Date of Award

Summer 7-2023

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Curriculum & Instruction

First Advisor

Julia Kirk

Second Advisor

Melissa Brown

Third Advisor

Danielle Hamilton

Abstract

New teachers felt unprepared as they entered their first year of teaching and were leaving the teaching field at a high rate every school year. Tennessee, like many other states, had a critical shortage of secondary mathematics teachers. Secondary mathematics has been considered a high-needs subject area. New teacher induction programs were developed to help support new teachers and aid in their retention; however, the state of Tennessee did not have a requirement for mentoring or induction support for new teachers. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore new secondary mathematics teachers’ perceptions of their experiences in a new teacher induction program in a school district in Tennessee, Ellie County Schools. I utilized document analysis and an online questionnaire to collect data from thirteen full-time secondary mathematics teachers with five or fewer years of experience who participated in Ellie County Schools’ new teacher induction program completed the questionnaire. New teachers and any veteran teachers within their first three years of joining the district were strongly encouraged by the school and district leaders to participate in Ellie County Schools’ new teacher induction program, but teachers were not required to participate. I found new secondary mathematics teachers believed their teaching practice benefited from Ellie County Schools’ new teacher induction program which consisted of the following components: mentoring, observations, collaboration with colleagues, and professional development. Furthermore, new secondary mathematics teachers wanted a mentor teacher who functioned as a teaching partner, someone they could plan with and learn from daily.

Keywords

new teacher, induction, mentoring, secondary mathematics teacher

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