Educator Induction Support Continuum

Support Providers for New Educators in St. Vrain

Induction Coaches meet with first year (Novice 1) teachers on a weekly basis to support them in their classrooms. The type of support depends upon the needs of the teacher and their students, as well as the building’s goals.   Forms of support might include, but are not limited to the following: professional goal-setting, standards-based planning and assessment practices, analyzing student work and teaching practices, observation and feedback of teaching, observation of other teachers and students, modeling a lesson, classroom management, etc.   Aside from the myriad of topics and focus areas Induction Coaches explore with new teachers, Cognitive Coaching is a framework used by the coaches to develop reflective capacity of novice teachers and accelerate professional growth and development.

Clinical Professors also work with novice teachers in their classrooms and offer individualized coaching support exploring similar focus areas. However, Clinical Professors also share additional responsibilities through the Partners in Education (P.I.E.) and Professional Enrichment (P.E.P.) programs. Induction Coaches and Clinical Professors receive ongoing professional development to maximize their effectiveness with teachers and students and offer the most updated research- based practices.

Educators new to St. Vrain that are not assigned an Induction Coach or Clinical Professor will receive a district-trained Peer or Instructional Mentor.   Mentor requirements and expectations differ between the two mentor roles.

Peer Mentors are assigned to experienced teachers (those with three or more years of teaching experience) but are new to St. Vrain. A minimum of eight hours is spent with the inductee to orient them with school and district policies, offer guidance about professional expectations for behavior and performance, provide district and building timelines (e.g., report cards, state assessments) review district standards and curriculum, and locate resources and materials.

Instructional Mentors support novice 1 or novice 2 teachers new to St. Vrain who are not working with an Induction Coach or Clinical Professor. Efforts are made to match Instructional Mentors with someone whose assignment is similar and within the same building. The Instructional Mentor meets with the inductee a minimum of 24 hours spread out over the course of the year. Forms of support are individualized based on the needs of the teacher.   Focus areas include, but are not limited to, the following: review district and building policies and procedures, offer guidance regarding professional expectations for behavior and performance, review district and building timelines (e.g., report cards, state assessments), utilize district standards and curriculum, locate resources and materials, assist with short and long term instructional planning and assessment, provide peer coaching and ongoing feedback, analyze student work and teaching practices to enhance student learning and teacher growth.

Special Education Mentors support novice and experienced special education teachers new to our district.  The special education peer mentor works with the inductee a minimum of 8 hours and the special education instructional mentor works with the inductee a minimum of 24 hours hours over the course of the year providing information regarding district processes and procedures, district and building timelines, assessment reports, planning, and ongoing feedback about instruction.