Providing Personal, Social, and Professional Support Through Teacher Induction: Insights From the Austrian Context

• In Event: Key Issues in Induction and Mentoring of NQT: Theory, Policy, and Practice

Abstract

Supporting newly qualified teachers (NQTs) in the first steps of their career is crucial particularly in a global context of increasing teacher shortages and growing phenomena of teacher attrition (UNESCO, 2016). Several countries have thus developed induction programmes to address the concerns of beginning teachers (Helms-Lorenz et al., 2016). Among the European countries that centrally regulated and introduced an induction phase as compulsory for all teachers of primary and secondary education is Austria. Specifically, the Teacher Education New reform established a career entry phase for teachers, obligatory for all those entering the profession from the academic year 2019/2020 onwards. The purpose of the present study is to examine the experiences of NQTs during the first year of implementing the new induction phase in the western Austrian province of Tyrol, with a particular focus on their perceptions regarding the kind of support they received and challenges they encountered.

To analyze the support required by NQTs, the model proposed by the European Commission (2010) to support the development of coherent induction programs is employed. The model distinguishes between three kinds of support: a) personal support that helps NQTs to develop their identity as teachers; b) social support so that NQTs become members of their school and professional community; and c) professional support that aims to develop NQT’s competences (in pedagogy, didactics, subject, etc.).

The study employed a mixed-methods research design, whereby a survey was disseminated to all NQTs in the province of Tyrol and semi-structured interviews were conducted with NQTs at the beginning and towards the end of their induction year. 101 NQTs participated in the survey (58% response rate), and the same 14 NQTs participated in the interviews. The questions aimed to reflect the measures of support discussed above. Data from the survey were analyzed via descriptive statistics and regression analysis, while interview data were coded with qualitative content analysis.

The regression analysis revealed a significant relation between NQTs’ perception of professional support and their overall level of satisfaction, implying that the perceived quality of the professional support during the induction phase is important for the success of induction itself. Qualitative data suggest that the perceptions of NQTs were negative from the beginning of the induction phase, because this was organized in a rather “turbulent” way. Although their perceptions became more positive over time, their idea of the professional support that they received, and particularly the professional development seminars, remained negative.

Austria has only recently regulated an obligation for NQTs to participate in induction programs. The organization of induction, especially in terms of professional support, requires further improvement, taking into consideration NQTs’ professional needs. This study provides evidence of the effectiveness of the support provided through induction to inform the redesign of professional development opportunities during induction in Tyrol and Austria.

Author

• Vasileios Symeonidis, University of Graz