More Help For Hawaii’s Novice Teachers
The Hawaii Department of Education released standards for a new program that will help fulfill Race to the Top goals by improving training for novice teachers so they don’t get discouraged and quit.
More than half of Hawaii鈥檚 public school teachers left the profession within their first five years of teaching, according to the department’s Office of Human Resources, costing between $4 million and $29 million per year. This year, about 3,600, or 33 percent, of the state’s public school teachers are beginners, with less than three years in the profession.
“Teachers are the single most important factor in determining student success,” said Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi in a press release issued Wednesday. “Our goal is to have every beginning teacher working with a highly skilled instructional mentor to improve their craft. This critical investment in induction will help us to retain quality teachers and offer leadership roles to veteran teachers.”
The plan falls under the state’s “” promises, which include providing better mentorship and training for teachers, and implementing a teacher evaluation system.
Until recently, the state’s 15 complex area superintendents have been in charge of running their own induction and mentoring programs, which varied in quality and effectiveness. By the end of the 2012-2013, the department says, all complex areas will be working from the same standards.
The five highlight the program’s major objectives:
- Get systemwide support for the program.
- Outline the process and criteria for recruiting and selecting mentors, define the mentor’s role and the professional development required.
- Develop a system to assess teacher growth and development, with an emphasis on improving instruction.
- Provide professional development opportunities for beginning teachers.
- Line up an ongoing system to develop and evaluate the program.
According to the standards, the ratio of novice teachers to mentors cannot exceed 15 to 1. Complex areas will be required to provide intensive mentoring for all teachers in their first two years, with services available for teachers in their third year as requested. The mentoring will center on professional growth plans for the novices that address specific skills and content gaps.
Mentors will also to receive extensive research-based training in how to be an effective instructional coach, the department says.
The complex areas will receive a total of $3 million in federal money to help carry out the plan, and another $3 million will go toward mentor training and monitoring the program quality.
Read the full 16-page introduction to the standards .
