ERIC Identifier: ED269407
Publication Date: 1986-00-00
Author:
Source: ERIC Clearinghouse on Teacher Education
Washington DC.
Components of Good Teacher Induction Programs. ERIC Digest 4.
During the past twenty years many schools have established teacher induction
programs in an effort to initiate and retain high quality teachers
(Galvez-Hjornevik 1985). These programs take many forms, the most recent
borrowing from the induction techniques of nonteaching professions. Both new and
old programs are organized into segments--introduction, instruction, assessment,
and adjustment. As new induction techniques are initiated, more segments are
integrated into existing programs. By breaking down existing programs into their
functional parts, we can examine how these programs affect the professional
maturation of the beginning teacher.
WHAT MAKES A GOOD INDUCTION PROGRAM?
The intent of all
induction programs is to transform a student teacher graduate into a competent
career teacher. Schlechty (1985) suggests that signs of effective induction
programs can be observed in the faculty and administration attitude and
behavior: support of school norms and the general conformity of teacher
performance to those norms. He presents a framework for evaluation of induction
programs which can be translated into a checklist of eight program qualities.
His framework is intended to apply to induction programs of vastly differing
content and delivery structures. Four program characteristics show the influence
of other professions: 1. The program explains to the inductees that the process
of their selection is based on special requirements and that induction training
is crucial to their future success. 2. The induction process is divided into
progressive stages of achievement. 3. The program cultivates mutual support
within peer groups. 4. The training is oriented toward long-term career goals.
The remaining characteristics apply directly to the needs of beginning teachers:
5. Administratively-set expectations and norms of teacher conduct are clearly
articulated and disseminated. 6. Teachers must assimilate a professional
vocabulary. 7. New teachers receive supervision, coaching, demonstration, and
assessment. 8. The responsibility for supervision should be distributed
throughout the faculty in a tightly organized, consistent, and continuous
program.
Foster (1982) and Griffin (1985) emphasize the importance of specifying
program objectives in behavioral terminology and the necessity for continuous
feedback among program participants. Griffin further cautions program developers
on the inappropriate use of research results as definitions for expected teacher
behavior. Program objectives should be concretely stated expectations of teacher
behavior which reflect specific school standards.
Several references point out that induction programs should contain three
information sources: the community, the school, and the teaching profession. All
must be introduced to the beginning teacher, with emphasis on teaching as an
area of life-long learning (Hall 1982). Special needs programs (e.g., those
which introduce the new teacher into a rural or urban environment with which the
teacher has had no previous experience) most often use this approach (Defino and
Hoffman 1984).
WHAT AREAS SHOULD INDUCTION PROGRAMS COVER?
There is no
shortage of proposals for program content (Griffin and Hukill 1983;
Galvez-Hjornevik 1985; Zimpher 1985). Topics of importance are usually taken
from surveys of senior teachers and administrators experienced in the evaluation
of shortcomings of first-year teachers. To vastly varying degrees, all programs
contain elements of faculty and facility introduction, classroom management,
student discipline, professional conduct, school and school district
expectations, and professional obligations. A new teacher needs to be exposed to
a variety of teaching techniques and evaluation processes. Some programs equally
instruct and assess the beginning teacher; others emphasize assistance to the
teacher rather than using the program as an indicator of the beginner's
competency. Crucial problems arise when evaluation is mistaken for assessment
and induction programs are used as wash-out programs. Schlechty (1985)
emphasizes that new hirees in any field are hired with the expectation that they
will "survive" the induction process and start on their way to full-term
careers.
HOW DO INDUCTION PROGRAMS WORK?
The development and
implementation of a wide variety of induction programs is well-documented,
including descriptions of their delivery systems. Like the terms "induction" and
"internship," many elements and intents of teacher induction programs are
borrowed from other professions. Business and medicine are the most common
(Galvez-Hjornevik 1985; Schlechty et al. 1984). Some are based on academic
induction, such as formal seminars and informal workshops on the system and what
is expected of the beginning teacher. Teacher induction started from the
introductory lecture and, in some school systems, has evolved into sophisticated
multipurpose programs. (For a summary of programs and references, see the ERIC
Digest on Current Developments in Teacher Induction Programs.) The following are
brief descriptions of some of the most prevalent induction program components.
Internship Status. Beginning teachers enter as teaching interns, often at
reduced salary. The intern combines full teaching responsibility (albeit at
reduced class loads) with academic studies. These programs may lead to a masters
degree, an advanced level of certification, a higher rung on a career ladder or
a fully qualified teaching certificate after one to three years of program
participation (Defino and Hoffman 1984).
