Perceptions Of An Instrumental Music Teacher Regarding Mentoring, Induction, And The First Year Of Teaching

In a collaboration between teacher (Tavia Zerman) and researcher (Colleen Conway) we examined Tavia's perceptions of mentoring, induction and teaching in the first year. Data included Tavia's handwritten journal, mentor/mentee email communication, teacher observations and interviews, principal and mentor interviews, and teacher questionnaire responses. Findings highlight the challenges faced by Tavia including being overwhelmed, working very long hours, feelings of self-doubt, isolation from other teachers, large numbers of students in classes, varying levels of student ability and content-needs, high profile public performances, and many extra-curricular responsibilities. These findings support the need for music content-related induction and mentor initiatives. Discussion includes possible transferability of these findings to other beginning music teaching settings and recommendations for teaching practice and research.