A new Canadian resource has recently been published providing a unique collection of 40 educators writing about the “Bliss and Blisters” of early career teaching in different provinces and territories. The book is the first of its kind to provide a pan Canadian view on the experiences of new teachers, and the diverse mentorship programs, school systems and policies that aim to sustain our early career teachers. “Bliss and Blisters of Early Career Teaching” summarizes important research conducted by the editors resulting from a pan-Canadian survey of new teachers, and a review of research literature investigating contextual factors that affect early career teachers. Purchase the book here.
Meta-analysis Reveals Coaching’s Positive Impact on Instruction and Achievement
“Coaching, either alone or in conjunction with other forms of professional learning, has a significant effect on teaching practice and student achievement. This study provides evidence to support district and school investments in coaching and recommends that coaching programs emphasize substantial improvements in teaching practice to increase their effects on student achievement.” Read more here.
Systematic Review Teacher Induction and Mentoring
This Canadian report details a comprehensive systematic review of international research literature on formal programs of support for beginning teachers, led by faculty at Queen’s University and the University of Saskatchewan. The review contributes to the understanding of how teacher induction and mentorship programs around the world describe and respond to the various contextual factors affecting beginning teachers in the first five years of teaching. Contextual factors are explored as the various societal, organizational, and personal forces that influence the professional practices of new teachers. Read more here.
BC Teacher Mentorship: A Provincial Conversation
This document provides Background and Context including an overview of important :
- Terminology
- FAQ’s
- Resources
Access the pdf file here
Embedding Professional Development in Schools
The OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) examined:
- Teacher participation in non-school vs school embedded professional development
- Differences in professional development between counties
- Impact on classroom teaching
Access the pdf file here
Mentorship Survey Results
Research conducted from 2013 includes:
- What mentors / mentees learned
- Challenges mentors / mentees experienced
- Suggestions to improve the program
Download the powerpoint here
The New Teacher Center, Santa Cruz, impact/learning briefs related to effectiveness of mentorship/induction programs. These briefs may be helpful to mentor leaders advocating for mentorship funding from their school boards. Topics included are:
- Does New Teacher Support Affect Student Achievement?
- Comprehensive Induction or Add-on Induction
- Mentoring New Teachers to Increase Retention
- The Costs and Benefits of a Comprehensive Induction Program
The Impact/ Learning Brief is available here
Teaching in the Early Years of Practice: A Five-year Longitudinal Study. The Alberta Teachers’ Association. 2013. This study followed a group of beginning teachers through their first 5 years in the profession. It provides insights relevant to BC on such topics as:
- why early-career teachers leave the profession and where they go
- the stages through which new teachers gain self-confidence, acquire skills, and forge professional identities
- the qualities and behaviours that new teachers value in both formal and informal mentors
- the specific ways in which the culture of a school can make new teachers feel either welcome or professionally isolated
The study is available here
Early Career Teacher Attrition: Problems, Possibilities, Potentials. Clandinin and team, Centre for Research for Teacher Education and Development, University of Alberta. 2012.
This study develops an in-depth picture of the experiences of early career teachers in Alberta, using narrative inquiry to focus on how these experiences shaped their decision to stay in or leave teaching. The study makes important recommendations on “why would teachers who are beginning stay?” which include changing the discourse around beginning teachers.
The full study is available here
The impact of induction and mentoring programs for beginning teachers: A critical review of the research. Ingersoll, R. Strong, M. Review of Educational Research, (81(2), 201-233). 2011.
This often cited critical review of 15 empirical studies provides support for the claim that specific assistance for beginning teachers can have a positive impact on three sets of outcomes: teacher commitment and retention, teacher classroom instructional practices, and student achievement.
Read more about the article here
A study of novice teachers: Challenges and support in the first years. Robert D Fantilli, Douglas E. McDougall. Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto. 2009.
This seminal Canadian study contributes the Canadian context and novice teacher voice to the literature surrounding new teacher induction and mentorship. Case study participants found administrative leadership, refining the mentorship selection process, hiring practices, and district-sponsored support as positive factors necessary for them to grow into the profession.
The study is available here
Early-Career Teacher Attrition and Retention: A pan-Canadian document analysis study of teacher induction and mentorship programs. B. Kutsyuruba, L.Godden, L. Tregunna, Queen’s University, 2012.
This article examines the policies supporting beginning teachers in different provinces and territories across Canada. It reveals significant variability and argues that comprehensive intensive support programs for new educators are both an effective and an efficient public investment.
Read document here
School Teachers in Canada: Context, profile and work. Highlights of a Pan-Canadian survey. Kaman, P.C., Riopel, M-C, and Lessard, C. University of Montreal. (2007).
Kamanzi, Riopel, and Lessard in a wide-ranging study of Canadian teachers’ work, explored professional induction and development, social relations in school, work satisfaction, perception of changes on teachers’ work, and perception of the profession of educator. They found that teachers’ work was impacted by decisions made at the provincial level, and 88.6% stated that their workload had increased in recent years. The authors also found that BC and Quebec teachers were more pessimistic about educational change than teachers in other provinces. Read survey here
The ABC’s of Mentoring New Teachers. Melissa Carr and Kara Obojski, SFU Masters of Education Program, SFU.
This local study explored how mentoring learning teams in the Coquitlam School District affect the self-efficacy and professional growth of new teachers. The study examined the level of significance new teachers place on themes such as professional growth, stress management, sense of belonging, networking, collaboration and instructional strategies.
The full study is available here
Why are New Teachers Leaving the Profession? Results of a Canada-Wide Survey. Thierry Karsenti and Simon Collin. Education, 3(3): 141-149. 2013.
This article focuses on new teachers who leave the profession in Canada. Using a questionnaire targeting drop-out teachers and other education actors who witnessed the events surrounding the teachers’ resignation, the research objectives were to: 1) determine professional aspirations to enter the teaching profession; 2) identify the main reasons for new teachers to leave the profession; and 3) identify the individuals to whom new teachers turn when problems arise. Results confirm a number of drop-out factors reported in the literature and provide a deeper understanding of how they interact. The full study is available here.