Current federal reforms require a highly-qualified teacher in every classroom to promote higher levels of student performance. In an attempt to provide a sufficient and sustainable number of highly qualified teachers in the workforce, alternative certification training programs have come alongside traditional college of education training programs. Proponents of alternative certification programs contend the process of on-the-job training will potentially address the problem of teacher shortages. However, opponents see these programs as an inadequate training process with future ramification for both teachers and students. As more and more classroom teachers are choosing alternative certification routes, there is growing uncertainty as to whether or not this is an effective way to train teachers. There is a substantial body of research that indicates a teacher's self efficacy beliefs can be an indicator of his or her performance in the classroom. Evidence demonstrates a relationship between teachers' beliefs about their personal ability to affect students' achievement and the outcomes of both the teachers' and the students' efforts (Tschannen-Moran & Woolfolk Hoy, 2007). By identifying strengths and weaknesses in self-efficacy beliefs, it is possible to provide interventions such as professional development or peer mentoring to increase an individual's sense of efficacy, which could then improve his or her teaching performance, and ultimately improve student achievement. The purpose of this research study was to identify and describe the differences between (1) the self-efficacy beliefs of teachers from traditional college of education programs and from alternative certification programs in order to identify patterns or correlations between type of training and teachers' sense of efficacy, and (2) the self efficacy beliefs of novice, experienced, and expert teachers in order to determine patterns or correlations between years of experience and teachers' sense of efficacy. This research study investigated the self-efficacy beliefs of 125 high school teachers in Brevard County, Florida, with either college of education training or alternative certification training and with either novice, experienced, or expert classroom teaching experience. The first part of the study analyzed teachers' responses to the 24 items on Tschannen-Moran and Woolfolk Hoy's Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale; the second part analyzed 6 researcher-designed items referring to teacher training programs and personal classroom experience. The three subscales that directed the items on the questionnaire were Efficacy for Student Engagement, Efficacy for Instructional Strategies, and Efficacy for Classroom Management. Factor analyses indicated 21 of the 24 items from the current research study loaded on the same three factors identified on the Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale. The 6 items created specifically for this study loaded into two factors identified appropriately as training program and classroom experience. A reliability analysis resulted in a total alpha coefficient of .9271 for the 24 items on the Teachers' Sense of Efficacy Scale for the 125 participants in the current research study which is consistent with an alpha of .94 in previous studies using the same scale. A total alpha coefficient of .6973 was determined for the 6 researcher-designed items. Findings from the t-tests and ANOVAs indicated that there was no relationship between self-efficacy beliefs of college of education trained teachers and alternative certification trained teachers; few relationships between novice, experienced, and expert teachers; and few interaction effects between type of teacher training and number of years of classroom experience. While the results of the study did not reveal statistically significant differences in the teacher groups, the teachers' responses and comments indicated personal classroom experiences created higher levels of self-efficacy than teacher training programs. Contrary to the researcher's expectations and conventional wisdom, both alternative certification teachers and novice teachers perceived themselves to be efficacious in the classroom. One possible explanation for the failure to reach statistically significant differences in the type of training and years of experience variables is that there simply are not distinct differences. Generally teachers with alternative certification training are immersed in programs that provide on-the-job training and support from a mentor, and as experts in their field of study, they exhibit self-assurance in their classroom behaviors. Commonly novices enter teaching with high expectations and they bring innovative practices and a fresh outlook to the classroom. Another possible explanation for the failure to reach statistically significant differences is the over-representation of some groups which could possibly have skewed the results. From the group of 125 participants, 86 teachers had college of education training while only 39 had alternative certification training. There were 79 expert teachers with ten or more years of experience, 35 experienced teachers with four to nine years, and only 11 novice teachers with three or less years. While the results of the research study did not offer statistically significant differences in the groups of teachers, there is much practical significance to be gained for district and school-level personnel in planning professional development opportunities. By identifying the strengths and weaknesses in teachers' self-efficacy beliefs, professional development and peer support can be provided to address the unique needs of each teacher group. Recommendations were made for a synthesis of current practices from both college of education programs and alternative certification programs: a series of half-day internship experiences with relevant content coursework could be combined with on-the-job experience and mentoring support based on current alternative certification programs. This research study lacks generalizability, so further research should include middle school and elementary teachers, and teachers from other counties and states. Because teachers' self-efficacy beliefs are personal and not necessarily reflective of actual practice, an investigation of the relationship between perceived self-efficacy beliefs and observed classroom effectiveness should be investigated.

