Create a Plan for Successful Teacher Induction

We recently shared why teacher induction is a vital component of acclimating new faculty members to your school. Your school is different from any other public, private, or charter school. New teachers need to understand your mission, culture, teaching philosophies, and educational approaches.

You may say that you do help new teachers acclimate—you hold a new teacher orientation day. You invite new teachers to come to campus a few days before the school year kicks off, introduce key administrators, and spend the day going through the particulars of your school.

But this one-day program isn’t enough. Your new teacher induction program must be a systematic plan that encourages growth and supports success during each teacher’s first years within your school. It’s your role as School Head to ensure this type of program is considered a priority and executed accordingly.

A successful teacher induction program is aimed at faculty members who are new to the teaching profession or new to private schools. Your program should encompass guidance on all aspects of teaching, both in and out of the classroom. Some of these areas are:

• advisory,
• coaching,
• parent relations,
• internal marketing,
• time and stress management, and
• service learning.

Early in your teacher induction program, we recommend focusing specifically on classroom management and parent relations skills. These are incredibly important skills for private-independent school teachers, and they are often not emphasized or adequately taught in college or education programs.

Here is a sample year of a teacher induction program. Consider these examples of how your school and program can support your new teachers all year round.

• August: Welcome back meetings for all teachers. New teachers will also have an orientation where they will be assigned mentors and go through model classroom exercises.
• September: Academic leaders host internal workshops for new teachers in the program on specific topics, based on need.
• October: Provide a reading assignment and host a discussion on a topic.
• November: Set up formal observation sessions conducted by an academic administrator with post-meeting discussion.
• December: Provide support through the holidays, end of terms, etc., through a get-together where new teachers can mingle with and receive support from the full faculty.
• January: Have the same administrators conduct a second observation and follow-up meeting.
• February: Host internal workshops for new teachers in the program on specific topics, based on need.
• March: Set up a third observation and feedback session.
• April: Provide a reading assignment and host a discussion on a topic.
• May: Academic leaders hold annual evaluation meetings and also help new teachers create professional growth and renewal plans for the following year. Your school should also host multiple end-of-year events with accolades for new teachers.

A successful teacher induction program gives your new faculty members the tools to be successful. Work with your academic leaders to create a systemic program that supports them throughout their first years in your schools.

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