Milwaukee
Public Schools Research Project
Generously funded by The Joyce Foundation
| Using
Emerging Media to Provide Distant Mentoring and Guidance for
Increasing New Teacher Retention in the Milwaukee Public Schools
(MPS) The Joyce Research Project seeks to explore new ways
of providing expertise and guidance to leaders in the Milwaukee
Public School system. The project, a collaboration of MPS,
Harvard, and the Educational Development Corporation (EDC),
has as its ultimate goal the development of innovative approaches
to the retention of new teachers. |
Project
Description
The Joyce Research
Project explores the ways in which guidance and mentoring of Milwaukee
Public School (MPS) leaders by experts at Harvard's Graduate School
of Education (GSE) and the Educational Development Center (EDC)
using interactive media across distance can complement site visits
and face-to-face interaction. This research will influence the design
and implementation of an MPS technology initiative for retaining
new teachers and will also help define generalizable design strategies
for using high bandwidth interactive media to provide counsel and
support to educators via geographically remote experts and peers.
The overarching
question we pose in this research is the following: In an effort
to initiate and sustain support for innovative practices geared
towards retaining new teachers, how does guidance and mentoring
provided through high-bandwidth, interactive media complement
site visits and face-to-face interaction?
This larger
question has three components--design, impact, and generalizability.
In the first year of this research our focus will be on issues
of program design.
In terms
of program design:
How does high-bandwidth, computer-mediated guidance replace, complement
and/or confuse interactions in three areas of program design:
1) Develop approaches that strengthen principals' and experienced
teachers' ability to meet the needs of newly-hired teachers;
2) Design of a professional support portal;
3) Strengthen district data collection and analysis for understanding
existing and emerging dynamics that effect the retention of newly-hired
teachers and the enhancement of student learning outcomes.
In terms
of program impact:
In what ways, if any, do the approaches used above encourage the
adoption of effective mentoring skills on the part of principals
and expert teachers, on the one hand, and on the other, help new
teachers develop professional practices in accord with the professed
values of the MPS system?
In what ways, if any, do efforts initiated by this project influence
new teacher retention and effectiveness and the enhancement of
student learning outcomes?
In terms
of generalizability:
What are the lessons learned from this experiment that may inform
the design of telementoring and collaboration via high-bandwidth,
interactive media?
What are the lessons learned from this experiment that may inform
the design of programs for the retention of new teachers?
What are the lessons learned from this experiment that may inform
the design of professional development experiences via high-bandwidth,
interactive media?
Link to:
MPS Study "High-Tech
Support for New Teacher Retention in Urban Schools
Researchers
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