Specialized teacher preparation programs are graduating teachers with commitments to advocacy. This expanded definition of teaching stands in opposition to traditional expectations for the role of teachers that have developed during the history of U.S. education into organizational and social frames that reinforce tradition and work against reform. These influences constitute forces of professional weathering that may wear down teachers’ visions and actions for their work. This multicase study focused on four graduates from an intensive two-year teacher preparation program that included initial certification along with induction support in the second year of the program as they completed master’s degree requirements. The inquiry sought to understand how they envisioned their roles as teacher advocates and how they enacted and sustained their visions, resisting traditional teacher roles. Participants were graduates of the same cohort of the preparation program who were completing their second year of teaching in urban high-need schools and who had been nominated and confirmed as effective teachers of diverse students by faculty members of the university program and of local schools. Program materials were analyzed as background material to establish context. Primary data that were inductively and iteratively analyzed included extant course assignments, three individual interviews with each participant, three school-related observations, and three focus group interviews. Findings provide insight into the ways in which the teachers enacted a vision of anticipatory advocacy. Anticpatory advocacy includes intervening actions that are the result of a dual awareness of students’ immediate and future needs and have implications beyond boundaries of time and space in an effort to positively influence students’ lives in the immediate as well as distant future. The teachers, each of whom held beliefs that aligned with the culturally relevant foundations of the program prior to their selection, employed tools related to responsive classroom management, ambitious teaching strategies, and professional collaboration that they acquired and honed during their program. By working backward from the classrooms of effective teachers, the study links classroom practices with teacher preparation, providing direction for stakeholders concerned with the development and retention of high quality teachers for all children, especially in challenging school contexts.

Entry in the teaching profession is often dependent on a number of steps or phases involving standardized assessments and performance assessments. The relationships between and among the variables incorporated in such instruments are typically assumed, but not necessarily substantiated. Furthermore, the relationships between the variables assessed and factors involved in teacher preparation have not been investigated. This study was designed to investigate the nature of such relationships in one particular case. In the spring of 1997, the Louisiana legislature changed the Louisiana Teacher Assessment Program to create the Louisiana Teacher Assistance and Assessment Program (LaTAAP). LaTAAP is a uniform statewide program for new teachers entering service for the first time in a Louisiana Public School System. Through LaTAAP, each new teacher is assigned a mentor teacher who helps him or her transition into the career of education as successfully and effectively as possible (Louisiana Department of Education, Professional Development Manual, 2002-2003). The Praxis is a series of tests developed by Educational Testing Service (ETS) that provides tests and other services for states to use as a part of their teacher licensing and certification process. The Praxis Series is currently required for teacher licensure in Louisiana and 43 other states and U.S. jurisdictions (Educational Testing Service [ETS], 2005-2006). The purpose of this study was intended to address relationships by investigating the factors identified by novice teachers as influencing their performance on Praxis and LaTAAP. Additionally, this study addressed whether the mentoring component increased teachers' sense of their capacity to teach effectively. The central research question was: What factors or issues are identified by novice teachers as influences on their performance in standardized assessments and classroom teaching effectiveness? This qualitative study utilized a phenomenological approach employing data collection techniques consisting of personal questionnaires, interviews, and focus groups. Data were collected exclusively from ten participants who completed LaTAAP over the past four years and passed Praxis. An analysis of the data revealed several commonalities of the participants' Praxis and LaTAAP experiences which have had an effect on their professional practice. The issues in common included professional growth, mentoring, and testing.

Thesis advisor: Lauri Johnson / This qualitative case study examined the perceived influence of social justice leadership on the job satisfaction of novice teachers in one Massachusetts school district. Social justice leadership was defined as leaders who “actively work to improve teaching and learning, so that all students have equitable opportunities to learn and excel” (Rivera-McCutchen, 2014, p. 749). Data collection included interviews with school and district leaders as well as a document review. Findings indicated that novice teachers and leaders identified specific building-based supports that helped novice teachers meet diverse student needs. The results of this study also found a discrepancy between leaders and novice teachers’ perceptions about opportunities for novice teachers to engage in critical self-reflection and the provision of professional development which supports social justice. This study supported the research that a determining factor in job satisfaction is whether or not novice teachers are able to meet student needs (Johnson & Birkeland, 2003). Recommendations include ensuring sustained social justice professional development by creating opportunities for novice teachers to engage in critical self-reflection and integrating culturally relevant pedagogy in order to help novice teachers meet the needs of diverse learners, which in turn may influence job satisfaction. / Thesis (EdD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Educational Leadership and Higher Education.

