EDUCATOR INDUCTION PROGRAM
LEXINGTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS
June 2015
4
Contents
Overview of the Educator Induction Program Page 2
Year 1
Year 2
Year 3
Guidance of the Educator Induction Program Page 4
Mentor Committee
Program Evaluation
Mentor Coordinator
Mentor Coordinator
Educator Induction Professional Learning ad hoc Committee
Becoming a Mentor Page 6
Mentor Qualifications
LPS Mentor Institute
Serving as a mentor Page 7
Mentor-Mentee Pairing Protocol
Mentor Duties
Mentee Responsibilities
Mentor Logs
Observations
Ongoing Mentor Professional Learning
Lead Mentor
Mentor Logs Page 10
Lexington Educator Induction Program
Lexington’s Educator Induction program is a three-year sequence of mentoring and coursework for all educators new to the district. The program is designed to develop and retain effective, educators who are student-centered and
· Provide them with information on procedures, content and pedagogy that are critical to success in the district
· Help them become acculturated to Town of Lexington and the Lexington Public Schools
· Build professional relationships between veteran educators and educators new to the district
· Convey the district’s mission, vision and core values including, but not limited to:
o employing educational strategies that promote a growth mindset;
o providing culturally proficient experiences to our students;
o using data to inform practice, and;
o understanding that being an educator is a continuous process of learning, experimenting and refining practice.
The Three-Year Induction program - Overview
Year 1: The focus of year one is to provide all educators new to the district with the information they need about procedures, content, pedagogy and school culture when they need it. This information is delivered through several paths.
· Educators are assigned a one-to-one mentor who will work with them throughout the year. Ideally, the mentor and mentee work in the same building and have the same work assignment. The mentor is the resource person for the new educator when the new educator has questions. More importantly, the mentor actively engages the new educator on his or her practice through observations, case studies and reflection.
· Educators will be expected to participate in a district-based training program. The training program is scheduled outside the professional workday and is designed to enhance new educators’ understanding of best educational practices as they apply to the district’s programs, mission, vision and core values.
· Educators will also participate in a three-day, new educator orientation program that occurs prior to the start of school year. During these three days, new educators
o are introduced to key district, building, and department personnel;
o receive training in the district’s evaluation instrument, essential technology and important procedures;
o get a tour of their building, and
o begin work with their mentor.
In addition, each new educator will also receive timely and relevant information from many other sources including:
· His or her professional learning community (PLC) members and/or Department Leader who will provide key information on content and content-specific pedagogy and procedures.
· Building-based new educator meetings that are designed to provide building-specific information.
Year 2: The focus of year 2 is to encourage the educator to begin to engage in a reflective process of growth. Depending on the experience of the new educator, there are different expectations.
· Educators new to the education profession (Track 1) will have a second year of a mentoring. This second year of mentoring will both fulfill state licensure requirements and will continue the work that was begun in year 1.
· Educators with one to four years of experience (Track 2) do not automatically qualify for a mentor in the second year, but a supervisor may request a second year mentor in cases of a specific need.
· Educators with less than five years experience (Track 1 or 2) are expected to enroll in a pedagogy course that is offered outside the professional workday.
· Educators with five or more years of experience (Track 3) are expected to select and successfully complete a course from the LPS Professional Learning Course Catalog in either Year 2 or Year 3. These courses are scheduled outside of the professional workday. Educators new to the district should select their course in consultation with their supervisor.
Year 3: In year 3, Track 1 and 2 educators will complete an elective course offering from the Lexington Professional Learning Course Catalog. Educators on Track 3 are expected to take an elective in either their second or third years. These courses are scheduled outside of the professional workday. Educators new to the district should select their course in consultation with their supervisor.
Guidance of the Educator Induction program
The Educator Induction program has mentoring and professional learning components. The mentoring component is overseen by the Mentor Committee and is coordinated by the Mentor Coordinator. The professional learning component is overseen by the Educator Induction Professional Learning ad hoc committee and is coordinated by the Professional Learning Director.
