School and district leaders, take notice: The amount of teachers with multiple years of experience is declining.
According to EdWeek, the number of teachers in their first to sixth year in the classroom recently multiplied by almost four, while the number of teachers with more than 30 years of experience rapidly declined. An additional alarming metric? About 45 percent of new teachers leave the profession within five years. It’s safe to say that today, US Education heads in the direction of a younger, less experienced workforce.
Many schools rely on teacher induction programs to get their newest educators up to speed before school starts. With so much to do and so much to learn, this anticipatory professional development helps but lacks the space for the continuous reflection and learning necessary to make a long-term impact on practice.
Leaders need to find modern ways to support new teachers to become highly effective and motivated to remain in the classroom. Keep reading for four levers to pull and questions to ask your fellow school leaders to modernize your teacher support.
1. Focus on Your Mentors
A mentor can help new teachers navigate challenges, build relationships with colleagues, access resources and create a professional learning community that lasts years.
How can you add more intentionality to matching mentors and teachers while supporting your best teachers to become high-quality mentors?
2. Make Coaching Accessible and Actionable For All
Research shows that most teachers find coaching helpful, but they aren’t getting enough of it. They also report higher student engagement when working with a coach.
What innovation would offer every new teacher access to a coach who can hold space for feedback and reflection that turns to action?
3. Help New Teachers Experience Success Over Time
New teachers will feel more optimistic and encouraged when they find success throughout the year.
What would it look like to have an actionable roadmap of new teacher outcomes with stops along the way to collaborate and celebrate wins big and small?
4. Provide High Quality and Connected On-Demand Learning
No one wants to rely on one-off PD days to build the skills they need all year long. Remote learning throughout the pandemic showed that new teachers rely on on-demand resources like strategies, lesson plans, and courses to learn new skills.
How can leadership provide teachers with access to an ecosystem of high-quality on demand resources that align to district goals?
Interested in engaging in a conversation with other education leaders to answer these questions? Attend our upcoming webinar co-hosted with EdWeek.
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