• Public school teachers who change jobs usually say they do so for a better teaching opportunity or because they are dissatisfied with administrative support or school conditions (Graziano, 2005).
• Four major trends emerge from research literature about why new teachers leave their positions:
  • New teachers feel overwhelmed by the expectations and scope of the job;
  • New teachers feel isolated and unsupported in their classrooms;
  • New teachers are unclear about expectations;
  • New teachers' own expectations don't match the actual job. 

Effective induction is a systematic process of training and supporting new educators beginning before the first day of school and continuing throughout the first years of teaching. 

Effective induction combines activities and practices that:

• ease the transition into teaching;
• promote the school’s culture;
• improve educator effectiveness through training in classroom management and effective teaching techniques;
• increase the retention of highly qualified educators; and
• promote student achievement.

Successful induction of new educators includes:

• orientation, preparation, and planning time before school begins;
• professional development through systematic training and classroom observation over a period of the early years of teaching;
• support for the new educator from a mentor, colleagues, and administrators;
• mentoring as a component of induction;
• opportunities for new educators to observe highly qualified educators’ classrooms.

Although all new hires need the support provided by induction-with-mentoring, the diversity of pathways to teaching requires that districts pay attention to the unique needs of each newly hired educator.

For those involved in the support of new educators the following are some questions to ask:

• How should your induction-with-mentoring program be tailored to meet the needs of both traditionally prepared teachers and non-traditionally prepared teachers?
  
• How can you support veteran educators who are coming into a new district?
  
• What resources will you need to assist non-traditionally prepared teachers who are pursuing certification?
  
• What can you do to make sure that late hires are completely oriented and haven't missed important information?
  
• How can you assist "grow your own" teachers from within your district in adjusting to their new role within the district?
  
• How can you assure that all new hires get the support they need to achieve competence in pedagogy and classroom management?
  
• How will support for a mature new educator differ from support for a young new educator?

Good recruitment practices, an information rich hiring process, and a comprehensive induction process all help educators get off to a good start.

However, it is the complex interaction of working conditions within schools that is key to retaining educators and helping them to become great educators.

Professional development that is job-embedded, focused on student achievement, and tied to school-wide improvement is central to creating the working conditions that nurture and support highly skilled educators.

High-quality professional development:

• Focuses on teachers as central to student learning
• Focuses on individual, collegial, and organizational improvement
• Promotes continuous inquiry and improvement embedded in the daily life of schools
• Is planned collaboratively by those who will participate in and facilitate that development
• Enables teachers to develop experience in subject content, teaching strategies, uses of technologies, and all other elements that pertain to teaching to high standards
• Requires substantial time and other resources