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Professional Development

New Teachers Need Strong Mentors. Two Pros Offer Tips

By Elizabeth Heubeck — August 23, 2023 1 min read
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Teachers are most likely to quit within the first few years of entering the profession, a talent drain that hurts both individual students and entire schools. Robust mentorships in the first few years of an educator’s career can be the difference-maker between establishing a successful teaching career and having it slip away.

That’s why, as part of Education Week’s recent K-12 Essentials Forum, Start the School Year Strong: How K-12 Leaders Can Create Thriving 69´«Ã½ for Teachers and Staff, one session dove into the whys and hows of strong mentorships for early teachers. Joining us as panelists were Heather Puhl, one of three full-time mentors for the Caldwell County schools in North Carolina, and Lindsay Jonas, the coordinator of professional development for the Illinois Association of School Personnel Administrators.

During a 45-minute dialogue, Puhl and Jones offered insights and tips for districts interested in launching or tweaking a meaningful mentorship experience for new teachers.
The two expert panelists covered the following elements for creating a supportive and successful new-teacher mentorship program:

  • Selecting mentors
  • Developing a personal relationship with mentees
  • Offering program choice
  • Providing nonevaluative feedback
  • Extending the mentor-mentee relationship beyond traditional roles
  • Celebrating successes
  • Shaping positive school culture through strong mentorship
  • Investing in mentees’ to strengthen retention rates

To watch the entire session, click on the video above.

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