INDIVIDUAL NOVICE TEACHER NEEDS AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: AN EVALUATION OF A WELL-RESPECTED INDUCTION PROGRAM
Open Access
Author:
Hankin, Deborah Sue
Graduate Program:
Curriculum and Instruction
Degree:
Doctor of Philosophy
Document Type:
Dissertation
Date of Defense:
April 28, 2006
Committee Members:
James F Nolan Jr., Committee Chair/Co-Chair Debra Freedman, Committee Member Nona Ann Prestine, Committee Member Edgar Paul Yoder, Committee Member
Keywords:
new teacher induction new teacher support novice teacher professional development mentoring induction novice teacher needs
Abstract:
In an attempt to gain an understanding of how one well-respected school district met the individual needs of their novice teachers, this thesis examined, from multiple perspectives, the experiences of thirty-seven beginning and mentor teachers, site-level administrators, and curriculum specialists who took part in the new teacher induction program. Participating novice teachers reported 25 different needs and discussed receiving support at various levels. Because novices experience induction and teaching differently, based on their own understandings, experiences, abilities, and needs, meeting individual novice teacher needs became an informal process within induction. Individual new teacher needs were mainly met through mentoring and curriculum teacher support; whereas, the formal induction program, moving toward a standardized process of support, served to meet the common needs of beginning teachers. The implications associated with this study note that support, survival, consistency, and agency were key features to meeting and differentiating support for novice teacher needs within new teacher induction.
