Teacher Induction Report

Pennsylvania Department of Education

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
333 MARKET STREET
HARRISBURG, PA 17126-0333

Teacher Induction Report
Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Entity: Scranton SD
Address: 425 N Washington Ave
Scranton, PA 18503-1305
Phone:
Contact Name:

Teacher Induction Planning Participants

Name	Affiliation	Membership Category	Appointed By
Carolee MacDonald	Scranton School District	Elementary School Teacher	Scranton Federation of Teachers
Christine Gutekunst	Scranton School District	Elementary School Teacher	Scranton Federation of Teachers
Diane Fontana	Scranton School District	Ed Specialist - School Counselor	Educational Specialists
Jeff Rubel	Scranton Chamber of Commerce	Business Representative	Scranton School Board
Jennifer Graham-Edsell	Parent Teacher Organization	Parent	PTO
John Vail	Scranton School District	Administrator	Administrators
Nancy Hlavaty	Scranton School District	Administrator	Administrators
William F. King	Scranton School District	Administrator	Administrators

Goals and Competencies

GOAL

To provide instructional and procedural support for the newly certified teacher and to help insure an orderly and successful orientation of the beginning teacher through the first year of teaching in the District.

OBJECTIVES

To provide a formal structure through which the inductee may become familiar with District policies, procedures and resources.

To provide a support system for the inductee through the use of a mentor teacher and a building induction team.

To provide training for the inductee in instructional skills as they relate to curriculum, instruction and classroom management.

Assessment Processes

A pre-inducrtion needs assessment survey will be administered to all inductees. This survey will ask the new teacher what elements of the daily teaching process he/she finds most difficult to understand and/or implement. Areas will include curriculum, lesson design, student achievement, classroom management, and school/community relationships. Results of these surveys will drive the content of the staff development. A post-induction needs assessment/evaluation will be administered at the end of the induction period. This data will drive the future induction plan.

Mentor Selection

A. Criteria for Selection

1. An experienced teacher with not less than three years successful teaching in the district, and in conformity with the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

2. Teach at a building in a subject area and/or grade level appropriate to the inductee wherever possible.

3. Indicates a willingness to serve as a mentor.

B. Selection Procedure

1. A pool of mentor teachers will be selected by the Scranton Federation of Teachers as per the collective bargaining agreement.

2. Individual support teacher/inductee assignments will be made by the ER & D Local Site Coordinator with the approval of the Superintendent.

C. Responsibilities

1. Establish a rapport with the inductee.

2. Assist the inductee in identifying immediate needs.

3. Review with the inductee the principles of effective teaching especially as they relate to classroom organization, and the establishment and maintenance of student discipline.

4. Assist the inductee in learning about and implementing the policies and procedures of the school and district.

5. Help the inductee obtain available resources as needed.

6. Suggest topics for further study as needed.

D. Compensation

1. Mentor teachers will be paid in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement.

2. Inductees will be paid at the extracurricular hourly rate as contained in the collective bargaining agreement for service outside the regular working day.

Activities and Topics

General Topics to be Covered in the Teacher Induction Program:

The induction of new teachers will include professional development focusing on the following topics:

I. CURRICULUM

II. LESSON DESIGN

III. TEACHER EXPECTATIONS FOR STUDENT ACTIVITIES

IV. CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT/TIME ON TASK

V. CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE SCHOOLS

I. CURRICULUM

Curriculum and instruction cannot be separated when providing staff development aimed at improving student achievement. Thus, to teach valuable content ineffectively or to instruct effectively worthless content is not "best" educational practice. Therefore, the first component of the induction program examines curriculum with reference to Chapter 4, sound constructs of curriculum development, and planned courses.

First, the inductee is provided with a thorough explanation of Pennsylvania’s curriculum laws as stated in Chapter 4. Educators must be cognizant of curriculum regulations so that a clear understanding of public schools’ programs and services prevails.

Second, curriculum development is presented from the perspectives of preparing and writing planned courses. In the preparation phase, inductees are introduced to curriculum mapping as a means of identifying, with colleagues, the four essential elements of curriculum. These elements are content, time, sequence, and repetition. Once these elements are identified, participants work together in order to prioritize content with reference to “Of all that can be taught, what must be taught within reference to of all that can be taught, what must be taught within the time allotted.” . Throughout this preparation phase, emphasis is placed on the congruence among the coordinated (written), articulated (taught), and evaluated (tested) curriculum.Regarding the writing phase, the five parts of a planned course as stated in Chapter 4 are explained with examples of each. These five parts are student performance objectives, content, allocated time, expected levels of achievement, and evaluation. Through active participation, the inductee writes a unit in a planned course format relative to his/her teaching assignment.

