Mentoring Early Career Special Education Teachers

2009 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
pp. 294-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Dempsey ◽  
Michael Arthur-Kelly ◽  
Breda Carty
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Beginning Teachers ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Information Technologies ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
Turnover Rates ◽  
High Turnover ◽  
Professional Experiences ◽  
Mentoring Support

For some time, special education has been plagued by shortages of qualified teaching staff and by high turnover rates for these staff. While several factors—external, employment and personal—are largely responsible for this situation, the research demonstrates that the initial professional experiences of early career teachers are closely associated with their longevity in the field. This paper reviews the literature on mentoring support for beginning teachers, mentoring models and the use of information technologies in mentoring support. The paper concludes with recommendations for methods of support for Australian early career special-education teachers.

scholarly journals External Mentoring Support for Early Career Special Education Teachers

2011 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Dempsey ◽  
Judith Christenson-Foggett
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Case Study Research ◽  
Teaching Profession ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Teaching Staff ◽  
First Year ◽  
Turnover Rates ◽  
High Turnover ◽  
Mentoring Support

AbstractThe special education teaching profession has experienced longstanding problems with shortages of qualified teaching staff and with high turnover rates of these staff. A variety of issues are related to these problems, including the nature of the support that early career special education teachers receive. In this case study research, the use of external mentoring support to two early career special education teachers in their first year of teaching was examined. This mentoring support was provided by an experienced special educator who did not work at the teachers' schools. The results suggest that external forms of mentoring support may offer important advantages over traditional, site-based forms of support.

What Are High-Leverage Practices for Special Education Teachers and Why Are They Important?

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 331-337 ◽  
Author(s):  
James McLeskey ◽  
Bonnie Billingsley ◽  
Mary T. Brownell ◽  
Lawrence Maheady ◽  
Timothy J. Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Teacher Preparation ◽  
Beginning Teachers ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Core Curriculum ◽  
Special Education Teacher ◽  
Teacher Preparation Programs ◽  
Initial Attempt ◽  
Preparation Programs

Improving educational outcomes for students with disabilities and others who struggle in school largely depends on teachers who can deliver effective instruction. Although many effective practices have been identified to address the academic and behavioral needs of students who struggle in school, including those with disabilities, these practices are not used extensively in classrooms. This article provides a rationale for and description of major changes that are occurring in teacher preparation programs that are designed to improve the practice of beginning teachers. This is followed by a description of a set of high-leverage practices that was recently approved by the Council for Exceptional Children. These practices represent an initial attempt to delineate a core curriculum for special education teacher preparation to support the changes that are occurring in teacher education.

Beginning Special Education Teachers' Classroom Reading Instruction: Practices That Engage Elementary Students with Learning Disabilities

2008 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 97-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seonjin Seo ◽  
Mary T. Brownell ◽  
Anne G. Bishop ◽  
Mary Dingle
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Beginning Teachers ◽  
Reading Instruction ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Qualitative Data ◽  
Instructional Quality ◽  
Reading Practices ◽  
Student Needs ◽  
Students With Learning Disabilities ◽  
Student Autonomy

Researchers conducted a study that examined the classroom reading practices of beginning special education teachers and each teacher's ability to promote student engagement. The researchers observed 14 beginning special education teachers over a 6-month period and identified the teachers as most engaging, highly engaging, moderately engaging, or low engaging. Through qualitative data analysis, researchers identified 4 themes related to instructional engagement that differentiated the teachers: instructional quality, responsiveness to student needs, socioemotional climate of the classroom, and student autonomy. Although the most engaging and highly engaging teachers were relatively consistent in demonstrating these themes, most other teachers were not. This article discusses these findings in light of previous research on beginning teachers and makes suggestions for additional research.

Mentoring Dispositions for Pre-Service and Early Career Special Educators Through Service Learning

2018 ◽  
pp. 37-76
Author(s):  
Michelle Chamblin ◽  
Audra Cerruto ◽  
Rickey Moroney ◽  
Patricia Mason
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Community Schools ◽  
Inclusive Settings ◽  
Service Learning Projects ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Learning Projects

Service learning projects were created and implemented by faculty in the special education unit at Molloy College for pre-service and early career special education teachers. The service learning projects provided an opportunity for faculty to mentor participants in the area of dispositions for teaching through a shared experience outside of the higher education classroom. The projects were conducted in/or with community schools serving the K-12 population and students with disabilities in inclusive settings. It was hypothesized that service learning opportunities would serve as a platform for participants to reflect and to evaluate their dispositions as they act and interact in environments which were multidimensional. The results indicated that this was the case and that participants gained insights into their dispositions when the statements of dispositions were related to an experience. Faculty concluded that a variety of service learning projects provided varied opportunities for participants to exercise beliefs and bring clarity to the term “dispositions for teaching.”

