Quality Mentoring For Novice Teachers

This survey of best practices is extremely useful to those charged with setting up state and local mentoring programs and provides a logical framework to convince policy makers to support teacher-induction programs. Case studies and discussion questions make this a valuable textbook for teacher education courses and tool for faculty in the school setting.

This book draws together various theoretical and research-based perspectives to examine the institutionalization of mentoring processes for beginning teachers. Teacher induction, defined as the guidance provided to new teachers, is increasingly gaining traction as a key stage in promoting quality education. Major efforts have been put into reducing transitional challenges from being a student teacher to a practicing teacher; optimizing professional relationships and socialization into school dynamics; and increasing teacher retention. Mentoring has been proven to add benefits in assisting beginning teachers during the early years of their teaching career, because it provides the required knowledge and skills to face uncertain school scenarios and the complexities of practice. However, teacher induction programs are not part of regular instruction in many countries. The lack of teacher training during the induction phase might result in lower levels of commitment, professional isolation, or even attrition. This book calls for more concrete mentoring processes for early career teachers, and questions how this can be put into practice.

In this practical yet visionary book, Ellen Moir and her colleagues at the New Teacher Center review what current research suggests--and doesn't--about the power of well-designed mentoring programs to shape teacher and student outcomes. They set forth the principles of high-quality instructional mentoring and describe the elements of a rigorous professional development program. Detailed case studies show how these principles can be applied at the district level and highlight the opportunities and challenges involved in implementing these programs in different contexts. This book makes a powerful case for using new teacher mentoring as an entry point for creating a strong professional culture with a shared, aligned understanding of high-quality teaching. "One of the biggest challenges facing educational leaders today is finding strategies to keep our best and brightest teachers in our nation's classrooms. Mentoring new and veteran teachers is critical to meeting that challenge. New Teacher Mentoring: Hopes and Promise for Improving Teacher Effectiveness is a must read for educators who are serious about transforming America's classrooms." -- Beverly L. Hall, superintendent, Atlanta Public Schools and 2009 National Superintendent of the Year "A combination of theory and practice makes this book particularly useful to educators who are responsible for the success of new teachers. The wisdom, experience, and dedication of the authors ensures that the field has a book that will endure as a valued resource for decades." -- Stephanie Hirsh, executive director, National Staff Development Council "Ellen Moir and her colleagues are world leaders in teacher mentoring. Tens of thousands of children and young people would be far worse off had it not been for the significantly better classrooms that their well-mentored teachers have created. Moir and all those at the New Teacher Center know how to do mentoring, how to improve mentoring, and how to achieve all this on an immense scale. Here, they show just how well they can write about mentoring too. If you are a teacher or want to help one, then read this book! Its rigorous, evidence-based analysis and riveting prose will inspire you, inform you, and spur you on to do even greater things for your own and other teachers' students." -- Andy Hargreaves, Brennan Chair in Education, Boston College Ellen Moir is founder and executive director of the New Teacher Center. Dara Barlin is the associate director of policy for the New Teacher Center. Janet Gless is associate director of the New Teacher Center. Jan Miles is northwest regional director at the New Teacher Center.

This updated edition presents 18 successful real-world programs, 5 factors for developing a comprehensive mentoring initiative, and new material for mentoring special education, math, and science teachers.

In response to a growing interest in mentoring and new teacher induction, the authors offer a unique view of developing quality mentors. Drawing on empirical research, practitioner action inquiry, and field-tested practices from induction programs, they explore effective mentoring in diverse educational contexts. With richly contextualized and thoughtfully analyzed excerpts from actual mentoring conversations and powerful examples of practice, the volume offers educators, researchers, and policymakers a reform-minded vision of the future of mentoring. Challenging conventional wisdom, this essential resource: Argues that mentors are not born, but developed through conscious, deliberate, ongoing learning; Provides a needed link between research and practice in the field of new teacher mentoring, to define a knowledge base for effective mentoring; Documents induction and mentoring practices that focus new teachers on individual learners, equity-oriented curriculum and pedagogy, and the educator's role in reforming school culture; Highlights problems and complexities of enacting mentor knowledge and learning in diverse contexts.

The first edition of Mentoring Beginning Teachers was named an Outstanding Academic Title by the American Library Association's Choice magazine in 2000. The expanded second edition -- packed with insights, anecdotes, and updated research -- provides mentors with a road map for helping new teachers become confident, reflective educators. The collaborative model outlined in the book is enlightening and rewarding for the mentor and the novice alike. The authors have incorporated the latest findings on all aspects of mentoring --from preparing to be a mentoring guide or coach to school culture and parent outreach. Teachers will find five new chapters on working with ELL students, working with parents, curriculum mapping, school culture, and the role of administrators within an effective mentoring system. Organized around a series of questions, the book allows mentors to quickly locate practical advice to match any mentoring situation. The range of resources includes: recommendations for pairing mentors and teachers, questions to jump-start conversations, ideas for teacher reflection, and answers to the most commonly asked mentor questions. Mentoring Beginning Teachers, Second Edition provides a comprehensive and tested plan for helping mentors guide new teachers in moving beyond the basics of plan/teach/evaluate to a higher level of joint assessment and inquiry.

Foreword by Charlotte Danielson All the information administrators and teacher leaders need to get started on the right mentoring model! The value of mentoring programs for teacher training and retention is widely recognized . . . but which program should you choose for your school or LEA′s unique mix of teachers and goals? And how should you begin? Mentoring expert Susan Villani offers a number of ways in which schools, teacher associations, institutions of higher education, educational collaboratives, and state departments of education can support teachers with the right mentoring program at the right time. Topics include: - Inducting new teachers - Continuing professional development programme design - District-funded programmes - Peer Assistance and Review programmes - State-funded programmes - Grant- and alternative-funded programs . . . all presented in a straightforward and accessible style. Mentoring Programs for New Teachers is a great first step in establishing a mentoring program that will affect hiring, orientation, teacher effectiveness, and staff morale for the better!

This updated resource helps mentors develop skills for guiding new teachers and offers reflections, discussion prompts, and role plays to promote effective interactions between mentors and beginning teachers.