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ERIC Number: ED373033
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1994-Feb-11
Pages: 65
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Concerns of Beginning Middle and Secondary School Teachers.
Thomas, Beverly; Kiley, Margaret A.
Statistics indicate that 15 percent of beginning teachers leave the profession after the first year of teaching, and more than 50 percent leave within 6 years. This study was conducted to identify the problems and concerns faced by neophyte teachers at the middle and high school levels, and to distinguish between the concerns of first-year, second-year, and experienced but non-tenured teachers, new to the school district under study. The sample--middle and high school teachers in a growing school of Maryland (N=68) completed a questionnaire requesting demographic data, and rankings of both classroom and out-of-class concerns. According to the data analysis: (1) first-year teachers' concerns focused on the classroom, and tended to focus more on dealing with individual student differences, working with special needs students, and classroom management and discipline; (2) the majority of first-year teachers (63 percent) were under 25, while the other groups ranged in age from 26 to 45; and (3) older teachers reported greater concern over outside-the-classroom issues such as extracurricular assignments. Based on the responses, recommendations are offered which address: opportunities for inservice activities, peer mentoring, creation of professional development programs for all teachers, and the availability of support and assistance throughout a teacher's career. The bulk of the paper is an appendix containing statistical tables (numbered 6 through 33) detailing the study's findings. (Contains 15 references.) (LL)
Publication Type: Speeches/Meeting Papers; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A