ORIENTING

THE
NEW EMPLOYEE
Prepared by:

ROBELYN G. PADILLA

EDUC 211
What is Teacher Induction?
The purpose of a new teacher induction progr
am is to improve the capacity of schools to
attract, induct, and retain talented, enthusia
stic, and dedicated teachers.
Why Do We Need Induction?
Teacher attrition is a problem with a number of impli
cations, not the least of which is the teacher short
age.
Most of teacher attrition is a result of factors such as: inadeq
uate pay, lack of administrative support, poor workplace c
onditions, student related issues, lack of collegiality with p
eers, low morale, and amount of time required for the pap
erwork involved (Bickmore, D. L., Bickmore, S. T., & Hart,
L, 2005).
 Almost half of all new teachers leave the profession within th
e first five years, creating a difficult model where more teach
ers leave the teaching profession compared to teachers enter
ing the profession (Ingersoll & Smith, 2003).
Comprehensive Induction
 Comprehensive Induction program includes
:
 New Educator Orientation
 Mentor Program
 Support teams (i.e. staff development teacher
and consulting teacher)
 Courses and Workshops for beginning educa
tors
 Courses and Workshops for mentors
 Evaluation
What the Research Says
Comprehensive induction proves most effective at keeping good
teachers in the classroom. Studies demonstrate that new tea
cher turnover rates can be cut in half through comprehe
nsive induction: a combination of high-quality mentoring, pr
ofessional development and support, scheduled interaction w
ith other teachers in the school and in the larger community,
and formal assessments for new teachers during at least thei
r first two years of teaching.
- T. Smith and R. Ingersoll.
(2004)
Impact of Sustainable Induction Progr
ams
 Improved teacher retention and successful inducti
on programs save districts money (cite New Teac
her Center, Villar, Measuring the Benefits and C
osts of Mentor-Based Induction.
 Improved teacher retention and successful inducti
on programs ensure increased levels of student a
chievement (Tapping the Potential, 2004).
 The individual achievement of children is
highly dependent on the effectiveness of t
he teacher, and the impact of ineffective o
r unqualified teachers across years dooms
children to instructional losses that cannot
be regained.
Administrator’s Role in Induction

 “Recruiting, hiring and supporting teach

ers as they learn how to teach well are a
t the heart of a principal’s job. Nothing i
s more important.”
Lynn Stuart, Principal, Cambridgeport School, Cambridge, MA
Administrator’s Role in Induction
“The effectiveness and success of an induction pr
ogram has a great deal to do with the support, nur
turing, modeling, and enthusiasm of school and di
strict administrators. Administrators set the stand
ard for the level of commitment that is made to en
suring that new teachers are successful and that t
hose who support new teachers are given the tim
e and resources that are needed.”
Beyond Mentoring, Jon Saphier
What COMAR Says
 The comprehensive induction program (law right n
ow says shall provide) annual training for principal
s, assistant principals, and school-based professi
onal development staff to familiarize them with the
factors that contribute to teacher attrition and rete
ntion, the learning activities and schedule for indu
ction program participants, the role of mentors an
d expectations for supporting mentors' work in sch
ools, and the importance of school-level coordinati
on of support for new teachers.
What Administrators Can Do at the Sc
hool Level to Support Induction
 Become knowledgeable about the induction program and to f
actor the needs of the program into decisions made at the sc
hool such as scheduling, class assignments, etc.
 Select mentors for new teachers from a pool of veteran teach
ers who have been trained as mentors
 Make the matches between mentors and new teachers taking
into consideration grade level, subject matter, proximity, and
personal style
 Respect the confidentiality of the mentor-new teacher relation
ship
 Provide and protect mentor-mentee time for planning, observi
ng, and conferencing
What Administrators Can Do at the Sc
hool Level to Support Induction
 Inform prospective teachers about the induction pr
ogram and its requirements
 Coordinate an orientation program for new teache
rs and other hospitality events for new teachers
 Build an active support team around each beginni
ng teacher
 Model professionalism and support for the progra
m
 Participate in all phases of an on-going assessme
nt of the induction program
Class Placement and Scheduling
 School leaders are encouraged to participate directly so
that new educators are assigned students and classes t
hat are appropriate to the beginner status. This means,
bluntly, administrators must make sure that new tea
chers do not get:
 Stripped down classrooms
 Large classes
 Difficult students
 Many preparations for the day
 A heavy load of extracurricular assignments
Class Placement and Scheduling
 It also means that new teachers DO get sc
hedules that allow for:
 Common planning time with their mentors for
conferencing and other meetings
 Opportunities to observe and be observed by t