Principal Leadership and Professional Learning Communities: What Beginning Teachers Value

2008 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-63
Author(s):  
Susan R. Wynn ◽  
Kathleen M. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Professional Learning Communities ◽  
Beginning Teachers ◽  
Learning Communities ◽  
Professional Learning ◽  
Principal Leadership ◽  
New Teachers ◽  
Beginning Teacher ◽  
The United States ◽  
Turnover Rates ◽  
High Turnover

Beginning teachers in the United States continue to exit the classroom in alarming numbers, despite numerous recruitment and retention strategies. High turnover rates negatively affect instruction and, ultimately, student achievement. The purpose of this empirical inquiry of beginning-teacher retention issues is to better understand what new teachers value in a school leader within the context of professional learning communities. Twelve schools with low beginning-teacher attrition and transfer request rates were identified, and focus group interviews were conducted with four to six new teachers in each school (i.e., teachers with 1 to 3 years of experience, N = 61). Findings indicate that beginning teachers relate principal leadership, mentoring, and professional learning communities to their job satisfaction.

How Beginning Special and General Education Elementary Teachers Negotiate Role Expectations and Access Professional Resources

2011 ◽  
Vol 113 (7) ◽  
pp. 1506-1540
Author(s):  
Peter Youngs ◽  
Nathan Jones ◽  
Mark Low
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Elementary Teachers ◽  
General Education ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Special Educators ◽  
General Education Teachers ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Role Expectations ◽  
Urban District ◽  
District Administrators

Background/Context Studies have found that within-field mentoring, collaboration with colleagues, and administrative support can increase new general education teacher commitment (Kapadia, Coca, & Easton, 2007; Smith & Ingersoll, 2004). In the area of special education, studies have reported that support from mentors and colleagues is associated with increased commitment among novices (Billingsley, Carlson, & Klein, 2004; Whitaker, 2000). Despite these advances, there has been little research on how beginning special educators make sense of the curricular, instructional, and role expectations placed on them or how they negotiate relationships with and make use of supports from mentors, colleagues, and administrators. Purpose One purpose of the study was to explicate differences in the curricular, instructional, and role expectations experienced by beginning special and general education elementary teachers. A second purpose was to document variations in how novices from both groups addressed expectations they encountered. Research Design Data collection during the 2006-07 school year involved interviewing two beginning special education and two general education teachers twice each and surveying all four teachers twice each. All four teachers were working in a medium-sized urban district in Michigan where 40% of students were eligible for free/reduced-price lunches. The interview questions addressed the study participants’ professional backgrounds, teaching assignments, and the curricular, instructional, and role expectations they experienced in their schools. The teachers were also asked about the content and frequency of their interactions with their formally assigned mentors, colleagues, and school and district administrators, and their participation in induction and professional development activities. Findings/Results The study found considerable differences in the curricular expectations placed on novice special education and general education teachers, the students they were assigned, and the classrooms and physical settings in which they were expected to work. In addition, the study also found variations in how these teachers made sense of the expectations placed on them and the nature and amount of the effort they seemed to exert in meeting these expectations. Further, due to the nature of the curricular and role expectations they faced, the early career special educators were much more dependent on their general education colleagues (as compared to the general educators in the study) and they were expected to develop relationships with a greater number and wider range of individuals. Conclusions/Recommendations Based on the study findings, there are three main induction practices or activities that school leaders and districts should consider. For one, it is important for new special education teachers to have access to same-field mentors and clear curricular guidelines that can help them determine their curriculum and carry out their instructional duties. Second, in order to further reduce role ambiguity for new special educators, ensure that they meet their legal obligations (enshrined in IDEA and NCLB), and integrate them into their schools, it may be helpful for principals and district administrators to take strong, visible positions in support of inclusion and help them establish productive relationships with other teachers in their schools. Third, we argue that it may be useful for induction programs for beginning special education teachers to address the nature of, and help them build, their relationships with general education colleagues.

