Preservice Teacher Educators' Role in Programs for Beginning Teachers

In this article we argue that substantial continuing education and personal support for first-year teachers are necessary extensions of preservice education. However, since little special attention traditionally has been given to beginning teachers either by those in schools or those in higher education, a host of issues and problems needs to be resolved to make effective entry-year programs a reality. We first suggest what roles those in higher education might appropriately assume in addressing these problems, which range from role definition, selection, and preparation of mentor teachers (as well as reallocating some of their classroom teaching time and justifying this tactic) to identifying more realistic criteria for success for beginning teachers. A central role for those in higher education is to help provide a more coherent and continuing educative program for both mentors and beginning teachers together and independent of one another. The matter of how to base such programs on knowledge regarding how beginning teachers are socialized, how they come to terms with new tasks or changes, and how their development interacts with their success is also addressed. Structure and conditions that support more inquiry-oriented teaching and reflection on that teaching are also promoted. Finally, theoretical frame-works that can provide direction for research on how best to enable teachers to continue to learn how to teach are shared.