A recent University of Phoenix survey revealed that a majority of K-12 teachers are satisfied with their career choice and would recommend the job to others. This week, the dean of the school's College of Education shared exclusively with Education World why she thinks induction/mentorship programs are a big reason these educators have a positive view of their roles.

The survey revealed that 88 percent of teachers are satisfied with their career choice, and that seven out of ten teachers who entered the field in the last ten years would recommend the profession.

According to Dr. Pamela Roggeman, Academic Dean of the University of Phoenix's College of Education and a former 17-year K-12 public school teacher, these statistics are directly tied to strong induction and mentorship programs for new teachers as well as programs that prepare soon-to-be teachers for what to expect of the profession.

She points to the especially high teacher satisfaction rates in California and its possession of strong induction programs.

In the survey, California teacher satisfaction numbers were significantly higher than in other parts of the country. There a variety of factors that contribute to it, but one of the things that California does is require teachers in their first year go through an induction program. What good leaders know is that the greater the self-efficacy teachers feel, particularly in the first few years, the more likely they are to thrive in their careers. Professional development opportunities can add to self-efficacy, at the beginning and throughout careers.

Roggeman says that classroom management can be "overwhelming once teachers are in charge of every aspect of the classroom, parent communication, managing the developing personalities of students and interpreting standards and curriculum into long-range strategic plans for students."

For this reason, she says, strong mentorship programs are a must to help teachers gain self-efficacy and experience with successful prioritizing to get through the day and the year.

"Districts that set early career teachers up for success have very robust induction programs that pair teachers with mentors, and are job imbedded to allow teachers to develop own self efficacy. In particular, these programs help teachers find their own ways to self-reflect and grow,"

Is your induction program for first year teachers unique? Share info. about your successful mentorship programs below or email editor[at]educationworld.com.

Article by Nicole Gorman, Education World Contributor

05/12/2015