II. LESSON DESIGN

Teaching is decision making. Before and during instruction, teachers make three key decisions regardless of the content taught. These decisions are: (1) what content to teach; (2) what students should do to learn the content; and (3) what the teacher should do to teach the content. Such decision making, in the best interest of students, requires a teacher to think as she/he plans a lesson with reference to a set of questions and an instructional framework.

To facilitate the decision making process, teachers should focus on the following questions:
(1) Are learner and teacher behaviors directed toward a learning objective?
(2) Are students experiencing success and is the lesson delivered at the appropriate instructional level?
(3) Is the teacher checking for understanding?
(4) Is the teacher practicing effective learning behaviors?
(5) Is the teacher effectively addressing the needs of students with limited English proficiency and/or students who are English Language Learners to meet
the academic standards and succeed in school?
(6) Is the teacher differentiating instruction to meet the individual needs of students?

With reference to an instructional framework, lesson design is the most practical mechanism to facilitate the decision making process.

Through technology, direct presentations, videotapes, and demonstrations, an inductee is treated to a comprehensive analysis of lesson design with reference to teacher decision making. At the start, participants are informed that a lesson and a class are not usually synonymous. For example, a lesson may be completed in one class session; however, most design is developed as functions, not steps. Hence all lessons do not and should not proceed perfectly through the model, especially if the teacher is making content and instructional decisions in the best interest of students.

The following functions of lesson design are presented:
1. Review previous day’s work
2. Introduction and presentation
3. Guided practice
4. Independent practice
5. Closure
6. Weekly review
7. Monthly or unit reviews
8. On-going assessments

Throughout all the functions of lesson design, checking for students’ understanding is emphasized as a most important teaching strategy. For it is in checking for understanding which facilitates teacher decision making daily.

As lesson design is presented and demonstrated, the principles of learning are examined through lecture, active participation, and videotapes.

III. TEACHER EXPECTATIONS FOR STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

Teachers communicate expectations for an individual student’s achievement through unconscious verbal and nonverbal behaviors. In turn, the student perceives from these interactions or lack of interactions that the teacher expects him/her to be a high or low achiever.

Defined as inferences teachers make about future academic achievement of students, teachers expectations are either a self-fulfilling prophecy or sustaining expectations.

Riverside School District believes that all students can learn. Continual professional efforts are made to meet the individual needs of learners through the collection and analysis of data.
This component of the induction plan provides a thorough background on teacher expectations for student achievement research, demonstrations of teacher behaviors which promote high or low expectations as perceived by a student, and techniques for inductees to consider which lead to appropriate treatment of all students. Expectations should be appropriate rather than necessarily high, and they must be followed by appropriate instructional behavior; that is, planned learning experiences that move students through the curriculum at a pace they can handle.

The following teacher behaviors are considered best practice:

1. Providing preferential seating to students with special needs.

2. Providing frequent reinforcement to encourage positive achievement and behavior.

3. Providing appropriate correction and feedback on student work.

4. Providing appropriate time for students to respond to questioning.

5. Providing time to foster critical discussion of incorrect responses.

6. Providing opportunities for multiple student participation in whole class discussion.

7. Providing appropriate cues to assist students with communicating understanding.

8. Providing appropriate attention to the needs of all students.

9. Providing positive feedback for sufficient demonstrations of understanding.

Recommendations of National Curriculum Reports:

LESS whole-class, teacher-directed instruction (e.g., lecturing)
LESS student passivity: sitting, listening, receiving, and absorbing information
LESS presentational, one-way transmission of information from teacher to student
LESS prizing and rewarding of silence in the classroom
LESS classroom time devoted to fill-in-the-blank worksheets, dittos, workbooks, and other “seatwork”
LESS student time spent reading textbooks and basal readers
LESS attempt by teachers to thinly “cover” large amounts of material in every subject area
LESS rote memorization of facts and details
LESS emphasis on the competition and grades in school
LESS tracking or leveling students into “ability groups”
LESS use of pull-out special programs
LESS use of and reliance on standardized tests

MORE experiential, inductive, hands-on learning
MORE active learning in the classroom, with all the attendant noise and movement of students doing, talking, and collaborating
MORE diverse roles for teachers, including coaching, demonstrating, and modeling
MORE emphasis on higher-order thinking; learning a field’s key concepts and principles
MORE deep study of a smaller number of topics, so that students internalize the field’s way of inquiry
MORE reading of real texts: whole books, primary sources, and nonfiction materials
MORE responsibility transferred to students for their work: goal setting, record keeping, monitoring, sharing, exhibiting, and evaluating
MORE choice for students (e.g. choosing their own books, writing topics, team partners, and research projects)
MORE enacting and modeling of the principles of democracy in school
MORE attention of affective needs and the varying cognitive styles of individual students
MORE cooperative, collaborative activity; developing the classroom as an interdependent community
MORE heterogeneously grouped classrooms where individual needs are met through inherently individualized activities, not segregation of bodies

IV. Classroom Management/Time On Task

Effective classroom management and student time on task allow teachers to implement strategies which promote learning.