The purpose of this sequential explanatory mixed method study was to determine novice teachers’ perception of factor(s) that influenced their intent to remain in the teaching profession in a large suburban/urban school district located in the Southeast Region of the United States. The research examined the relationship between the independent variables—(a) perceived effectiveness of induction program, (b) quality of mentor-ship, (c) perceived effectiveness of professional development, (d) teacher Preparation, (e) job satisfaction, (f) administrative support, and (g) teacher self-efficacy—and the dependent variable: teacher retention. The novice teacher surveys included 31 items based on a 7-point response Likert scale, followed by individual interviews with nine open-ended questions. The researcher analyzed a total of 48 surveys and seven interviews from 16 identified schools located in the school district. Both data sources collected from the mixed method study revealed that the novice teachers viewed administrative support, job satisfaction, and teacher self-efficacy as the variables with the most significant influence on their intent to remain in the teaching profession. These factors proved beneficial to the school district and schools as a tool to guide the efforts of increasing teacher retention and developing new teachers. Additionally, the novice teachers’ perception also highlighted the need for more structured support for the district and school’s induction program, mentoring program, professional development and teacher preparation for increasing teacher retention. The implications of this study were to identify what influenced novice teachers to remain in the teaching profession in the identified school district. As a result, the district could decrease teacher retention rate and thus curtail the cost of continually hiring and training new teachers.

Submitted by Filipe dos Santos (fsantos@pucsp.br) on 2016-10-07T13:07:38Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Gláucia Signorelli de Queiroz Gonçalves.pdf: 1816248 bytes, checksum: f131f691ac9bd8d934d8f42349de461c (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-10-07T13:07:38Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Gláucia Signorelli de Queiroz Gonçalves.pdf: 1816248 bytes, checksum: f131f691ac9bd8d934d8f42349de461c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-08-02 / Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / This research falls within the field of teacher education and by analyzing the process of professional insertion of graduates of the Institutional Program of initiation to Teaching-Pibid, intended to bring contributions to the understanding of this crucial phase of the professional cycle: the beginning of the career. The Pibid, a program proposed by MEC/Capes for the improvement and enhancement of teacher training for basic education, aims at supporting the initiation into teaching of graduate students in order to enhance the teaching profession, contribute to the increase of the quality of basic education, and enhance the integration between theory and practice and between University and school. It was assumed that Pibid, by bringing the idea of integrated initial formation to primary schools, extends the coexistence of undergraduates with the teaching practice, boosts the initial formation and mitigates the adverse conditions faced by the early career teachers. It is known that the professional insertion of teachers is almost always a period of uncertainty, instability and tension, because it represents the beginning of the professional activities and, at the same time, the passage to adulthood and support for beginners are rare at this stage. The investigation used the qualitative approach, with data collected through focus groups with twelve beginning teachers, ex-pibidians and recent grads of the course in Pedagogy of a Federal University of the State of Minas Gerais; questionnaire for personal and professional characterization of the participants; semi-structured interviews with seven directors and supervisors of the primary schools where these teachers work; and documental analysis of the pedagogic political project of the training institution. The literature review included theorists as Nóvoa (2009a, 2009b, 2011, 2013), Marcelo Garcia (1999, 2010), Vaillant and Marcelo Garcia (2012), Imbernón (2011), Zeichner (2010), Papi (2011), Nono (2011) among others, discussing the initial formation and the early career of the teachers, which have allowed to know the paths that the beginning teachers traverse from training until the moment they enter the schools. For data analysis, was adopted the method named by André (1983) as Prose Analysis and the topics and themes raised have allowed to formulate three categories: the point of view of novice teachers on initial formation; the point of view of beginners on professional insertion; from beginners to experienced: the construction of the professional component of these teachers. The data revealed that the beginning was marked by difficulties and tensions, but at the same time, discovery and learning. It was considered that both the initial training in the course of pedagogy, and the participation in the Pibid, were essential to professional insertion, due to the configuration that both theory and practice, and the research have been gaining during the formative process, made explicit by the movement action/reflection/action, facilitated by the integration between the university and the school / Esta pesquisa se insere no campo da formação de professores e ao analisar o processo de inserção profissional de egressos do Programa Institucional de Bolsas de Iniciação à Docência – Pibid, pretendeu trazer contribuições para o entendimento dessa fase crucial do ciclo profissional: o início da carreira. O Pibid, programa proposto pelo MEC/Capes para o aperfeiçoamento e a valorização da formação de professores para a educação básica, tem por finalidade apoiar a iniciação à docência de estudantes de licenciatura visando valorizar o magistério e contribuir para a elevação do padrão de qualidade da educação básica, pela integração entre teoria e prática e entre universidade e escola. Partiu-se do pressuposto de que o Pibid, ao trazer subjacente a ideia da formação inicial integrada às escolas básicas, amplia a convivência dos licenciandos com a prática docente, potencializa a formação inicial e ameniza as condições adversas sofridas pelos professores em início de carreira. Sabe-se que a inserção profissional dos professores é, quase sempre, um período de incertezas, instabilidade e tensão, pelo fato de representar o início da atividade profissional e, paralelamente, para muitos, a passagem para a vida adulta e, são raros os apoios aos iniciantes nessa fase. A investigação utilizou-se da abordagem qualitativa, com dados coletados por meio de grupos de discussão com doze professoras iniciantes, ex-pibidianas e egressas do curso de Pedagogia de uma universidade pública Federal do estado de Minas Gerais; questionário para caracterização pessoal e profissional das participantes; entrevistas semiestruturadas com sete diretoras e supervisoras das escolas básicas onde atuam essas professoras; e análise documental do projeto político pedagógico da instituição formadora. A revisão da literatura incluiu teóricos como Nóvoa (2009a, 2009b, 2011, 2013), Marcelo Garcia (1999, 2010), Vaillant e Marcelo Garcia (2012), Imbernón (2011), Zeichner (2010), Papi (2011), Nono (2011) entre outros, que discutem a formação inicial e o início da carreira dos professores, o que possibilitou conhecer os caminhos que percorrem os professores iniciantes desde a formação até o momento que adentram as escolas. Para a análise dos dados, foi adotado o método denominado por André (1983) como Análise de Prosa e os tópicos e temas levantados permitiram formular três categorias: o ponto de vista das professoras iniciantes sobre a formação inicial; o ponto de vista das iniciantes sobre a inserção profissional; de iniciantes a experientes: a construção da profissionalidade dessas professoras. Os dados revelaram que a inserção foi marcada por dificuldades e tensões, mas ao mesmo tempo descobertas e aprendizagens. Considerou-se que tanto a formação inicial no curso de Pedagogia, como a participação no Pibid, foram fundamentais à inserção profissional, devido a configuração que tanto a teoria e prática, quanto a pesquisa foram ganhando durante o processo formativo, explicitado pelo movimento ação/reflexão/ação, facilitado pela integração entre a universidade e a escola

