This qualitative dissertation research explored the case studies of four novice special education teachers who were the primary instructors for English language arts for students in grades three through eight with an I.E.P. This study addressed the teachers' perspectives, beliefs, practices, and related induction needs concerning their construction of exemplary practice in the teaching of wtiting. Exemplary writing instruction is defined by the inclusion of (a) the professional standards found in the state of Illinois Professional Teaching Standards, Illinois English Language Arts Standards for All Teachers and (b) the Exceptional Needs Specialist Standards of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Data were obtained over the course of three months from audio-taped, semi-structured interviews, three full class period non-participant observations, and an open-ended written questionnaire addressing the following primary research questions: (1) How do the descriptions by special education teachers of exemplary practice in the instruction of writing align with the professional standards? (2) What do special education novice teachers percieve as the role of teacher educators, mentors, other teachers, administrators, as well as classroom and school contexts, in learning and applying the professional standards in their writing practices? (3) How do novice special education teachers' beliefs about the learning and instruction of writing influence their acquisition of pedagogical knowledge pertaining to the professional standards in their writing practices? All data were transcribed and analyzed from a theoretical perspective of socially situated constructivist learning first by open coding and then coded by research question through cross-case analyses. Data were then analyzed by open-coding, followed by the coding of each research question utilizing a case-by-csae analyses. Data were further analyzed by comparative analyses of data collected by interviews, observations, and open-ended questionnaires to determine emerging patterns, categories, themes, and discrepencies. Findings indicated five emergent themes or issues and associated sub-themes of teacher as learner as common across cases and within- case findings were distributed throughout. These five major themes were (1) k-12 experience in learning to write, (2) learning to teach writing in teacher education programs, (3) learning to teach writing as practicing teachers, (4) preferred ways to learn to teach writing, and (5) novice special education teachers' beliefs about the learning and instruction of writing. The novice special education teachers' need for professional development induction support networks pertaining to the acquisition of pedagogical content knowledge for writing was another emergent category that was addressed in the findings for research question two. The findings were presented and discussed to illuminate the novice teachers' perspectives, beliefs, practices, and needs concerning teacher education, induction, and professional development in constructing exemplary writing instruction. Implications for teacher education, induction, professional development and further research were also discussed.

abstract: This action research study focused on training for teacher mentors and teacher mentor self-efficacy. Specifically, this project explored the impact participation in a teacher mentor training program and teacher mentor peer shadowing had on teacher mentor self-efficacy. While there is a plethora of literature on teacher self-efficacy, minimal literature exists on the self-efficacy of teacher mentors. Bandura’s self-efficacy theory and cognitive and collaborative apprenticeship provided the foundational body of knowledge in order to understand teacher mentors’ experiences. This study followed thirty-seven teacher mentors through the first half of the Arizona K12 Center’s Professional Learning Series – Mentor Academy Year 1. Teacher mentors were given a pre-survey upon their first day in the training series, a mid-point survey halfway through the semester and a post-survey at the beginning of the following semester. Teacher mentor self-efficacy data was collected from the surveys and analyzed to determine the impact their participation in the training program had on their self-efficacy. Five random teacher mentors were also selected for interviews. This qualitative data were collected to compliment the quantitative survey data. The second part of the study consisted of interviewing six teacher mentors in a local secondary education school district to gauge the impact the peer mentor shadowing program had on their self-efficacy. Quantitative and qualitative data collected provided insights on the impact these supports had on teacher mentor self-efficacy. The results of this study indicate the challenge and complexities of being a teacher mentor. The data showed that teacher mentors who lacked training prior to or upon initial entry into their new position of teacher mentor struggled to be effective which negatively affected their self-efficacy. The data also indicated that teacher mentors who participated in the Arizona K12 Center’s mentor training program had greater self-efficacy for their roles. Finally, teacher mentors participating in peer mentor shadowing opportunities found it to be of the greatest impact leading to stronger self-efficacy. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Leadership and Innovation 2018