Mentor Committee
The Mentor Committee oversees the planning, implementation, and evaluation of the mentoring component of the new educator induction program. The Mentor Committee meets regularly throughout the school year. The meetings are convened by the Mentor Coordinator.
Each mentor committee member serves on the committee for a three-year term. All terms are staggered; one-third will turn over each year. There is nothing to prevent any member from serving more than one term. However, the “new educator” representative must be someone with five or fewer years of experience when appointed and may serve only one term in this capacity. The mentor committee will make an effort to select educator-members that represent the diversity of positions that the mentor committee serves.
Composition of Mentor Committee
Mentor Coordinator (standing member)Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources (standing member)
*Association Representative (standing member)
Full Time Administrator: Elementary
Full Time Administrator: Middle
Full Time Administrator: High
*Mentor Educator
*Mentor Educator
*New Educator Non-Professional Status (Year 2 or 3)
*New Educator Professional Status (Year 4-6)
*New Educator Professional Learning Instructor
* These members of the mentor committee will be compensated as per LEA Unit A contract.
Annually, the mentor committee will review relevant Massachusetts state law and regulations and Massachusetts Guidelines for Induction Programs to ensure that the district is in compliance with regulatory mandates for new educators.
It is understood that from time-to-time the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education may change current regulations. Should proposed regulations be put out for public comment, the Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources will inform the mentor committee. The mentor committee may decide to respond to the proposed changes, provided that the Superintendent of Schools reviews and approves the mentor committee’s response.
Program Evaluation
The mentor committee, with the active involvement of Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources, will use information from program evaluation surveys (mentors, mentees, and course surveys), interviews, logs, and staff development evaluations with the current year’s mentors and mentees to make suggested adjustments and/or changes in the program, and ensure compliance with state regulations.
Mentor Coordinator
The Mentor Coordinator oversees the day-to-day operations of the mentor program including:
§ Providing assisstance to supervisors in matching new educators with mentors and assuring that all educators who quallify for a mentor gets paired with one.
§ Providing annual training to LPS principals and supervisors about the Mentor Program
§ Developing and facilitating the ongoing Mentor professional learning meetings that occur throughout the school year
§ Supporting mentor-mentee relationships, as needed
§ Communicating regularly with the mentors about expectations and requirements of their position
§ Gathering and evaluating data about the efficacy of the New Educator Induction program and determining a course of action based on that data
§ Convening and coordinating the meetings of the mentor ommittee
§ Coordinating and overseeing the curriculum and scheduling of the mentor institute
§ Participating, as needed, in New Educator Orientation
§ Attending Joint Council Meetings
§ Communicating regularly with the Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources who will communicate with the Superintendent and the school committee about the committee’s work as necessary
§ Working with the staff of the HR office to
o Maintain list of mentor-mentee assignments
o Maintain a list of trained mentors
o Collect and review mentor-coach logs
o Complete Employee Action Forms for all mentors/coaches.
Compensation as per LEA Unit A contract.
The Educator Induction Professional Learning ad hoc Committee
The professional learning component of the educator induction program is overseen by an ad hoc committee that meets on an as-needed basis. The committee sets the vision for the professional learning expected of new educators to the Lexington system. The committee may also review the program and makes recommendations so that the program stays in line with the current needs of the district. The committee consists of
Composition of Educator Induction Professional Learning ad hoc committee
Mentor CoordinatorAssistant Superintendent for Human Resources
Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction and Professional Learning
Director of Professional Learning
Instructors of the in-house educator induction professional learning courses
This committee does not develop the specific curriculum of the program, but instead sets forth broad objectives and vision. The program curricula are developed in collaboration between the Director of Professional learning and the instructors of the courses, with the assistance of a design team, as needed.
Becoming a Mentor
Mentoring a new educator can be one of the most rewarding forms of professional growth and service that an experienced educator can engage in. Mentoring makes a huge difference in the life and career of an educator, and by extension, on the lives of all of the students that that educator will touch over their career.
LPS strives to have a rich and diverse pool of highly qualified, trained mentors available to work with new educators.