Much has been written concerning classroom management and time on task with reference to student achievement. Time on task studies have been extended to junior and senior high classrooms with positive findings. That is, the more time students were on task and experiencing moderate to high success, the greater basic skills achievement.

Educators well versed on the classroom management and time on task research are quick to point out that they are not mutually exclusive. Too often dismissed as trivial or just common sense, effective teachers have strategies for classroom management which promote an academic focus. Here, attention is paid to quality time as well as quantity time.

Regarding classroom management, strategies are provided for elementary and secondary teacher inductees under the following headings:
1. students use of classroom space and facilities
2. procedures during whole class activities
3. procedures during small group work
4. beginning the school day and year
5. dealing with administrative matters
6. distribution and collection of materials
7. making students accountable for work and behavior

Presenting time on task with reference to monitoring instruction and principles of learning, the variables of allocated time, engagement rate, and student engaged time serve as the basis of this induction component.

As participants calculate these variables during instruction, the concept of time is related to curriculum as a most valuable commodity from the perspectives of a school year, day, and class period.

V. Characteristics of Effective Schools

Research identifying organizational conditions which impact on a school’s effectiveness was disseminated widely and educators began to take notice that schools do impact on students’ achievement. Later, two important aspects of this research base were clarified. First, although many authors reported such conditions as characteristics, they were quick to point out that the research did not provide prescriptions but conditions or characteristics under broad headings which look differently from school to school. Secondly, an effective school is one where all students are achieving at or above grade level as measured on standardized or criterion reference tests in traditional basic skills. Furthermore, there is no significant difference in student achievement between student subgroups, i.e., high versus low socioeconomic family backgrounds.

Schools have been described as loosely coupled systems where teachers rarely interact on a professional level. Thus, teachers and administrators are not very interdependent when it comes to such topics as curriculum articulation, effective instruction, and decision making to name a few. However, educational literature is beginning to spread the word that collaborative efforts on a school wide basis can obtain good results in the school and classroom.

As a result of the effective schools focus, there is a need to create opportunities for more collaboration among and between teachers and administrators, help teachers realize their roles as individuals in the total organization, identify for teachers the conditions which exist in all schools that have an impact on student achievement, and to assess these conditions in order to prioritize needs for action planning on a school wide basis.

With reference to the above needs, the following are characteristics of effective schools:

1. safe/orderly environment
2. clear school mission
3. instructional leadership
4. school/teacher expectations for student achievement
5. opportunity to learn/time on task
6. frequent monitoring of student progress
7. school-community relations
8. collect, analyze, and use data to inform instruction and to help students to improve achievement through data informed decision making

Typical topics include but are not limited to:

1. Classroom Management
2. Portfolios and Authentic Assessment
3. Integrating Technology with Teaching and Learning
4. Effective Instruction
5. Differentiated Instruction
6. Curriculum Development
7. Limited English Proficiency
8. Behavioral and Instructional Relationships
9. Positive Behavior Support
10. Instructional Strategies and Technological Integration
11. Enhancing Teaching Through Creative Resources
12. Sexual Harassment Policies
13. Code of Ethics of the Education Professional
14. Technology - Use of District Email and Attendance System

Evaluation and Monitoring

PRE-INDUCTION NEEDS ASSESSMENT

1. What element(s) of the daily teaching process do you find most difficult to understand and/or implement?

Curriculum

___________ curriculum development
___________ planned course
___________ curriculum regulations
___________ curriculum mapping
___________ written, taught, tested curriculum
___________ adapting for the needs of students with individualized education plans or limited English proficiency

Lesson Design

___________ planning
___________ differentiated instruction
___________ reviewing
___________ presentation
___________ guided practice
___________ independent practice
___________ closure
___________ questioning techniques
___________ checking for understanding/assessments
___________ content meets Pennsylvania state standards
___________ appropriate accommodations and modifications

