Computer-Supported Communities for Novice Teachers: Needs Assessment and Design.

Retention of novice teachers is a problem for school districts. Teacher induction programs are beneficial in increasing retention, but these programs take time, a commodity in short supply among novice teachers. Computer-based support has been suggested as an alternative resource. This paper reports the findings of a survey among novice teachers in the rural south-eastern United States as part of a needs assessment for developing support tools and programs for this population. Introduction Teacher turnover is an unfortunate problem in school systems across the United States. After five years, between 40 and 50 percent of all beginning teachers leave the profession (Ingersoll, 2003). High turnover rates create complex problems for schools including less stable learning environments for students (DePaul, 1998), diverted financial resources as time and money are spent in recruiting, hiring, and training replacements (Berry, Hopkins, Thompson and Hoke, 2002; DePaul, 1998), and limiting districts abilities to carry out longterm planning, curriculum revision and reform (Halford, 1999). Darling-Hammond (2003), in examining the issue of teacher retention, found four factors influencing teacher turnover: salaries, working conditions, preparation, and mentoring support in the early years. Mentoring support, in particular, has been shown to reduce attrition rates by more than two-thirds (NCTAF, 2003). One method of mentoring that has proven beneficial is teacher induction programs. Such programs present a structured process of teacher learning in the first few years the teacher is in the classroom (Berry, Hopkins, Thompson and Hoke, 2002). The goal is to assist novice teachers in developing a wider repertoire of teaching strategies (Schafer, Stringfield, and Wolffe, 1992), stronger classroom management skills (Educational Resources Information Center, 1986), and strategies for dealing with behavior and discipline problems more effectively (Moir and Bloom, 2003). Components of successful induction programs include: professional development (Feiman-Nemser, 2003; Hinds, 2002; Johnson and Kardos, 2002; Wong, 2002); interaction with other teachers (Berry, Hopkins, Thompson and Hoke 2002; Brewster & Railsback, 2001; Wong, 2002); principal/administrator support (Brewster & Railsback, 2001; Johnston and Kardos, 2002; Wong, 2002); new teacher assessment (Berry, Hopkins, Thompson and Hoke 2002; Huling-Austin, 1992); reduced responsibilities (Berry, Hopkins, Thompson and Hoke 2002; Renard, 2003; Voke, 2002); trained mentor support (Berry, Hopkins, Thompson and Hoke 2002; Brewster & Railsback, 2001; Darling-Hammond, 2003); and school/university collaboration (Berry, Hopkins, Thompson and Hoke 2002; Brewster & Railsback, 2001; Hinds, 2003). In addition to improving retention, induction programs have been shown to influence teaching practices, increase teacher satisfaction, and promote strong professional development and collegial relationships (Voke, 2002). Novice teachers have constant questions and concerns. They may participate in scheduled formal professional development sessions as part of their induction program; however, the content of the workshops may not be of immediate use to the teachers and may not answer the questions that plaque new teachers everyday. Getting answers to the many questions they have is also impeded by the novice teachers’ concern of how their colleagues will perceive them and their ability to teach after asking the questions (Stapleton, 2002). Once they decide to ask someone, novice teachers often find that they lack free time needed to ask their question, or the time they have does not coincide with the time that knowledgeable teachers are available to assist them (Stapleton, 2002). Computer-supported interaction may be an appropriate method for novice teachers to obtain the support and information they need on a daily basis. Listservs and email (Ersinnan and Thornton, 1999) as well as video conferencing (Thomson and Hawk, 1996) have been used to provide feedback to teachers. Case libraries have also been developed to assist in learning about classroom practice (Jonassen, Wang, Strobel, and Cernusca, 2003). But these represent isolated tools. The integration of a number of tools that could serve as a