Mentor Qualifications
Because the needs of new educators span every area of their professional lives, the requirements for becoming a mentor are many and the standards are high. In Lexington, potential mentors must possess the following qualifications:
1. Professional license
2. Professional teaching status in Lexington
3. Minimum of five years of educational experience in the position they are now in with at least three years in Lexington
4. Experience effectively collaborating with other educators
5. Demonstrated knowledge and mastery of the relevant LPS curriculum for their position
6. Demonstrated expertise in the skills of their position (For example, classroom teachers must demonstrate outstanding skills in classroom management, lesson and unit design, development and analysis of assessments and differentiation.)
7. Demonstrated outstanding organizational skills
8. Excellent communication skills (interpersonal, written and presentation)
9. Recommendation of a supervisor
10. Completion of LPS Mentor Institute (or approved equivalent) prior to being assigned a mentee.
LPS Mentor Institute
The district will provide mentor training to qualified applicants on an annual basis. The training is offered as a part of the District’s professional learning program and consists of 30 hours of instruction, usually spread over several months.
The training will cover the following topics:
§ Adult learning theory
§ Pre/post observation conferencing techniques
§ Observational methods
§ Formative evaluation guidelines
§ Confidentiality requirements
§ Record keeping requirements
§ Mentee-initiated inquiry
§ Differentiated instruction
§ Longitudinal curriculum mapping
§ Role as liaison for curriculum resources and professional contacts
§ Having difficult conversations
§ Using the state evaluation rubrics as a tool for professional growth
Mentors are required to attend all training sessions. Failure to do so will result in disqualification as a mentor.
Serving as a Mentor
Mentor-Mentee Pairing Protocol
For their first year of employment, each educator new to the district will be assigned a one-to-one mentor from the list of trained mentors. An educator new to the profession (Track 1) will be assigned a mentor in both their first and second years. A supervisor may request a second year mentor for a more experienced educator (e.g., Track 2) if they feel it is necessary for that individual’s success. The Assistant Superintendant for Human Resources must approve those special cases.
Educators new to the district are assigned mentors by their supervisor and building principal. In cases where there is not an obvious match, the Mentor Coordinator assists in the pairing. When making the pairings, the supervisor should aim to find a mentor who
§ Is trained
§ Is available for the full school year
§ Is in the same building as the new educator
§ Performs a similar job as the new educator
§ Has at least an overall proficient rating in their most recent evaluation
If it is impossible to meet all of these criteria, having a mentor in the building is more important than having a job-alike mentor. If there are no trained mentors available, an untrained mentor may be paired with a trained mentor upon approval of the Mentor Coordinator. In the event of a pairing between a trained mentor and an untrained educator, the stipend will be split 60/40 between the two educators, with the trained mentor getting 60% of the stipend and the untrained educator getting 40%.
No mentor shall be assigned to more than two mentees within any given school year.
When a pairing is not effective, the Mentor Coordinator should be notified in a timely fashion.
Mentor Duties
Mentors are required to:
1. Meet weekly with their new educator throughout they year;
2. Conduct monthly “walk through” style observations” and de-briefs;
3. Facilitate the mentee observing the mentor, or other educators monthly;
4. Attend the three hours of annual ongoing mentor professional learning coordinated by the Mentor Coordinator;
5. Maintain a log of all mentoring activities;
6. Meet with a building-based team comprised of the mentee, the mentor, and the mentee’s supervisor. The building based team must meet with the mentee at least two times during the year in October and April. The goal of the meetings is to assist the mentee in improving his/her practice. The focus should be to identify the strengths, the areas of improvement for the mentee and what assistance/support, if any, is required; and
7. Read the Mentor Conferences on First Class and respond where needed.
The exact topics and activities that a mentor and mentee engage in will vary widely because of the diversity of roles. The most important thing a mentor should do is to attend to the mentee’s current needs. While there are many things a mentor may need to do to meet the needs of their mentee, here are some areas where a mentor may be able to assist the mentee.