This dissertation describes a qualitative case study that investigated novice teachers’ video-aided reflection on their own teaching. To date, most studies that have investigated novice teachers’ video-aided reflective practice have focused on examining novice teachers’ levels of reflective writing rather than the cognitive processes involved during their reflection. Few studies have probed how novice teachers schematize and theorize their newly acquired and/or existing knowledge during video-aided reflection. The purpose of this study was to explore novice teachers’ cognitive processes, particularly video-aided schematization and theorization (VAST), which is a set of cognitive processes that help novice teachers construct, restructure and reconstruct their professional knowledge and pedagogical thinking while reflecting on videos of their own teaching. The researcher measured novice teachers’ VAST by examining their schema construction and automation in terms of schema accretion, schema tuning and schema restructuring. The study attempted to answer the following questions: a) What is the focus of novice teachers’ video-aided reflection? and b) How do novice teachers connect the focus of their reflections to their prior knowledge and future actions? The findings indicate that video-aided reflection could help novice teachers (1) notice what was needed to improve in their teaching practice, (2) realize how various elements in teaching were interrelated, and (3) construct, restructure, or reconstruct their professional knowledge – in other words, develop their schemata about teaching and learning through VAST. With a more developed and mature schemata, novice teachers could be able to better understand the various elements involved in teaching and learning, and handle the situations they encounter in their teaching. This may be because people’s schemata can provide the link between concepts and patterns of what they do (Rumelhart, 1980). This research has provided a new way to look at novice teachers’ video-aided reflection: how the cognitive processes they experience during their reflection can help them develop the knowledge about teaching and learning, and how their cognitive development can help them grow toward becoming teaching experts. The research findings add to the knowledge base about the use of video technology in teachers’ self-reflection and professional development in teacher education.

