When new teachers get ongoing support from mentors, their students score higher on math tests, finds an analysis of the New Teacher Center’s mentorship program.
The evaluation, conducted by the research firm SRI Education, looked at new K-8 teachers in five urban districts in California, Florida, and New York. Compared with teachers who received standard district induction, teachers randomly assigned to the New Teacher Center program received two years of mentoring and 180 minutes of instructional support each month. After two years, the study found participating teachers better engaged students and used assessment in instruction, and their students showed 3.6 to 6.3 months more progress on math tests than did students of teachers in standard induction.
