ETS Research Links Induction Program for New Teachers and Student Learning.

Business Editors/Education Writers

PRINCETON, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 11, 2004

Research conducted by ETS (Educational Testing Service) reveals a strong link between a mentor-based induction programs for new teachers and student learning.

In the study, led by ETS researchers Marnie Thompson and Pamela Paek, students taught by teachers who had engaged at a high level in the California Formative Assessment and Support System for Teachers (CFASST) induction program were as much as half a year ahead of students whose teachers who were not as deeply involved in the induction program. The study looked at student achievement results from the California Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) program provided by participating districts. It also employed case studies of teachers to see if the teachers in the induction program adopted more effective teaching practices.

Thompson will present the study's findings at a National Governors Association forum on Teacher Quality today in Washington, D.C.

The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing commissioned the study in 2002. The study examined the implementation and impact of CFASST, which is used as a central component in most of the state's Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) programs.

A survey of 1,125 third-year teachers in grades three through five identified teachers with high, medium and low levels of engagement with BTSA/CFASST during their first two years of teaching. To gauge the program's effect on teaching practice, the researchers visited the classrooms of 34 survey respondents. Teachers who had a stronger "dose" of BTSA/CFASST were more likely to show evidence of effective practices, such as planning lessons that aligned instruction with learning goals as well as students' interests and abilities, and asking better questions.

To estimate the impact of BTSA/CFASST on student learning, the study collected achievement test data for the students of 144 survey respondents. The students of the high-CFASST-engagement teachers outscored the students of low-CFASST-engagement teachers on every STAR sub-test, even after adjusting for pre-existing differences among schools. The mean effect of having a teacher who engaged deeply with CFASST was 0.25 standard deviations. Having a teacher who engaged deeply in the CFASST program "added" three to four percentage points to students' scores. Students who were eligible for free or reduced-price meals and English language learners did better with high-CFASST-engagement teachers than with low CFASST-engagement teachers.

ETS, one of the world's largest educational research companies, co-developed CFASST with the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and the California Department of Education. ETS also offers a wide array of induction and professional development tools for teachers and school leaders nationwide as part of its Pathwise product line.

Thompson, one of the ETS researchers on the study, noted that such things as a substantive teaching and learning focus for the induction program, the degree of engagement by teachers, and the strength of support for the program at the school level make a difference in promoting better teaching and affecting student learning.

"It isn't enough to assign someone a mentor," she says. "You have to make the space and time for them to work together, train and support that mentor to be an effective coach who understands the elements of effective practice, build a shared understanding of what good practice looks like, and equip the mentor and beginning teacher with a professional learning 'curriculum' so that they spend their time together learning to analyze practice and get better at it."

ABOUT ETS:

Founded in 1947, ETS is the world's largest private, nonprofit educational testing and measurement organization and a leader in education research. ETS products and services measure knowledge and skills, promote learning and performance, and support education and professional development. ETS's 2,700 employees produce and administer nearly 12 million tests annually in more than 180 countries. ETS is dedicated to serving the needs of individuals, educational institutions, and government agencies around the world.

ETS has three subsidiaries: ETS Pulliam, a leading provider of educational software products and professional development services that enable assessment for improved student performance; Capstar, a leading provider of training, online distance learning and assessments, and certification and licensure exams for associations, corporations, government and academic markets; and ETS Global BV. Headquartered in Utrecht, the Netherlands, ETS Global BV makes the world-class products, services and resources of ETS more readily accessible to the European education and training community.