Stephanie A. Kurtts

Using Peer Coaching with Preservice Teachers to Develop Reflective Practice and Collegial Support

This research describes the impact of learning and practicing peer coaching techniques based on McAllister and Neuberts (1995) model. The 27 undergraduate elementary education majors who participated in this study were found to have an increased understanding of (a) the importance of developing a reflective stance and (b) the benefits of developing collegial support. It is hoped that beginning teachers who are equipped with these skills will continue to think about their teaching and understand the value of seeking the support of their peers.

Project RESTART: Preparing Nontraditional Adult Teacher Education Candidates to Become Special Education Teachers

In North Carolina, where the state must hire 10,000 teachers every year just to fill existing classrooms, highly qualified special education teachers are included in the top three areas of greatest teacher shortage, behind math and science. Such needs, which include an increase in teachers from ethnic minorities, challenge teacher educators to seek innovative methods for recruitment and retention of pools of nontraditional teacher candidates (Artiles, Trent, & Palmer, 2004; Boe, Cook, Bobbitt, & Terhanian, 1998).

Successful induction for new teachers: a guide for NQTs & induction tutors, coordinators, and mentors

Even on the best of days, teaching is a demanding profession that requires countless hours in and outside of the classroom to meet the educational needs of increasingly diverse student populations. Most teachers arrive to work at least an hour early, work an exhaustive schedule filled with endless instructional challenges of the classroom and the systemic environment of school, and remain long after the doors have been locked to prepare for the next day in which they will do this routine all over again. Into this difficult yet immensely rewarding work the teaching profession across the globe sends our beginning teachers into the fray.