A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Appendix B

Exploratory Survey of APEC Members on Teacher Induction

On the following pages is an exploratory survey about teacher induction programs or practices that may exist in your education system. Please answer as completely as possible all of the questions on the exploratory survey. It is not necessary to answer the questions in the exact order that they are presented, nor must you answer each question separately. However, please answer the questions within the following topic areas: teacher induction (including programs or practices that exist in your education system, participants, and mentors or guidance teachers), government policies related to teacher induction, financing teacher induction, outcomes to teacher induction, and future plans.

Your education system may have several programs or one national program of teacher induction. When answering the questions on the exploratory survey, please choose the program or programs that best represent the current practice in your education system. These programs can emphasize both formal and informal efforts related to teacher induction. Alternatively, if your system is highly decentralized with respect to teacher induction programs or practices, you may submit one or more responses from separate jurisdictions.

To clarify the survey, several terms are defined:

• teacher induction - those practices used to help beginning teachers become competent and effective professionals in the classroom.

• teacher induction program - the actual process or procedures that are implemented in your education system to assist beginning teachers.

• inductee - a novice teacher who is being introduced to the teaching profession.

• mentor(s) or guidance teacher(s) - individuals who play a significant role in offering guidance and assistance to beginning teachers.

• "successful" teacher induction program - a program that leads to increased teacher retention and/or to development of effective skills and positive attitudes toward teaching.

Your response to this survey will be included in a report consisting of chapters that represent each APEC member and a chapter that synthesizes key findings. The report will be similar to the document developed in Phase I of the Comparative Study of Teacher Training and Professional Development. In addition, these responses will be sources to identify possible case-study sites for the second component of this project.

Teacher Induction

1. Do formal or informal structures or procedures exist in your education system to help new teachers adapt to the classroom environment during their first few years of teaching? Please describe briefly the structures and procedures that exist, how they are implemented, and how commonly they occur in your education system.

2. What connections (formal and informal) exist between pre-service teacher education programs (the formal training which prepares individuals for a job as teacher) and efforts to guide, train, and support new teachers in their first year in the classroom? Are there policies or incentives, either financial or otherwise, which encourage connections?

3. Please describe briefly and compare the responsibilities and time-use of a first-year teacher and an experienced teacher (an individual who has been teaching for a number of years)? For example, a first-year teacher may have fewer hours assigned to teach in the classroom than an experienced teacher, or an experienced teacher may have more administrative, research, or other responsibilities.
   Teacher Induction Programs and Practices
   4. What are the teacher induction programs or practices currently in place in your secondary education system which support beginning teachers at both the primary and secondary school levels? Please describe briefly your teacher induction program(s) and practices, and specify how they are used. Examples of components of teacher induction programs and practices include:
      • mentoring arrangements where a new teacher works with one or more experienced teachers, master teachers or mentors;

      • seminars or meetings meant to give new teachers specific suggestions on both content and methodologies which they can utilize in their own classrooms;

      • model classrooms where new teachers can observe master teachers at work;

      • team teaching where teachers, both new and experienced, teaching the same subject at the same level work together to design lesson plans, teach different segments to all students, and create quizzes and exams, etc.

   5. In assisting new teachers, on which of the following areas does your teacher induction program focus:
      • teaching methods

      • curriculum content

      • advising students

      • classroom management

      • familiarity with school policies

      • working with parents

      • participating in curriculum and school reform

      • carrying out school administrative tasks

      • other (please specify)

      Choose all that apply. For each area focused on, how does the teacher induction program assist the teacher?

   6. Over what period of time do teachers participate in an induction program (for example, 6 months, 1 or 2 years)? Is there a formal conclusion to the induction period (for example, is there a test or review that indicates completion and moving from "new" teacher to fully qualified teacher)?

   7. How much time do participants spend in teacher induction activities? Do the activities occur during regular school hours, after school, on the weekends, or a combination or these times? If so, please specify.

   8. Are beginning teachers provided support (for example, release time, a substitute teacher, additional money, or a lighter class load) so that they may participate in induction activities? Are master teachers provided support to participate in induction activities?

   9. Is there a system in place to discuss with teachers how they are progressing during their first year of teaching? If so, what is the system?

   10. Are beginning teachers provided opportunities, as part of the induction process, to observe and/or participate in teaching and learning activities in exemplary classrooms or schools? If yes, how often do teachers participate?

   11. Are tertiary education faculty involved in the induction programs in your education system? For example, for research purposes or for assisting beginning teachers to make the transition into the classroom environment? Please describe briefly how faculty participate in your induction programs.

       Participation

   12. Who participates in the teacher induction programs? If not all "new" teachers, is this because of capacity problems (for example, there are not enough trained mentor teachers)? Do new teachers have a choice about whether or how they participate?

   13. What percentage of new teachers in your public education system are involved in teacher induction programs?

       Mentors or Guidance Teachers

       If your teacher induction program includes mentors or guidance teachers, please address the following questions:

   14. Who provides the mentoring or guidance to new teachers (for example, experienced teachers, administrators)?

   15. What is the selection process for choosing an individual or team to mentor or guide beginning teachers? Are they in the same subject or grade level as the beginning teacher? Do they need a minimum number of years of teaching experience?

   16. Is there a training system in place for mentors? Describe briefly this training system.

   17. What incentives exist for individuals to become mentors (for example, does their salary increase or does experience as a mentor help in promotions)?

   Government Policies Related to Teacher Induction

   18. Does your education system have a universally implemented teacher induction program or do local or provincial entities decide individually the induction program to be used? If local or provincial entities choose independently, do the programs vary significantly? Please describe briefly how and why the programs may differ.

   19. Is the induction period required for teacher licensure or registration in your education system? Is it required for permanent assignment of employment? For advancement?

   20. Are teacher induction programs perceived as a way to increase teacher retention in general or for specific teachers in short supply (for example, secondary education science teachers)? If so, how?

   Financing Teacher Induction

   21. In a typical year, what is the budget to run an induction program or otherwise provide support, guidance and training for beginning teachers? Please address this question in terms of: (a) local currency, per inductee and (b) induction program cost as a percentage of total educational expenditures. What amount is provided to a typical school?

   22. Do schools get additional financial resources for taking on a new teacher? For example, do schools receive additional financial support for mentor teachers or for extra teachers to either mentor or substitute in the new teachers classroom?

   23. Was the teacher induction program(s) or practices that were chosen by your education system mandated by the national (or provincial, etc.) government? If yes, do they finance the induction program(s)? If they do not, who finances the program(s)?

   24. Are beginning teacher salaries reduced while they participate in an induction program, for example, during a "probation" period? Does their salary increase upon completion of the program?

   25. What are the major expenditures to run a teacher induction program? For example, is the money spent on mentors, workshops, or extra teachers? Please describe briefly how the money is allocated.

   Outcomes of Teacher Induction

   26. What, if any, evaluation is conducted to determine the effectiveness of teacher induction programs or practices?

   27. What are the known or perceived outcomes of your teacher induction programs?

   28. In general, would you say these programs or practices are judged as successful in supporting beginning teachers? How does your education system assess success? Please discuss.

   Future Plans

   29. Are there reforms in place to change the current teacher induction program(s)? In what way do you expect the induction program(s) currently implemented in your education system to evolve over the next 5 years?

   30. Are there teacher induction programs or practices in your education system that have been discontinued? Please describe briefly the reasons why the programs or practices no longer exist.

   31. Do innovation and/or unique approaches to teacher induction exist in your education system? Please describe briefly. (You may also wish to consider those programs that are under development and not widespread in your education system).
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       [Appendix A] [Appendix C]