Keeping new teachers happy.Administrators at Putnam County Putnam County is the name of 9 counties in the United States of America, many of which are named for Israel Putnam, who was a hero in the French and Indian War and a general in the American Revolutionary War:
Weeks before the first day of school, new teachers undergo a week long comprehensive induction program. It provides a range of support, from mentoring to organizing and setting up a classroom, to even addressing needs such as who to call to find a missing or tardy tar·dy adj. tar·di·er, tar·di·est 1. Occurring, arriving, acting, or done after the scheduled, expected, or usual time; late. 2. Moving slowly; sluggish. paycheck. While programs for new teachers are commonplace, Putnam County's approach takes it to a new level. And because it only comprises three schools, the program works a bit easier. Attention to Details: In addition to providing mentors, Putnam County's week long series of workshops offers training on disciplining students, meeting parents, and working with the principal. It also includes meetings with the superintendent, district staff and veteran teachers to discuss teaching methods, and tours of the residential areas where students live. But what really sets the program apart is that Putnam County Elementary School Principal Susan Usry, Ed.D., and her staff hand pick students who will be in each new teacher's classroom. New teachers have small classes with no more than 16 students. there are no new students in any of the classes with new teachers except in kindergarden. And the classes of first-year and new teachers have the fewest number, if any, of students with behavioral problems. "there's still ethnic, racial and academic diversity," Usry says, "there are enough issues that a first-year teacher has to deal with. We don't want the makeup makeup In the performing arts, material used by actors for cosmetic purposes and to help create the characters they play. Not needed in Greek and Roman theatre because of the use of masks, makeup was used in the religious plays of medieval Europe, in which the angels' faces of the kids to be a major negative factor of the teacher's job. We want them to be able to focus on appropriate instruction and assessment of the student's work." Meeting Teachers' Needs: Usry has been organizing the induction program for the past three years at the elementary school, but this school year marks the first year the district's middle and high schools are participating in the program, which often begins two weeks before the start of school. Usry had the idea for the induction program from her own experience with a mentor when she became a principal in Oconee County Oconee County is the name of two counties in the United States:
"Nothing is more challenging than that first year of teaching, no matter how much student teaching someone has done or theory classes they've taken. When they're in the classroom by themselves, with their students, it's just overwhelming," says Usry. "they need help to get through it and especially so they'll want to continue in the profession." Keeping More Teachers: the induction program and Usry's approach to working with new educators has helped retain teachers. Since becoming principal in 2002, Usry has hired 30 new teachers and only four have left--two to be stay-at-home moms and two of whom Usry asked to leave. Learning the Ins & Outs: the program has certainly made a difference for teacher Jamie Washburn, who had taught for two years before working at Putnam County Elementary. But her experience was so frustrating frus·trate tr.v. frus·trat·ed, frus·trat·ing, frus·trates 1. a. To prevent from accomplishing a purpose or fulfilling a desire; thwart: that she wanted to leave the profession. Instead, she transferred to Putnam County Elementary and went from having 31 students in her third grade class to about 20. "You feel like you're surrounded with support from the moment you arrive, and that makes a huge difference," says Washburn, who is now a mentor. Her mentee men·tee n. One who is mentored. [ment(or) + -ee1.] , Christine Ezzard, says the program, coupled with the induction sessions, gave her a jumpstart on her experience in the classroom. "Even if you student teach, like I did here, I still needed help with payroll and benefits and writing progress reports and the online grade books," says Ezzard. "I learned all about these things "These Things" is an EP by She Wants Revenge, released in 2005 by Perfect Kiss, a subsidiary of Geffen Records. Music Video The music video stars Shirley Manson, lead singer of the band Garbage. Track Listing 1. "These Things [Radio Edit]" - 3:17 2. from Ms. Washburn and the workshop session last summer. It was a huge help." PUTNAM COUNTY SCHOOL SYSTEM No. of teachers: 289 No. of students: 2,743 Per-pupil expenditure: $8,200 for 2006-07 school year Dropout (1) On magnetic media, a bit that has lost its strength due to a surface defect or recording malfunction. If the bit is in an audio or video file, it might be detected by the error correction circuitry and either corrected or not, but if not, it is often not noticed by the human rate: 8% for 2005-06 school year Population: 13,000 for Putnam County Superintendent: Jim Willis James Hamlyn Willis (January 28, 1910–November 10, 1995) was an Australian botanist. Early life and education Willis was born in Stanley in northwest Tasmania. , since 2005 Elementary school principal: Susan Usry, since 2002 Web site: www.putnam.k12.ga.us Lucille Renwick is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . |
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