

Explores the cooperating teacher's role as a central feature of the student teaching experience and as it relates to the cooperating teacher's own career. The paper stresses the need for K-12 schools and schools, colleges, and departments of education to acknowledge that teacher preparation is their joint responsibility. (SM)

Surveys of preK-12 cooperating teachers examined demographics, perceptions of field experiences, and perceptions of cooperating teachers' contributions, frustrations, and satisfaction with the job. Results indicated that participants believed they contributed to the development of prospective teachers and derived satisfaction from the task,…

This study surveyed three groups of teachers to investigate their perceptions of problems faced by beginning teachers. The study reexamined the usefulness of Veenman's (1984) meta-analysis of the perceived problems of beginning teachers. Participants were Wisconsin beginning teachers, experienced urban teachers, and cooperating teachers. The…

Educational change is often accompanied by a blurring of traditional boundaries among various institutions and chief participants. At all levels, historical lines of authority and presumed centers of expertise are disappearing, thanks to redefined roles, redistributed decision-making responsibility, and new technologies. Transformative examples…

In 1974, the University of Wisconsin Whitewater introduced a university-based mentor program for beginning teachers in its service area. A decision was made at the end of 1999-00 to re-direct the focus of the program from sponsoring a stand-alone mentor program to supporting districts in creating or improving their own mentor programs. This paper…

Like student teaching, early field experiences are a universal feature of teacher preparation. These experiences are intended to serve several purposes. They provide teacher candidates with opportunities for career exploration, bridge the gap between theory and classroom practice, meet state licensing requirements, and, like student teaching,…

This paper reports the results of a mailed survey of beginning and mentor teachers who participated in the Wisconsin-Whitewater Beginning Teacher Assistance Program (BTAP) between 1988 and 1999, a university-based mentoring program for K-12 teachers. The program features graduate credit for required mentor training and beginning teacher…

This paper describes the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater Beginning Teacher Assistance Program. The program, operational since 1974, is collaborative, uniting the personnel and resources of the University, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, and small to medium sized school districts. Beginning teachers are provided with a structured…

This research project explored the perceptions of school teachers, principals, and college lecturers regarding the challenges, obstacles, and needs faced by beginning teachers in Jamaica, West Indies, and the sources of assistance and support available to them. Interviews with participants indicated that teachers and principals were most…

A Wisconsin study examined the perceptions of participants in a state-mandated mentoring program for beginning teachers. A researcher obtained names and addresses of beginning teachers, counselors, and librarians as well as personnel serving as mentors to beginners. A total of 14 mentors and 15 beginning teachers, counselors, and librarians agreed…

This paper looks at six mentoring programs in Wisconsin for beginning teachers. Four of the programs (Beloit, Kenosha, Plattesville, and West Allis-West Milwaukee) are district programs in which teachers assume mentoring responsibilities in addition to teaching. In the Milwaukee School District program, veteran teachers serve as full-time mentors,…

This study, based on a survey of 302 cooperating teachers, investigated what cooperating teachers learn about themselves when working with student teachers, the impact of serving as a cooperating teacher on one's personal career path, satisfying or problematic features of the role of cooperating teacher, and contributions that cooperating teachers…

Exploring the beliefs and ideas that preservice and inservice teachers hold about themselves as teachers, the children they teach, and the setting in which they teach, contributes to a better understanding of how they frame teacher effectiveness and teacher efficacy. Participants in this study included preservice teachers enrolled in teacher…

This paper posits that metaphor, in addition to embellishing language, promotes a comprehensive understanding of complex concepts and phenomena and provides teachers with a powerful way to talk about their work. The main body of this document, which includes an extensive review of the literature, considers the use of metaphors for mentoring in the…