heir mentors
Providing and Protecting Mentor-Teac
her Time Together
 Excuse beginning teachers from committee assignments to t
he maximum degree possible so they can concentrate on the
all-important first year task of learning their curriculum and ho
w to teach
 Limit the committee assignments of mentors so they can focu
s on their mentee
 Create a schedule that provides common planning time for m
entor and mentee
 Provide mentors time at faculty meetings to report on their inv
olvement in the program and encourage other teachers to net
work with their beginning teachers
Fostering Instructional Development T
hrough Formative Assessment
 Facilitate novices' participation in professional development o
pportunities
 Provide opportunities and incentives for all teachers to work t
ogether
 Provide opportunities for novices to gather and work together
 Protect planning time for new teachers
 Visit novices' classrooms and provide feedback; help novices
set reasonable goals
 Review lesson plans; offer instruction in teaching strategies
 Facilitate novices' observation of other teachers
 Engage in ongoing professional dialogue with new teachers
Providing Formative and Summative E
valuation
 Explain expectations and procedures at the beginning of the
year
 Schedule observations in advance; provide new teachers wit
h copies of evaluation records
 Use standards to guide your assessment
 Be positive but honest in your feedback; recognize novices a
s beginners
 Help new teachers set reasonable goals for their learning and
development
 Balance formal observations and conferences with informal o
bservations and feedback
 Coordinate evaluation activities with induction and mentoring
program
Supervising and Evaluating New Teac
hers
 Provide feedback that is selective and tackle doab
le chunks
 Avoid overkill in the early months of the beginning
teacher’s experience
 Be sensitive to the developmental needs of begin
ning teachers
 Focus on behaviors that reflect the deepest belief
s about the capacity of all students to learn at high
levels
Supervising and Evaluating New Teac
hers
 Provide consistent and repeated messages that they should
expect good thinking and effective effort from all children
 Ask open-ended questions that empowers the new teacher a
nd allows them to examine their own behavior:
 “What exactly would be the next level of progress for him?”
 “What have you thought about doing differently?”
 “Who might help you get some ideas?”
 Send the key messages:
 This is important.
 You can do it.
 I won’t give up on you.
 Effective effort leads to achievement.
Questions for Administrators to Think
About
 How do you help beginning teachers understand the culture o
f the school?
 How does an induction program fit into the culture of the scho
ol?
 How do you make yourself accessible when beginning teach
ers need to talk to you?
 What are some specific things you do to help your first year t
eachers feel more at ease and more comfortable in their new
school environment?
 Do you try to place new teachers in a grade level similar to th
at of their student teaching experience?
Questions for Administrators to Think
About
 During the interview, do you mention anything about inductio
n or mentoring opportunities that the new teacher can take pa
rt in?
 Other than the formal observations throughout the year, do y
ou meet with your beginning teachers to discuss strengths an
d weaknesses?
 What do you believe are some of the unique needs of the first
year teachers in your building and how do you meet those ne
eds?
 What do you view as the most important role of the principal i
n new teacher induction?
 Which of your actions do you believe are most effective for yo
ur beginning teachers?
Strategies That Support Induction:
Orienting New Educators
 Just in Time Training
 “Just in time” information is meted out to teachers on a schedule that tracks their
need for the information.

 School Schedule
 Develop a school schedule and calendar that highlights the important dates for
which teachers need to be prepared.

 Policies
 Provide introductions to district policies and procedures at the building level, as i
t is in the school that these policies and procedures are usually implemented.

 Tour of Community
 Organize a tour that points out the neighborhoods, the hangouts, parks, and oth
er features that can be resources for the classroom. It is also important to point
out banks, drugstores, markets, and other sites that can be time-savers for busy
new teachers.
Strategies That Support Induction:
Orienting New Teachers
 Map
 Provide a map of the school and give tours of the facilities. New teachers appre
ciate being informed about the resources of the new building that they may want
to use during the year.

 Staff Social
 Have a staff social before school starts. Provide each beginning teacher with a
designated host who will introduce them to other staff. Highlight the beginning t
eachers during the event.

 Nametags
 Have all faculty members wear nametags for the first two weeks of school to hel
p beginning and veteran teachers get to know who’s who, especially in big scho
ols.

