Teacher recruitment and retention have become topics that nearly all school districts have been considering since March of 2020. Teachers are leaving the profession at greater rates than ever due to the pandemic’s effects, including tension and additional stress around masking, issues of social justice, and the scrutiny teachers face around the subjects they teach, and materials and curriculum used.

In addition, teachers are still earning less than other non-teaching college-educated graduates. According to The Hill, “The average weekly wages of public school teachers, adjusted for inflation, increased just $29 from 1996 to 2021.”

This information intensifies the responsibility of school leadership to ensure that they are providing the support necessary to new teachers to keep them from leaving the profession in the first years of their career.

For this reason, mentor teacher and induction programs are required by most state departments of education in the United States. We also know that as teachers remain in the profession and improve their craft, student achievement increases. For example, in Pennsylvania, teacher education program graduates must take a summative assessment and pass to earn a teaching certification. The certification awarded is temporary (Level I). Teachers have six years to earn their Level II certificate. Level II certification requires completion of a state-approved induction program to include a mentoring component for all newly employed professional educators.

The Benefits of Mentor Teacher and Induction Programs for New Teachers

The Pennsylvania Department of Education reports that educator quality is the largest single factor influencing student learning. Therefore, a high-quality new teacher induction program is an essential first step to facilitate entry into the teaching profession.

Support for new teachers increases retention rates and those who participate in comprehensive induction programs are more likely to use instructional practices to improve student achievement, assign challenging work to diverse student populations, use standards-based curriculum frameworks, and accomplish the goals of the curriculum.

Essential components of most mentor teacher and induction program require assigned mentor teachers, coaching, and opportunities for continuous growth and improvement on the part of the new teacher. The requirement for a mentor to be assigned to new teachers as part of the induction program means that there should also be some support given to mentors to ensure that they are supporting their new teachers in appropriate and meaningful ways.

When polled about what new teachers were looking forward to getting out of their new teacher mentor program, teachers reported that they needed mental and emotional support from a mentor teacher, as well as shared expertise.

They also reported needing support in the areas of classroom management, time management, and getting acclimated to their school district and building. Teacher mentor and induction programs are not just for new teachers coming directly from university to the classroom. They are also designed to support teachers who are transitioning subjects, school buildings, districts, states, countries, and types of educational institutions.

Because K-12 education in the United States is state-regulated, the state government retains autonomy for decision-making and policy. Transferring to teach in a new state can be overwhelming. Understanding new school structures such as the differences between public, non-public/private, charter, cyber charter, home-bound, and homeschool and the workings within each varies from state to state. Likewise, so do the educational service agencies that act as liaisons between state departments of education and local education agencies.

Lastly, mentor teacher and induction programs are beneficial for teachers who completed their coursework in the past to some degree. Best practices and trends in education have evolved and changed over time. The best way for teachers who have taken a break from the profession or who have not continued their professional development to learn about new resources and research is to participate in an induction program.

Being assigned a mentor who has expertise in similar content areas or grade levels, and also has historical context of the school building as a lead teacher can be one of the most influential aspects of a new teacher’s success. Most college preparatory teacher education programs require some degree of student teaching or internship experience, but it is never enough to truly prepare any pre-service teacher for the responsibility of being a classroom teacher. Mentor and induction programs help bridge that gap and support transition from theory to reality and practice.

How to Get Involved in Mentor Teacher and Induction Programs

Most school districts and local education agencies will offer a mentor teacher and induction program to newly hired teachers, either because it is a requirement or because it is a best practice. It is important to take these opportunities to participate in mentor and new teacher induction programs seriously and make time to receive the support you need as a new hire. We are always overwhelmed when we start a new job, but in the end the benefits of setting the time aside to be present during the program sessions will pay off.

Suppose your school or district does not offer a mentor or induction program. In that case, you can find lots of professional learning networks (PLNs) on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. I would also encourage you to ask your local education service agency or intermediate unit to connect you with a community of practice and network that will help support you and provide opportunities for growth and development in your new profession!

