Mentoring for New Teachers
If you are a new teacher, your school will assign you a mentor to help you through the challenges of your first year. You will have a special relationship with your school-based mentor, who is there to help you grow quickly as a teacher. You can expect to meet with your mentor each week for a minimum of two periods. Your mentor will both view your classroom practice and conference with you to help you be reflective about your teaching practice. Please contact your principal for more information.
Who Must be Mentored?
Teachers with initial certificates and less than two years of full-time prior teaching experience must be mentored.
Mentoring Certification
When you are ready to apply for your Professional Certificate (usually after your third year), you will need to submit the Superintendent Verification of Mentoring Experience form to New York State.
When Do New Teachers Need To Complete 175 Hours of Professional Development?
New York State requires individuals with a Professional certificate to complete 175 hours of professional development every five years to maintain their certification. As a new teacher, you will start teaching with an Initial certificate, and in most cases it will take three years to obtain your Professional certificate. The first professional development cycle begins on July 1 following the effective date of your Professional teaching certificate. For more information, visit the New York State Office of Teaching Initiatives Professional Development for Professional Certificate Holders Web site.
Summer New Teacher Orientation
New teachers (excluding Teaching Fellows and Teach for America participants) who will begin working at the start of the 2008-09 school year will be expected to attend both the Citywide orientation and their school-specific orientation.
The Citywide orientation consists of a half day official welcome event and two instructional days. The Welcome Fair will be held on the morning of Monday, August 25, 2008 at Avery Fischer Hall. The two instructional days will be held on Wednesday and Thursday, August 21 and August 22 at Martin Luther King Jr. & LaGuardia High Schools. Registration instructions will be posted shortly. Contact your principal for the date of your school specific orientation.
For more information:
Mentoring Resources for Principals
Mentor Resources