 Bulletin Boards
 Put up bulletin boards with pictures of the new staff—or all staff.
Strategies That Support Induction:
Enlisting the Whole Staff

 “The success of the beginning teacher is th

e responsibility of all staff in the building.
No one mentor should have the responsibili
ty of meeting all of the needs of his/her prot
égé.”
Beyond Mentoring, Saphier
Strategies That Support Induction:
Enlisting the Whole Staff
 All staff in the building should understand that they play an es
sential role in the success of the beginning teacher.

 In a comprehensive induction program, we might see:

 Teachers opening their classrooms for observations and their file drawers f
or curriculum materials that will be helpful to the beginning teacher
 Teachers conferring with the beginning teacher on strategies for meeting th
e needs of specific students
 Teachers sharing approaches to classroom management and discipline
 Teachers sharing individual challenges with new teachers so they know the
y aren’t alone
 Teachers attending a workshop to learn about the induction program
 Teachers providing information about formal and informal policies, procedur
es and resources to beginning teachers
 Structures, time, and leadership for these things to happen
Strategies That Support Induction:
Enlisting the Whole Staff
 Ask faculty members to write on a card something in their teaching that the
y would be willing to share, demonstrate, teach to, or have a beginning tea
cher observe. Post these cards in the teacher’s lounge in the fall on a bulle
tin board.
 Encourage everyone to offer to share a practice, strategy, or a piece of curr
iculum. A few teachers may think they have nothing special to offer; others
may feel too busy. Poke your head in the door some afternoon of those pe
ople who don’t reply the first time, “Hey, Jane, would be willing to show one
of our novices how you set up literature groups sometime next fall?”
 During pre-service in August, ask veteran teachers to share student work s
amples with beginning teachers that show a before and after snapshot of w
hat students can be expected to produce at the beginning and end of the y
ear.
 Ask the PTA to arrange for someone to deliver a flower or congratulatory n
ote to each beginning teacher at the end of the first day for having gotten o
ver the first big hurdle.
Strategies That Support Induction:
Enlisting the Whole Staff
 Before school or in the early weeks of school, arrange for a gathering, so th
e beginning teachers can get to know community members and the parents
of their children. It is important to build bridges between beginning teacher
s and the community and to educate the beginning teacher about the com
munity, its culture, where things are, the local history, and the conditions in
which their children live.
 Ask each faculty member to write on a card the best teaching tip they ever
got. Ask them to sign the card. Collect the cards in a basket and leave the
basket in the lounge. Rule: anyone can look at the cards but you can’t take
the card away. If you read a card and it isn’t clear to you what the person
meant, ask them.
 Ask each faculty member to write down seven things they wish they’d know
n when they started teaching their first year. Have everyone say one item
out loud as they do around the room. Collect the lists and have them typed
up, eliminating duplicate items. Pass them out at the next faculty meeting t
o kick off the continuing discussion of how everyone will take part in suppor
ting the new teachers.
Resources Available to Support Admi
nistrators
 Articles/Books
 Breaux, A., & Wong, H. (2003). New teacher induction: How to t
rain, support, and retain new teachers. Mountain View, CA: Harr
y K. Wong.
 Britton, E., Raizen, S., Paine, L., & Huntley, M. (2000). More swi
mming, less sinking: Perspectives from abroad on U. S. teacher
induction. Paper presented at the National Commission on Math
ematics and Science Teaching in the 21st Century, San Francis
co.
 Fulton, K., Yoon, I., and Lee, C. (2005). Induction Into Learning
Communities. Washington, DC: National Commission on Teac
hing and America’s Future.
 Saphier, J., Freedman, S., and Aschheim, B. (2001). Beyond M
entoring: Comprehensive Induction Programs. Massachusetts:
TEACHERS21 (There is a much more recent edition of this
book)
Resources Available to Support Admi
nistrators
 Articles/Books
 Smith and Richard Ingersoll, “What Are the Effects of Induction
and Mentoring on Beginning Teacher Turnover?” American Edu
cational Research Journal, 41, 2, Summer 2004).
 Wong, J. K. (2001). “Mentoring Can’t Do It All: New teachers le
arn best from systematic induction programs.” Education Week.
 Wong, H. (2003a). Induction programs that keep working. In M.
Scherer (Ed.), Keeping Good Teachers. Association of Supervis
ion and Curriculum Development (ASCD). Available at www.Ne
wTeacher.com
 Wong, H. (2003b). Induction: How to train, support, and retain n
ew teachers. Paper presented at the National Staff Developmen
t Council, December 10, 2003. Available at www.NewTeacher.c
om
THANK YOU!!!
😊