What We Do
LIT involves a multi-year, multi-layered program of support and learning for beginning teachers, mentors, and administrators. While mentoring is the most common component of induction, it is largely underdeveloped in most school contexts. An essential belief of the Launch into Teaching faculty is that mentoring is a practice that requires ongoing support and development beyond the traditional role of “buddy mentoring”. LIT, a comprehensive induction program, focuses on involving multiple experts from the university and school district to help beginning teachers and mentors learn the subject matter knowledge that is essential to teach effectively and raise student achievement.
I’m not only getting ideas to mentor my beginning teacher; I’m taking a closer look at my own teaching.
-Mentor Teacher
A key component is establishing teaching as a reflective practice. Beginning teachers partner with skilled, well prepared intensive mentors who focus on helping the beginning teachers to improve their practice. In addition, beginning teacher seminars, one credit on-line courses, and content coaching provide opportunities for beginning teachers to further grow their practice. LIT is structured to not only provide support for beginning teachers but to offer a comprehensive program for mentors and principals. We provide intensive mentor preparation through a series of carefully scaffolded seminars. There includes a one-on –one coaching component in which we individualize our offerings based on mentor needs. In addition, district administrators play a critical role in fostering a culture where instruction-based induction support can flourish. We offer a principal study group format in which principals can come to understand this new model of mentoring that we provide and begin developing ways to support the work of the mentors and their beginning teachers in the schools which they lead. Finally, we offer online one credit courses for principals to further develop their practice in support of beginning teacher growth and retention.