Mentoring Dispositions for Pre-Service and Early Career Special Educators Through Service Learning

2022 ◽  
pp. 933-971
Author(s):  
Michelle Chamblin ◽  
Audra Cerruto ◽  
Rickey Moroney ◽  
Patricia Mason
Keyword(s):  
Special Education ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Special Education Teachers ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Community Schools ◽  
Inclusive Settings ◽  
Service Learning Projects ◽  
K 12 ◽  
Learning Projects

Service learning projects were created and implemented by faculty in the special education unit at Molloy College for pre-service and early career special education teachers. The service learning projects provided an opportunity for faculty to mentor participants in the area of dispositions for teaching through a shared experience outside of the higher education classroom. The projects were conducted in/or with community schools serving the K-12 population and students with disabilities in inclusive settings. It was hypothesized that service learning opportunities would serve as a platform for participants to reflect and to evaluate their dispositions as they act and interact in environments which were multidimensional. The results indicated that this was the case and that participants gained insights into their dispositions when the statements of dispositions were related to an experience. Faculty concluded that a variety of service learning projects provided varied opportunities for participants to exercise beliefs and bring clarity to the term “dispositions for teaching.”

scholarly journals Quantifying the impact of weak, strong, and super ties in scientific careers

2015 ◽  
Vol 112 (34) ◽  
pp. E4671-E4680 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Michael Petersen
Keyword(s):  
Early Career ◽  
Turnover Rates ◽  
High Turnover ◽  
Frequency Distributions ◽  
Regression Methods ◽  
New Class ◽  
Career Strategies ◽  
Creative Partnership ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Group Experience

Scientists are frequently faced with the important decision to start or terminate a creative partnership. This process can be influenced by strategic motivations, as early career researchers are pursuers, whereas senior researchers are typically attractors, of new collaborative opportunities. Focusing on the longitudinal aspects of scientific collaboration, we analyzed 473 collaboration profiles using an egocentric perspective that accounts for researcher-specific characteristics and provides insight into a range of topics, from career achievement and sustainability to team dynamics and efficiency. From more than 166,000 collaboration records, we quantify the frequency distributions of collaboration duration and tie strength, showing that collaboration networks are dominated by weak ties characterized by high turnover rates. We use analytic extreme value thresholds to identify a new class of indispensable super ties, the strongest of which commonly exhibit >50% publication overlap with the central scientist. The prevalence of super ties suggests that they arise from career strategies based upon cost, risk, and reward sharing and complementary skill matching. We then use a combination of descriptive and panel regression methods to compare the subset of publications coauthored with a super tie to the subset without one, controlling for pertinent features such as career age, prestige, team size, and prior group experience. We find that super ties contribute to above-average productivity and a 17% citation increase per publication, thus identifying these partnerships—the analog of life partners—as a major factor in science career development.

Supporting Early Career Alternatively Certified Teachers: Evidence from the Beginning Teacher Longitudinal Survey

2019 ◽  
Vol 121 (11) ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Christopher Redding ◽  
Thomas M. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Professional Development ◽  
Beginning Teachers ◽  
Alternative Certification ◽  
Beginning Teacher ◽  
Teaching Profession ◽  
Longitudinal Survey ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Alternatively Certified ◽  
Turnover Rates ◽  
Organizational Supports

Background Alternatively certified (AC) teachers have generally been found to turn over at higher rates than traditionally certified (TC) teachers. These higher turnover rates are generally attributed to lower levels of preparedness and less of a commitment to remain in teaching than TC teachers, both of which may be compounded by AC teachers’ increased likelihood of beginning their career in schools that enroll traditionally underserved students. Purpose Our goal is to better understand the early career professional learning opportunities of AC teachers. We consider the ways in which in-service organizational supports such as mentoring, collaboration with one's peers, and professional development compensate for alternative certification teachers’ reduced levels of pre-service training. Research Design We conduct a secondary analysis of data from the Beginning Teacher Longitudinal Survey (BTLS). BTLS is a nationally representative survey of the cohort of new teachers who began their career in the 2007–2008 school year. Teachers were surveyed annually for their first five years in the teaching profession. We draw on data regarding teachers’ entry pathway, feelings of preparedness, organizational supports, and turnover (i.e., leaving teaching or moving schools). Data Analysis We first describe differences in self-reported preparedness, commitment to remain in teaching, and use of in-service organizational supports across beginning teachers across different entry pathways. We then conduct discrete time survival analysis to (1) understand differences in the timing of turnover rates across entry pathways and (2) examine the role induction supports play in improving AC teacher retention. Findings We show that AC teachers enter teaching feeling less prepared and, with the exception of mentoring, receive no additional support in their first year of teaching compared to TC teachers. Although we observe a 10-percentage point gap in the turnover between early career AC and TC teachers is, this gap is, in large part, explained by observable teacher and school characteristics. We show some evidence that AC teachers differentially benefit from extra classroom assistance, quality of mentor feedback, and content professional development, which were all associated with lower odds of leaving teaching. Conclusions Our findings suggest that schools and districts could do more to target induction supports for novice AC teachers. Given that AC teachers receive most of their training once they begin teaching, alternative certification programs, schools, and districts can customize supports for AC teachers to fit the needs of their local context.

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