The First Years of Teaching: Disparities in Perceptions of Support

With an inadequate supply of qualified teachers, education stakeholders continue to investigate teacher attrition issues and induction/mentoring practices to improve retention rates, especially in the critical first years of teaching. What types of support do beginning teachers value, and what do they actually receive? What types of support do administrators believe are provided for the beginning teachers in their schools? Answers to these questions were sought in an investigation of the induction and mentoring practices of the partner school districts of 2 universities. This article reports findings from that study. The findings indicate discrepancies between the strategies provided for new teachers and those they valued, as well as disparities between administrator and teacher reports.