As hundreds of institutions prepare to graduate the next generation of teachers, I remain hopeful that experienced educators can support their transition into our schools.
For me, this cause is personal. My own daughter is just weeks away from beginning her journey as an elementary school teacher. What I wish for her—a welcoming environment, mentorship, encouragement, and professional respect—is what I wish for all new teachers preparing to step into their very first classrooms. Many of these soon-to-be educators have already demonstrated extraordinary dedication by completing unpaid student-teaching placements with no promise of a future classroom.
That first year is a critical chapter in shaping the success of beginning educators. Each of us in our schools has a part to play in their development. Here’s how we can collectively contribute to the revitalization of the teaching profession:
New teachers
Be on time. Dress the part of a mentor. Take this role as seriously as you have ever taken anything in your lifetime. Dedicate the time needed to craft high-quality lessons. Schools need you to be the beacon of hope that reinvigorates the profession each year.
Bring your fresh ideas, progressive instructional methods, and energy to the profession. Push your colleagues to try new things. Share your knowledge with seasoned educators who may be far removed from the latest research and strategies. Never doubt that you have valuable insights to offer; you are walking professional development.
That said, earn your place. Do it all—volunteer for school dances, attend field trips, connect with students in meaningful ways. Be the teacher they remember for your patience, passion, and commitment. Try and try again. Fail and learn how to succeed. Meet your students where they are and bring them to where you know they can be.
Your job is to reach every student, especially the ones who are hardest to reach. Surround yourself with like-minded colleagues who match your energy and enthusiasm. Be the positivity that school culture desperately needs.
Experienced teachers
Let new teachers shine. Don’t see their drive as a threat—see it as an asset. They are not here to make you look bad but to move education forward. Invite them into your units, learn from their strategies, and allow them to breathe new life into your instruction.
Help them build the confidence to share their expertise and treat them as equals, not as rookies on a lower tier. Share those stories of your own success and failures so that they know failure is sometimes how we grow.
And, please, don’t use them to do the tasks you don’t want to take the time to learn, especially when it comes to technology. Don’t expect them to handle new technology for you simply because they come into the school with the tech skills you didn’t learn in your own experience. Instead, if you do go to them for help, take the time to learn what they are teaching you. Let them lead you and be vulnerable in the acceptance that you can learn from someone who just entered the field. Give them the decency of switching roles and encourage them to lead.
Mentor and learn from them. Celebrate and respect the enthusiasm and skill set that new teachers bring.
Principals
Protect new teachers fiercely. Feed and support their curiosity and development. Sit with them when they make their first phone call home. Pop into their classrooms beyond your evaluation of them.
Learn who they are as people and what is important to them outside their classroom. Praise them for being brave and vulnerable with their colleagues and send them to other classrooms where you know they will be inspired and where they will build that confidence you know they still desperately need.
Be honest in your feedback. Tell them when you see them being swallowed by negativity that is inevitable in the profession sometimes. Inspire them to want to reach students and recognize them when they do. Share those stories with them of your own successes and failures as a teacher so they can better relate to you as their new instructional leader.
Teacher-preparation programs at the university level
Rethink your approach. Are your courses truly preparing students for the realities of teaching in 2025? Too often, students spend more time studying educational theory than gaining practical experience. Are student-teachers getting into classrooms early enough? Have financial barriers—such as extended graduate programs or the recent cuts to teacher-preparation grants—reduced the number of students entering teaching programs?
Consider paying student-teachers for their work, if financially possible. Many cannot afford to take on full-time practicum placements without compensation. Offer more credit for hands-on experience and reduce the emphasis on outdated pedagogies.
Consider who is leading these courses—prioritize experienced teachers who can bridge theory with real-world practice. Create partnerships where learning and professional development happen side by side in schools.
Teaching is a profession built on collaboration, mentorship, and lifelong growth. Let’s commit to ensuring that every new teacher—and every educator they meet—feels valued, supported, and empowered to make a difference.
To my beautiful daughter and all the other new teachers about to receive your diplomas and certifications: Embrace the true weight of your role. Teachers are the foundation of every profession. Without you, there would be no astronauts, doctors, or engineers, or loving and forgiving parents, or leaders shaping our world.
The late nights of planning and grading means that you care and that you care deeply. You are what our schools need. You are what our children need. Always remember the lives you are changing are the perks in this profession, even when your paycheck tells you a different story. When you are tired and find yourself questioning why you sometimes feel you are fighting an uphill battle, remember that those small moments in your classroom, the ones when you truly connect to a student, are the ones that will make you “rich.”
