Analysis of an induction model

Abstract

The first teaching year has long been recognised as the most difficult and critical stage in the career of beginning teachers. Teacher professionalisation policies therefore recognise training and support at this stage as an important professional development tool. The response to this state of affairs has been the development of an induction/support model. In Israel the induction policy has started to take off towards the end of the 1980s and, currently, its implementation is at an advanced stage, but it is not compulsory. The Technion Induction Programme presented in this paper is unique in that it is aimed at serving new science and technology teachers, who have recently graduated from the Department of Education in Technology and Science. By following the induction policy guidelines the Technion Induction Project has been instrumental in alleviating the special obstacles new science teachers face during their first school year, and has contributed to increased teacher motivation and performance. The paper defines the principles of the induction policy in Israel, presents a model that combines these principles with science and technology teaching principles, and discusses the findings of an evaluation research regarding the project's conduct and outcomes to date. © 1996 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.