Evaluation of the New Teacher Alliance of Washington's Center for Strengthening the Teaching Profession

Authors

Dr. Laura Stokes, Dr. Jenifer Helms. With assistance from Judy Hirabayashi, Allison Murray, Mary Regan, Laurie Senauke, Inverness Research Inc. and Dr. Judy Swanson, of Research for Quality Schools

Purpose

The New Teacher Alliance (NTA) funded the development of mentoring programs and other supports for novice teachers in seven Washington districts for three years, from 2006-2009. The NTA was sponsored by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation as a program of the Center for Strengthening the Teaching Profession (CSTP). For information on the NTA, see www.cstp-wa.org.

Inverness Research evaluated the NTA over the full grant period. The foci of the evaluation were twofold:

1) Measuring increases in district capacity to provide high quality support for new teachers. Appendix A in the 2009 report includes the full framework used to measure these key district capacities:

I. CONTEXT SURROUNDING NEW TEACHERS
A. Professional culture
B. Curriculum and support for instruction

II. DEDICATED INFRASTRUCTURE OF NEW TEACHER SUPPORT
A. Vision and leadership
B. Defined new teacher support program
C. Policy and other mechanisms for sustainability

This framework is a product of the evaluation and designed for either internal or external assessment of capacity to provide new teacher support in schools and districts.

2) Documenting new teachers' perspectives on the sources and types of support that were valuable to them. Appendix B of the 2008 report includes the new teacher survey.

Three documents comprise the evaluation portfolio for the NTA. The Research and Policy Brief (4 pages) summarizes the major lessons learned from the project and their implications for all levels of the system, including the state, districts, schools, the profession, and new teachers. The Evaluation Reports present detailed findings from the summative assessment of district capacity (2009) and documentation of new teacher perspectives (2008).

Research and Policy Brief

May 2010
NEW TEACHER SUPPORT IN WASHINGTON:
SHARED RESPONSIBILITY AND SHARED BENEFITS
Summary Lessons and Implications from the New Teacher Alliance of the Center for Strengthening the Teaching Profession (4p)

Evaluation Reports

August 2008
THE EXPERIENCES, PERCEPTIONS, AND NEEDS OF NEW TEACHERS: A WINDOW ONTO DISTRICT CAPACITY FOR HIGH QUALITY INDUCTION
Year Two Report for the New Teacher Alliance of the Center for Strengthening the Teaching Profession
Includes Appendices (46pp)

August 2009
IMPROVING NEW TEACHER SUPPORTS THROUGH DISTRICT CAPACITY- BUILDING
Final Evaluation Report for CSTP’s New Teacher Alliance
Includes an Executive Summary and Appendices (54pp)

Intended Audience

Policy Makers, Reform Leaders, Education Administrators, Teachers, and general public.

Disclaimer

Any and all errors are claimed by the authors of this document, Inverness Research, Inc.

Date published

June 2010

Distribution Policy

Inverness Research Inc. grants permission to print and distribute copies.

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