This study is an investigation of Libyan English language novice teachers' experiences during their first three years after qualifying. Its aim is to inform the development of an induction framework for supporting newcomers to the profession in secondary schools. In this mixed methods study I employed a two-pronged approach: quantitative methods for mapping the territory and to see the wider picture, and qualitative methods to gain an in-depth understanding of the teachers' experiences and thoughts during their first three years of teaching. Quantitative data were generated by a survey questionnaire, while qualitative data were derived from open-ended questionnaire items and interviews. The vast majority of novice teachers in this study reported serious shortcomings in the quality of their induction. Two hundred and twenty-seven teachers from Alzawia and Al-Niqat Al-Khams districts were surveyed, including 21 teachers who participated in interviews. One hundred and ten had graduated from Faculties of Arts in universities where the main focus of study was to develop research. One hundred and seventeen had completed a degree at a teacher training institution. Findings from this research indicate that they encountered diverse challenges in relation to curriculum delivery, integration into the school community and communication with students’ parents, as well as financial difficulties. The key issues that emerged from this research were:• Support for novice teachers is limited, inconsistent and inadequate.• Teacher professionalism requires further development.• The concept of mentoring warrants further consideration to be of benefit to novice teachers and their pupils. This study provided evidence that support at school and district level is essential in order to assist novice teachers of English as a foreign language in their transition from student teacher to professional practitioner. With the aim of enhancing the quality of teacher induction in Libyan secondary schools, the findings of this study have been used to inform the development of a set of recommendations for novice teachers, school principals, mentors and senior staff in district education departments.

No description available.

This descriptive case study examined the perceptions of 6 beginning teachers regarding the supports offered to them during their 1st year of teaching. Based on purposeful and convenience sampling through administrative recommendations, the participants included 4 middle school 6th, 7th, and 8th grade teachers in their 2nd year of teaching. I collected data from documents and multiple interviews to understand the needs of beginning teachers and how to best support them. Utilizing the social cognitive learning framework, I analyzed the results in terms of which supports provided vicarious reinforcements, self-reinforcements, and ultimately self-efficacy. These perceptions and understandings were then compared to what is recommended in the research literature. The results of the study provide insight into the perceptions and understandings of the participants as they transitioned to their new roles as teachers. Findings suggest (1) new teachers need to be formally assigned a mentor in close proximity to them, (2) administrators should explicitly schedule times for novice teachers to observe effective instructional practices, and (3) a lack of administrative support can be offset by other positive, collegial relationships. Such findings suggest multiple implications for both school building administrators and teacher preparation programs.

The purpose of this study is to examine how documents used in new teacher induction and mentoring programs from five different school districts reflect and acknowledge the complexity of the programs of which they are a part. Extensive research has been conducted regarding various aspects of these two programs, often utilizing linear approaches to these programs. Research has called for analysis of the complexity of these programs. New teacher induction and mentoring documents were collected from each of the five districts, resulting in approximately 76 documents total. Documents were categorized into three main groups: mentor documents, mentee documents, and district documents. Each document was read and analyzed through two phases of data analysis. Phase I of analysis reports on the language contained in the documents related to seven emergent categories. Phase II of analysis connects the language of the documents of the seven emergent categories to the eight indicators of complexity as outlined by Davie and Sumara (2006). Two appendices contain the details of analysis, one appendix for each phase. Findings suggest that most documents contained elements reflecting and acknowledging the complexity of the two programs as well as elements of linear thinking. Lack of reflection of complexity is addressed. Suggestions for further research are given.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to identify beginning teachers' perceptions of how colleges and universities can improve their teacher preparation programs and what school systems can do to ensure that first-year teachers have a successful and satisfying experience in the classroom. A total of 20 first and second-year elementary teachers participated in 20 separate, qualitative interviews. The information collected from the interviews was inductively analyzed. Several themes reflecting the perceptions of study participants emerged during the data analysis process: (1) a belief that college classes did not reflect or prepare new teachers for the "real world" of teaching. (2) feeling overwhelmed by teaching duties and expectations; (3) positive benefits of mentoring; (4) a desire for more interactive field experience; and (4) the need for classroom management skills. From the findings, the investigator presented the following suggestions for improving the teacher education program at colleges: (1) provide additional opportunities for more interactive field experience, not just observing; (2) eliminate many of the philosophy classes and research requirements; (3) include more instruction in dealing with classroom management, including discipline strategies and effective means of interacting with parents; (4) intensify reading instruction; and (5) provide more course work in special education issues. The following suggestions were presented for improving the induction program at the school level: (1) formally assign a mentor; (2) schedule a time for the principal to meet with new teachers individually to fully explain school procedures and expectations; (3) hire beginning teachers earlier in the summer to provide them with more preparation time; (4) furnish teachers with adequate funds to purchase school materials; and (5) provide release time to observe veteran teachers. This study provides valuable information for university departments of education to improve their teacher preparation program to reflect the needs of today's new teachers. These findings will assist school systems in developing more appropriate induction programs for new teachers.