Teacher expectations for Student Achievement

___________ homework
___________ student-teacher rapport
___________ student attitude
___________ student learning habits
___________ learning styles
___________ understanding of student behaviors
___________ student accountability
___________ student learning objectives

Classroom Management and Time on Task

___________ class control
___________ classroom rules and regulations
___________ organizational skills
___________ student confrontation
___________ student motivation
___________ student attention-span
___________ student participation and involvement
___________ use of classroom space and facilities
___________ seating arrangement
___________ distributing and collecting materials
___________ beginning and ending class on time
___________ efficient time management
___________ independent, small group, whole group activity/guided practice activity
___________ monitoring
___________ appropriate balance of activities

Effective Schools

___________ safe, orderly classroom environment
___________ school and community relations
___________ recognition and respect of economic, cultural, intellectual, and physical differences among students

School and Community Relationships

___________ understand district procedures
___________ understand community culture
___________ understand and interpret district policies
___________ communicating with parents
___________ testing program
___________ student-teacher rights and responsibilities
___________ understand District Strategic Plan
___________ understand the Code of Professional Practice and Conduct for Educators
___________ recognition and respect of economic, cultural, intellectual, and physical differences among students

POST-INDUCTION NEEDS ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION

1. What element(s) of the daily teaching process did you find most difficult to understand and/or implement?

Curriculum
___________ curriculum development
___________ planned course
___________ curriculum regulations
___________ curriculum mapping
___________ written, taught, and tested curriculum
___________ adapting for the needs of students with individualized education plans or limited English proficiency

Lesson Design
___________ planning
___________ teaching at appropriate level of understanding
___________ reviewing
___________ presentation
___________ guided practice
___________ independent practice
___________ closure
___________ questioning techniques
___________ checking for understanding
___________ content

Teacher Expectations for Student Achievement
___________ homework
___________ student/teacher rapport
___________ students’ attitude
___________ student learning habits
___________ learning styles
___________ understanding of student behaviors
___________ student accountability
___________ student learning objective

Classroom Management and Time on Task
___________ class control
___________ classroom rules and regulations
___________ organizational skills
___________ student confrontation
___________ student motivation
___________ student attention-span
___________ student participation and involvement
___________ use of classroom space and facilities
___________ seating arrangement
___________ distributingand collecting materials
___________ beginning and ending class on time
___________ bell to bell teaching
___________ seatwork activitiesand practices
___________ monitoring
___________ appropriate balance of activities

Effective Schools
___________ safe, orderly classroom environment
___________ school and community relations
___________ recognition and respect of economic, cultural, intellectual, and physical differences among students

School and Community Relationships
___________ understand district procedures
___________ understand community culture
___________ understand and interpret district policies
___________ communicating with parents
___________ testing program
___________ student/teacher rights and responsibilities
___________ understand District Strategic Plan
___________ understand the Code of Professional Practice and Conduct for Educators
___________ recognition and respect of economic, cultural, intellectual, and physical differences among students

2. In reference to question one, what steps are you taking to overcome the difficulties?

3. What teaching strategies are working well for you?

4. What things are you doing differently?

5. What can the district do to make the Induction Program more meaningful?

6. Assess your teaching career thus far in the School District.

Participation and Completion

ACCOUNTING, EVALUATING AND REPORTING

Time Line

Inductees and mentors will participate in seminars which stress the effective teaching research components. The meeting dates and times will be scheduled by the Educational Research and Dissemination Committee.

The orientation day for inductees will be held for one full day on a day prior to the start of school. The agenda for the meeting shall include, but not be limited to:
I. Introduction to District administrators and office personnel
II. Introduction to mentor.
III. Overview of District in-service program.
IV. Overview of school-year calendar.
V. Overview of Formative and Summative Evaluations.
VI. Overview of Code of Professional Practice and Conduct of Educators.
VII. Overview of Strategic Plan
VIII. Overview of collective bargaining agreement
IX. Overview of district medical benefits plans
X. Overview of district record keeping procedures
XI. Overview of district expectations
XII. Overview of appropriate communication between school and community

The agenda will also include an on-site visit to assigned school.
I. Meet with building principal
     A. Review of building-level handbook, discipline practices, building duties and assignments.
     B. Classroom management expectations.
     C. Building Induction Team overview.
     D. Explanation of special education and remedial programs.

II. Meet with mentor in special session
     A. Review of Plan Book, attendance procedures, grading procedures
     B. Secure all classroom curriculum materials.

Record Keeping

The Induction Program Report will be completed in May for each inductee by the mentor, principal or Superintendent. The Superintendent shall verify completion of the Induction Program to the Department of Education.