ABSTRACT INVESTIGATING NOVICE WHITE TEACHERS IN AFRICAN AMERICAN CLASSROOMS: A PHENOMENOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION OF CULTURAL RESPONSIVENESS by Debra J. Barrineau This study deconstructed the degree to which novice White teachers in an elementary school in a rural middleGeorgiadistrict were aware of and prepared for the challenges inherent in teaching in a predominantly African American classroom. Four novice, White teachers participated in the study. The student population of the school was 72% African American, nearly 10% White, and more than 17% Hispanic. Using a phenomenological approach, data were collected using an open-ended questionnaire in order to determine the teachers’ perceived academic and non-academic needs of their students and to explore how their awareness of the needs of their students influenced the educational experiences the teachers provided in their classrooms. Classroom observations were utilized in order to determine how the teachers related to their students and the manner in which they demonstrated responsiveness to the students’ academic needs, through the activities they provided. The teachers demonstrated only a limited ability to understand the academic and non-academic needs of their students, due mainly to a lack of understanding of the cultural dynamics of the African American students residing in this rural community. Through a lack of ability to build necessary bridges within the school community, the teachers failed to establish a trusting relationship with parents, which would have helped mitigate the disconnect between the environment of the school and the environment of the students’ homes. In addition, the teachers’ efforts to support their students through multicultural activities were merely superficial. Some of the teachers were more focused on the perceived needs of the students than on using the rich heritage of students in order to build a community of learners that would foster greater levels of academic success. The findings of this study will benefit those interested in cultural responsiveness by suggesting the need for teacher preparation programs to increase the academic and experiential focus on cross-cultural teaching. It will also benefit school districts by suggesting the need for ongoing professional development and focused induction programs for teachers who are teaching cross-culturally.

The aim of this study was to examine first year teachers' experiences incorporating instructional technology into their teaching through the lens of Technology-Pedagogical Content Knowledge. Technology-Pedagogical Content Knowledge is a fairly new concept drawn from the concept of Pedagogical Content Knowledge, originating with Shulman. Participating teachers were graduates of a Southwestern University's College of Education laptop initiative that required all College of Education students to purchase a laptop. The laptop was used throughout their pre-service teaching course work. The first graduating cohort of this initiative was surveyed during their first full year of teaching. Ten of those surveyed then participated in interviews and journal writing related to their technology integration experiences. Results indicated that for the most part these new teachers are not facing access and support related barriers to technology use, though time constraints are still an issue. Results also indicated that the teachers are using technology in their instructional activities, and are continuing to grow in their technology integration skills. The basis in technology use from their College of Education combined with the technology-supportive school atmosphere in which they teach appears to be an environment that is fostering teachers who are willing to experiment with technology integration and are planning how to integrate it more in the coming school year. Their understanding of the connections between technology, content and pedagogy, their t-PCK, are developing and transforming. Impact on the field includes a greater understanding of how teachers come to design lessons for technology integration as well as a greater understanding of how graduates from teacher preparation programs with an emphasis on technology integration are able to apply their skills upon entering the teaching field. / text

Instructional scaffolding is a powerful tool that many teachers utilize to meet the challenge of individualizing instruction for diverse learners. The concept of instructional scaffolding is complex (Meyer, 1993), in that teachers have to determine what, how much, and what kind of help to give to students in a moment’s notice (Rodgers, 2004/05). Gaining expertise with scaffolding can take years, which leads us to worry about the effectiveness of novice teachers. A scarcity of research examining how to support a teacher’s development of instructional decisions such as scaffolding is reported (Anders, Hoffman, & Duffy, 2000). The ability to make scaffolding decisions requires teachers to be cognitively flexible, drawing from multiple domains of understanding to meet the individual needs of a group of students. However, little is known about which domains and understandings teachers draw on during scaffolding events or the rationales underlying this decision-making process. This naturalistic study examined the decision-making processes of a novice elementary ESOL teacher as she scaffolded instruction for her third-grade students. As she videotaped what she considered to be a successful scaffolding event each week, we unpacked the event together using the lens of Cognitive Flexibility Theory (CFT). The guiding questions were: (1) How can the decision-making processes underlying a novice ESOL teacher’s instructional scaffolding be described? (2) How can the lens of Cognitive Flexibility Theory inform a novice ESOL teacher’s scaffolding decisions? Data sources included interviews, field notes, and reflections of the sessions. Constant comparative analysis (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Miles & Huberman, 1994) was used to analyze data. Rigor was demonstrated by establishing credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability (Lincoln and Guba). A grounded theory model of a kaleidoscope was created to describe the novice ESOL teacher’s decision-making processes during scaffolding events. The participant’s decisions were influenced by a variety of pedagogical and contextual domains while also being impacted by her views on scaffolding, on assessment, and on the connection between theory and practice. The participant’s conceptions of scaffolding became more complex and her confidence and sense of agency became stronger as a result of mentoring underpinned by CFT.