While it’s the middle of summer right now, the start of the new school year is right around the corner. And school districts across the country are filling many teacher vacancies in preparation for the start of school. This article offers suggestions and strategies for preparing now to help your new teachers flourish.
Unlicensed Teacher Numbers Are Increasing
Nationwide, teacher turnover rates have spiked in recent years. In particular as the number of college students seeking education degrees has plummeted. That has left many districts with little choice but to fill openings with increasing numbers of unlicensed teachers. Who, while eager, are apt to need more support than previous cohorts of new teachers.
What can school leaders do now to set up new teachers for success? Here are some ideas drawn from research.
Provide New Teachers With a Classroom Management Toolkit
Bryan Goodwin from the McREL Institute at ESC Region 13 wrote in Education Leadership magazine that most new teachers, even those from regular teacher training programs, get very little hands-on training in managing a classroom.
School leaders can help new teachers shorten their learning curve by demonstrating in advance how to establish consistent rules and routines, maintain a visible presence in their classrooms, build positive relationships with students, and reinforce good behavior through positive feedback. High-performing schools and districts don’t assume new teachers come equipped with these insights or skills. Instead, they provide new teachers with a manageable toolkit of practical strategies they can use on day one.
If your school or district doesn’t already have a written, shareable set of protocols and strategies, now’s the time to create one. Utilize insights and actual classroom practices from your own teachers who excel in the classroom. This guide offers ways to establish and sustain classroom cultures that harmonize structures, routines, and expectations with engagement, support, and creativity.
The Teacher Toolkit is a project of the ESC Region 13 Educator Certification Program (ECP) Transition to Teaching grant from the US Department of Education. This site provides tools that teachers can use to create active and engaging lessons for their students.
Both novice and experienced teachers use these strategies and are featured in the site’s videos.
Learn more at theteachertoolkit.com
Give Your New Teachers Model Lessons and Units
New teachers often feel overwhelmed by the demands of their job, which include grading, managing paperwork, communicating with families, planning units and lessons, and searching for high-quality instructional materials. One of the simplest and most effective ways to support new teachers is to give them a lifeline in the form of well-designed lesson and unit plans.
Research shows, in fact, that doing so has a significant impact on student success — the equivalent of moving teachers in the 50th percentile to the 80th percentile, with twice the effect for low-performing teachers. Again, draw on tried-and-true lessons and unit plans developed by your expert teachers.
Surround New Teachers With a Supportive School Culture
Studies show that a key driver of teacher retention is having access to colleagues and administrators who support them. For example, studies show that new teachers benefit from having a skilled mentor assigned to them who can address their questions, offer encouragement, and assist with problem-solving.
At the very least, new teachers need to know that at least one person in the building cares about them and is committed to their success. Rather than leaving this collegial culture to develop by itself, take charge and plan how you will directly provide support to new staff throughout their first year.
Creating Your New Teacher Survival Guide
As you work to develop your own new teacher survival guide and shareable sets of strategies and protocols, take a look at the following resources:
- Books:
- White Paper:
- Quick Guides:
Additional Resources
Find out more about the McREL Institute at ESC Region 13 by visiting our website. Here you can learn about upcoming professional development opportunities and resources. Visit the ESC Region 13 blog for additional articles related to Strategic Instruction.
Note: This article was originally published on the McREL Institute blog on May 23, 2024. It was revised for the ESC Region 13 blog in July 2026.
Bryan Goodwin is the Deputy Executive Director for the McREL Institute at ESC Region 13.
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