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Ace in the hole

Nevada district wins big with induction program for new teachers

By Joan Richardson

Results, April 2005

Copyright, National Staff Development Council, 2005. All rights reserved.

At lunch during a recent NSDC workshop, Karyn Wright playfully went around the table and pointed at each person seated at the table. "We recruit in Detroit. We recruit in Oklahoma. We recruit in Seattle. We recruit everywhere," said Wright, director of K-12 teacher development for Clark County School District in Nevada.

Be scared. Be very scared because hiring teachers and initiating them into the profession is critical work in Clark County - the home of Las Vegas - and one of the fastest growing school districts in the U.S. When Wright arrived as a teacher in 1979, the district had about 500,000 residents. Today, it has more than 1.2 million. In five years, the district grew by 63,000 students and today enrolls 280,000 children and employs about 16,000 teachers.

To serve those students, the district hires between 1,800 and 2,500 teachers a year and opens an average of 10 new schools a year. Not all of those new teachers are fresh out of college: The average age of the new hires during the 2004-05 school year was 34. This means Clark County is not merely initiating first-timers into the profession but also introducing experienced teachers to this district's way of doing business.

The National Commission on Teaching and America's Future calls teacher turnover a national crisis and estimates that a third of all new teachers leave the classroom within three years and close to half leave within five years. In Clark County, about 90% of each class of new teachers returns the following year, Wright said. When teachers do leave the district, it's generally because they yearn to return to their homes, not because of difficulties settling into the profession, she said.

For anyone charged with developing an induction program, Clark County provides several lessons in how to make those new teachers feel welcome while also incorporating them effectively into a system proud of its standards-based curriculum.

WELCOME TO LAS VEGAS!

Clark County rolls out the proverbial red carpet as soon as a job offer is made. A volunteer from the business community and a volunteer teacher call each applicant to answer questions and encourage them to move to the area. Those who accept jobs get online access to the district's curriculum resources, including elementary curriculum standards, course syllabi for secondary level courses, and four hours of digitized staff development modules that offer a basic preview to the district.

Between mid-July and mid-August, experienced teachers staff a New Teacher Welcome Center, offering suggestions on settling in Las Vegas, helping with such basics as finding a place to live, locating a roommate, hooking up utilities, and registering a car. Teachers can also learn about apartment complexes that offer discounted rent to new teachers.

The day before their first contract day, new teachers are invited to attend a Get to Know Your Community Day. "We want them to be inducted, not just into the district, but also the community," Wright said.

One goal for the day is to have teachers leave with three different kinds of "buddies." Each teacher's nametag has a colored ribbon that identifies the region of the country they're coming from. "Even more than finding someone who teaches the same subject or on the same level, new teachers really want to connect with someone who is from the same area of the country," Wright said.

During the day, newcomers are organized into three distinct groups: geographical groups; grade-level and/or subject groupings; and "hobby groups," according to one of their outside interests, such as shopping, hiking, or single life.

Wright said community day focuses on after-school life because she wants to remind new teachers not to work all the time. "Some of them are totally alone. They work alone, they work late at night, and they will come in on Saturdays. We want them to have balance," she said.

ORIENTATION

A one-day new teacher orientation follows the pattern of most districts, introducing newcomers to resources, services, curriculum, and information most relevant to incoming teachers.

The new teachers especially like Clark County's Tip Calendar. At the end of their first year, Wright invites every new teacher to write down at least one tip for next year's new teachers. Her staff then assembles the "tip calendar" with one tip for every day of the school year. Day 67's tip was: "If you fail, pick yourself up and try something new."

At orientation, teachers are divided into elementary and secondary and divided again into first-time teachers and experienced teachers. First-time teachers go over basics such as setting up their classroom, classroom management, and aligning lesson plans with curriculum. Experienced teachers learn about the district's culture, especially the curriculum and Nevada state standards.

Everyone learns about the district's Professional Domains, the standards that are set for teachers and make up the core of each teacher's evaluation.

ONGOING SUPPORT

Each Clark County school has a Facilitator of Mentoring, a teacher who volunteers to be responsible for implementing a mentoring program that is best suited to that school. In some buildings, teachers are assigned mentors but, in most schools, Wright said teachers choose a mentor teacher themselves. The mentoring facilitator supports all mentors, especially helping them to understand the phases that new teachers pass through.

About 80 teachers are recruited each spring to join the Teacher Training Cadre. "Our model is 'teachers training teachers,' " Wright said. Cadre members learn presentation and facilitation skills for working effectively with new teachers. Then, new teachers in a grade level or subject area meet numerous times during the school year with a cadre member from the same grade or subject.

Wright said much of this work focuses on classroom management, planning standards-based lessons, and creating appropriate assessments.

"These are important sessions because it gives them an opportunity to network with other teachers teaching at the same level or the same subject but in different buildings. It's very valuable to take them out of their buildings so they don't feel like they're the only ones having particular problems," Wright said.

Between meetings with their cadre member, new teachers can participate in an online chat room where they can discuss issues with cadre members from across all levels and subjects.

Clark County also publishes a monthly newsletter just for new teachers. Each issue features a new teacher and a National Board Certified Teacher. "We want them to understand that this is what they are working towards," Wright said.

Wright said she believes colleges are doing a fine job preparing teachers. "Universities provide them with the foundation. But they can't know how to apply what they learn until they're in a classroom with their own students.

"Until you have those kids in front of you and you're the one in charge and you're the one dealing with the daily challenges, you really can't apply what you know. Teaching them about that is our job," she said.

"We don't use the word 'survive' here. I won't buy any new teacher material that talks about 'surviving' the first year or anything about throwing them a 'life line.' That's demeaning to teachers. They're new to our profession and we want to treat them with respect and professionalism. This is all about growing and retaining effective teachers," Wright said.