Colbert Elementary's Induction Team

At Colbert Elementary Magnet School, we have decided to have a joint effort in supporting our new teachers and second year teachers. This year, we have established a site based induction team that includes:

• administrators,
  
• team leaders,
  
• coaches and
  
• support staff.

We set a meeting schedule for the team. We meet monthly to discuss our successes and weaknesses in supporting the new educators. Coaches are asked to submit minutes about the weekly activities with their new educators. We as a team review the minutes from the meetings to see how we may better assist the coaches as well as to share best practices. We also use the information in the minutes to identify professional development needs of our school.

The Principal conducts Chats whereby - once a week any teacher may have a discussion with the principal about Colbert. This encourages new and veteran educators to have open communication with their principal.

Source: Laferne, former NESS Liaison, Colbert Elementary

Schlechty on Education

What is learning? How are skills and knowledge acquired? Learning is a process that requires action and experience, specifically voluntary action on the part of the student. What teachers do is less important than what teachers are able to motivate students to do. Students learn by activities that include “imitating, listening, creating, muddling around, and talking (p. 42).” Yet what matters less than the mode or style of learning is the meaning students attach to what they do and learn. Knowledge and skills cannot be acquired if the material presented is neither relevant nor compelling, and if they cannot be actively involved in both choosing and doing the job of learning

Who is to teach? Teachers must be facilitators, leaders, and inventors. Not only must they be constantly inventing knowledge work, they must understand their students. Many teachers, even the creative and inventive ones, are presently operating in schools intuitively (and sometimes consciously) viewing students as customers. Unfortunately, many teachers seem reluctant to acknowledge that students have the power all customers have: the power of choice.

Teachers need to know.
1) How to interest students in topics they would not ordinarily care about but need to care about.
2) Allow students to make choices that will lead to important, relevant learning.

Because of the great many responsibilities that teachers have, those interested in becoming educators, and those who already are in the profession must be:
1) endlessly motivated to discovering how to challenge students,
2) must be willing to lead as well as step aside when the situations demands it, and
3) must be reflective and self-critical to determine how well the work is being invented for the learners involved.
Source: http://www.newfoundations.com/GALLERY/Schlechty.html

INDUCTION MATTERS: The Difference between Mentoring and Induction

A growing body of research demonstrates that implementing a comprehensive induction program is one of the most effective methods for retaining quality teachers, and can cut teacher attrition rates by 50 percent. In addition, designing well-crafted induction programs can improve teaching quality and increase teacher retention. (www.teacherquality.org)

Mentoring is considered a formal coaching relationship in which an experienced teacher gives guidance, support and feedback to a new educator. High quality mentor programs fully train mentors/coaches, pair first and second year teachers with mentors in similar grades and content areas, and release time and common planning time is provided for mentors and mentored.

Induction goes beyond mentoring to provide an extensive framework to support the continual professional development for everyone in the organization. Comprehensive induction programs may vary in their design, but essential components include a high quality mentor program, ongoing professional development, access to a supportive network in the school, and a criteria-based evaluation of job performance and the process itself.

Mentoring: Focuses on survival and support
Induction: Promotes career learning and professional development

Mentoring:Fosters a mentor apprentice relationship
Induction: Fosters interdependent collegial support of everyone on the staff

Mentoring: Treats mentoring as an isolated event
Induction: Induction is comprehensive and is a part of a career long professional development design

Mentoring: Reacts to whatever arises
Induction: Acculturates a vision that proactively adapts to changes in expectations and in the organization

Mentoring: Short term
Induction: Long term, recurrent, and sustained

Source: Dr. Sheila Lewis, HRD Program facilitator