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I personally have always welcomed student teachers into our school. I think about the opportunities that were given to me when I was an aspiring teacher. I had several mentors who gave me the guidance and feedback I needed to grow. Collegiate courses are valuable and teach the history and foundation of teaching, effective strategies, and allows for practice. However, the student teaching experience is unmatched in terms of preparation. The live, on-the-spot interactions, knowing how to manage the classroom, monitor and adjust, etc. is the highest form of learning that will best prepare any novice.

Challenges Student Teachers are Facing

Student teachers today are facing challenges that no other cohort of student teachers have faced. They are anxious to jump in and get their feet wet; to experience all the aspects of the classroom setting that they have learned about. Now, with virtual classes and even hybrid models with COVID restrictions, they are not learning the traditional components of school.

Currently, we have a few student teachers with us. I asked one of them about the challenges he is facing with our county being fully virtual since the year began. He mentioned that it is difficult for him to personally connect with the students. Being that he is not their formal teacher, he says he is struggling to make authentic connections, but over time it has gotten better. Relationships are essential between teacher and student. He stated that he was already trying to learn how to foster relationships face to face, but the virtual piece has added an extra obstacle.

He also mentioned behavior management. As we all know, behavior management face to face is totally different than behavior management virtually. Traditionally we would train him on implementing classroom procedures, how to create and enforce rules, how to manage students who are off task, disinterested, or misbehaving, and how to keep students actively engaged in their learning.

While virtual learning shares some of those same aspects, teachers now must learn to effectively manage the class virtually. These skills include active engagement through movement and participation through using online tools. Teachers must be well versed with digital applications and platforms. They must teach their students how to respond using these applications and the features on the platform. Virtual participation is dependent on these things. Our student teachers are forced to learn how to accomplish this in their own way.

Concurrent teaching is another challenge for student teachers. To be honest, concurrent teaching is a challenge for all teachers. Concurrent teaching is when a teacher is responsible for simultaneously teaching their face-to-face and virtual students. This is the newest form of teaching and no blue print has been created for it. Therefore, teachers all around the country are navigating unchartered waters.

Student teachers are learning from tenured teachers who would normally have a blue print to share. Now, all teachers, novice and veteran, are in the same boat and share the same insecurities about whether or not they are reaching their virtual students with the same impact as they would face to face.

What is a Mentor Teacher’s Job?

A mentor teacher is the lifeline for the student teacher’s success. This teacher becomes their go-to for all things school. Most ideally, the teacher and student will build a relationship and a bond that will last long after the student teaching assignment.

Mentor teachers are responsible for showing them the ropes and making sure they walk away with an experience that prepares them to confidently lead their own classroom soon after. Mentorship means that the cooperating teacher is an open book. It is the mentors job to “show and tell” everything that is relevant to teaching success.

This is more than teaching practice. It is also how to build relationships with students and families, how to engage students and manage behavior, how to find resources and be a valuable teammate, how to manage their time and be efficient with tasks, how to lead their teacher assistant to be effective, and so much more. Often times, student teachers don’t know what to ask so the mentor should lay it out for them and leave no stone unturned.

How to Mentor a Student Teacher

If you are lucky enough to be asked to mentor a student teacher that means that you are accomplished or distinguished in your practice and that is to be commended. It is an honor to be able to influence a future educator.

In an all-virtual model, cooperating teachers should be prepared to spend extra time with the mentee outside of the class to give examples of what full time face-to-face learning looks and feels like today. We are going through a national pandemic; however, this will pass and we will be back to some type of normalcy soon. It is important to prepare them for this. The bright side is that current student teachers are living and learning through this pandemic education and now have those new skills going forward in their career.

If you are a face-to-face cooperating teacher, be sure to give your mentee the most authentic, hands-on experiences with immediate and kind feedback with suggestions and examples for growth. Model for them and let them know all questions are valuable.

Cooperating teachers should be honest but not negative. It is vital to be honest about a teachers responsibilities, the paperwork, the meetings, and other issues that teachers would rather not have so much of but it is also vital to share with them the many positive outcomes of students and impacts that we make on them and their families that last long past the year they were assigned to you.

In education, mentorship only makes us all stronger. To build a strong and competent teacher is to build strong and competent children who will one day make our world a better place.

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