"Could you please watch my class for a bit? I think I need to throw up!" Yes, a new teacher, (let's call her Martha) said this to me. I took over Martha's class and got the lesson started while she ran out of the room. Was she going to be gone long? Was she going to return at all? At the time, as her instructional coach, I wasn't sure. Now, I am happy to say she's beginning her sixth year as an educator and pursuing her master's degree in instructional leadership.
What do new teachers need? I have found in my work with novice teachers that it comes down to three basic needs:
1. Techniques and Strategies (But Only a Few)
Many new teachers will describe their first year as a blur. They get too much information that too many administrators, departments, and programs expect them to implement from day one. Messages get lost and lines get crossed. Rather than try to add more to what they need to do, my department empowers new teachers with a handful of high-leverage techniques that make a huge difference from day one, when done with fidelity and consistency. Implementing a few classroom management practices well, rather than a whole bunch ineffectively, can literally make or break a new teaching career.
So what do I mean by a few? Five at the most. New teachers need techniques that help them build relationships with students; grab students' attention at the beginning of lessons; develop and maintain high behavioral expectations throughout a lesson; and create a joyful, safe, inclusive classroom environment.
2. Effective Professional and Emotional Support
Teaching is an emotional profession and the emotional states teachers bring to the classroom not only affect how the teacher performs but also how students behave and learn. Novice teachers begin the year ready to take on the world. Remember Martha? Before that year began, she was excited and full of "I can do this" mentality. It took a few days in the classroom, with real live students in it, to show her that teaching was a bit more difficult than she expected. "Wait. You mean I am not only responsible for what and how these children learn, but also in charge of my paperwork, grades, lesson planning, lunch duty, calling parents, attending campus meetings, and so forth?"
If we know that teachers' emotional states matter, then we know the importance of taking care of our teachers and having conversations about the self-care it takes to do the job well. Teaching has become so high stakes that many new teachers hit an "I'm not sure I can do this" wall earlier in the year than ever before. We've found that our mentoring and instructional coaching programs provide a professional and personal lifeline to new teachers.
Effective mentoring means having a partner and collaborator who can ask key questions about lesson development and delivery; it also means providing breathing space for the new teacher and time to reflect on what is working and what is not. Sometimes that means putting the work away for five minutes for a good laugh or cry. Many days at the beginning of the year involved tears for Martha, which eventually subsided as she became knowledgeable and empowered. Having her go back to her "why" of wanting to be a teacher in the first place was always a great way to reset.
3. Nonjudgmental Understanding and Patience
When I began my teaching career, the assistant principal welcomed me on board and gave me my teacher edition textbook and the key to my classroom door. That was it! I went to a one-day orientation that covered the daily schedule and attendance rosters. It was a "fake it ‘til you make it" kind of year, but I can say that I survived. Looking back, I often think, "If I had more support and knew then what I know now, who knows what kind of amazing teacher I could have been!" All teachers need time to grow, but support can mitigate some of the growing pains.
A few years ago, I ran into Martha at her campus and we chatted about her first-year experience. As hard as that year was for her and as many tears as she shed, she explained to me that it was still satisfying and one of the most profound for her. "I had to live it," she said. But she was also thankful to have someone who understood where she was in her career, and who could help her set goals that would move her closer to becoming the teacher she hoped to be.
Working with novice teachers these past seven years has been incredibly rewarding. No matter where each started, I have seen growth in all of them, and, in turn, the New Teacher Support department has evolved to better serve new teachers. The role of and expectations for new teachers are the same for any other teacher on campus; the support we give them, therefore, needs to meet their needs, where they are, and with whatever skill set they bring with them. Personalized, individualized, and intentional support is crucial. As the days turn into weeks, and weeks into months, new teachers can become the game changers on their campuses when they begin to see the influence of their teaching, continue to reflect on their influence, and remain passionate about the "why" of their teaching. One new teacher can have an important to effect on a student, a school, and a community. I know it because I have seen it.