Many of America's schools are populated with diverse student populations, while the teaching population remains largely White. This creates dissonance for White teachers and students of color. Possibly mentoring can assist novice White teachers as they enculturate into the profession and their culturally diverse campuses. This qualitative research, conducted from an Interpretivism paradigm, used a case study of a White female novice teacher at a culturally diverse campus to understand the role mentoring played in a White female novice teacher's perceptions of her enculturation into a culturally diverse campus. Several methods of data collection were used, including 9 semi-structured interviews with the novice teacher, email dialogues, 3 days of shadowing, as well as two semi-structured interviews with the subject's principal and mentor. The data was analyzed using the constant comparative method. This White female novice teacher taught at a campus with a large Hispanic student population. She struggled to feel confident in her work and in her relationships with her mentor, her fellow teachers, her administrators, her students and their parents. She relied heavily on her faith and her fellow novice teacher and teammate. Her mentor visited her once a week. She liked her mentor, but never felt she received the assistance desired. She recognized she knew little about the Hispanic culture of her students; she was willing to learn more, but failed to see her own privileged membership in the dominant White culture and its effect on interactions with her students. The discussion of this study looks at the structuring of an effective mentoring program for novice teachers, and the new teacher?s frustrations with the mentoring received; her relationship struggles with her principal and other staff, but also some successes in forming friendly relationships; her desire to understand her Hispanic students and their culture, yet her inability to see her membership in the dominant culture, as well has her school and district's "color-blind" approach to race; and her perceptions of her enculturation into the profession of teaching. The conclusions of this study discuss mentoring new teachers, the role of principals in the induction of new teachers, cultural differences between teachers and students, and the influence of faith and character with a teacher and his/her teaching.

Despite recent rhetoric advocating the diversification of the teacher workforce, teachers in Canada continue to be disproportionately white and of northern European heritage. By investigating responses to difference experienced by racial and linguistic minority immigrant teacher candidates in an initial teacher education program, this thesis sheds light on dynamics that challenge or support the induction of minoritized individuals as members of the teaching profession in Canada. Data collected through interviews with eight immigrant teacher candidates, four instructors, and five student support staff of an initial teacher education program at an urban Canadian university (UCU) indicated that teacher candidates at UCU experienced varied responses to difference. Influences of both hegemony and collaboration were found in the university and practice teaching contexts where individuals representing regimes of competence enacted challenging assimilationist or supportive multiculturalist ideologies. In practice teaching contexts, although all of the teacher candidates engaged with at least one collaborative mentor teacher and they all persisted to complete the program, six of the eight teacher candidates (i.e., all of the linguistic minority teacher candidates in this study) encountered a challenging and significantly discouraging relationship with a mentor teacher. In these hegemonic contexts the legitimacy of the teacher candidates appeared to be measured against a conception of “real teachers” as “real Canadians” who are native English-speakers and who are familiar with the culture of schooling in Canada. Within the university context, student support staff were consistent in their critical awareness of the challenges and supports experienced by teacher candidates while instructors demonstrated a range of familiarity with these issues and with concepts of equity as they relate to the experiences of teacher candidates. Implications of this study support the following: continuation of programs offered through student support services; educative collaborative implementation of UCU’s equity policy to promote greater consistency in its influence; application of inclusive pedagogy; greater curricular emphasis on social power and constructions of difference; recognition of immigrant teachers’ linguistic capital; development of a collaborative method to evaluate teacher candidates in practice teaching contexts; and continued effort to advance a more profound and consistent influence of multiculturalist ideology in Canadian schools.