The Mentor. Beginning teachers are assigned to a senior teacher in their
area. The senior teacher supplies information, and oversees the maturation of
the beginner's teaching and classroom management skills daily. Continuous
helping contact between the beginner and the senior teacher (theoretically)
provides the support and problem-solving resources for expedient teacher
development. (For more bibliographic information, see the ERIC Digest on Teacher
Mentoring.)
The Committee. Beginning teachers are each assigned to an induction
committee. The committee is a professional development team designed to
supervise, provide information to and train the beginning teacher in
school-approved classroom techniques and procedures. The committee usually
consists of the school principal, a consultant on curriculum and instruction,
and a peer teacher, the latter often as a mentor. The administrators are
responsible for instruction, assessment, and evaluation; the peer teacher
provides daily guidance and program continuity. Often the duties of the peer
teacher include evaluation as well as helping the new teacher adjust to the
professional environment (Defino and Hoffman 1984; Schlechty et al. 1984).
The Committee, Plus or Minus. In some programs the induction committee serves
not one inductee but many. In other programs the committee is supported by a
separate group of trained evaluators, which removes the onus of evaluation from
the committee/inductee relationship (California State Department of Education
1983; Galvez-Hjornevik 1985). Other forms of the committee include
department-based team teaching and interdepartmental teacher coaching. These
programs of teachers-helping-teachers are not restricted to benefit beginners
but are also applicable to developing the skills of experienced teachers.
Orientation Seminars. The seminar is used to instruct inductees on subjects
that the administration deems important, issues that peer teachers have found
essential or helpful and concerns expressed by the participating inductees. It
is almost never the sole component of an induction program. Seminars may be a
support group for all program participants. More sophisticated programs address
each group's concerns directly by providing separate seminars for inductees,
peer teachers, school administrators and consultants. (Foster 1982;
Galvez-Hjornevik 1985).
Experts' opinions of what ought to constitute an induction program are based
on existing programs in nonteaching professions and proposed programs which
address documented areas of beginning teachers' needs. Not all induction
concerns of other professions transfer to the education profession. Not all
proposed solutions will work. Future analysis of programs in existence will
reveal what induction formats work and which need to be replaced with other
techniques.
The above components are hardly a complete listing of possible induction
approaches, nor have all combinations of these formats been tried in existing
programs. In spite of twenty years of professional concern with the initiation
of new teachers into their working environments, much more work needs to be done
in developing good programs and many schools have yet to implement any teacher
induction program beyond the pre-Labor Day welcoming speech.
REFERENCES
Many of the following references--those
identified with an EJ or ED number--have been abstracted and are in the ERIC
data base. The journal articles should be available at most research libraries.
The documents (citations with an ED number) are available on microfiche in ERIC
microfiche collections at over 700 locations. Documents can also be ordered
through the ERIC Document Reproduction Service. Call (800) 227-3742 for price
and order information. For a list of ERIC collections in your area, or for
information on submitting documents to ERIC, contact the ERIC Clearinghouse on
Teacher Education, One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 610, Washington, DC 20036, (202)
293-2450.
California State Department of Education. "California Mentor Teacher Program.
Program Advisory." Sacramento, CA. (November, 1983) ED 241 473
Defino, M.E. and J.V. Hoffman. "A Status Report and Content Analysis of State
Mandated Teacher Induction Programs." Report #9057 (April, 1984) ED 251 438
Foster, H.L. "Preventing Stress and Burnout--A Project That Worked: The New
Teacher and Teacher Aide Project." Institute on Classroom Management and School
Discipline (December, 1982) ED 223 544
Galvez-Hjornevik, C. "Teacher Mentors: A Review of the Literature." Research
and Development Center for Teacher Education, Austin, Texas (1985) SP 026 844
(NB. Most of this material appears in Journal of Teacher Education 37,1
(January-February 1986): 6-11.
Griffin, G.A. and H. Hukill, editors. "First Years of Teaching: What are the
Pertinent Issues?" Report #9051 Conference Proceedings, Research and Development
Center for Teacher Education, Austin, Texas (1983) ED 240 109
Griffin, G.A. "Teacher Induction: Research Issues." Journal of Teacher
Education 36,1 (January-February, 1985): 42-46
Hall, G.E. "Induction: the Missing Link." Journal of Teacher Education 33,3
(May-June, 1982): 53-55
Schlechty, P., et al. "The Charlotte-Mechlenburg Teacher Career Development
Program." Educational Leadership 42:4 (December, 1984-January, 1985): 4-8
(referenced as 1984)
Schlechty, P. "A Framework for Evaluating Introduction into Teaching."
Journal of Teacher Education 36,1 (January-February, 1985): 37-41
Zimpher, N.L. "The Franklin County/OSU Induction Project." Department of
Educational Policy and Leadership, Ohio State University (1985)
