Abstract
There is a growing recognition of the need to provide new teachers with formalized mentoring and as a result induction programs are now flourishing around the country. Elements of successful induction programs include formal mentorship, reflective practice, and collaboration. The New Teacher Group (NTG) is one form of induction program that meets these criteria. This qualitative study examined how the process of consultee-centered case consultation (CCC) facilitated collaboration, problem-solving, and professional development in an NTG. Over the course of the school year in this NTG, a developmental shift was evident in which the teachers’ descriptions of themselves and their students became more positive and replaced the more negative descriptors that were found early in the consultation process. The participants’ negative images of themselves, such as inadequate and frustrated, were replaced with positive images that conveyed their evolving ability to think flexibly and effectively. The new teachers’ approach to problem solving also underwent a change in which they increasingly began to use professional concepts and methods to identify and define problems. NTGs offer school psychologists an opportunity to expand their consultation role within school districts.
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Knotek, S.E., Babinski, L.M. & Rogers, D.L. Consultation in New Teacher Groups: School Psychologists Facilitating Collaboration Among New Teachers. Contemp School Psychol 7, 39–50 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03340888
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03340888