Eleventh Global Studies Conference

Abstract

The issue of teacher attrition has been found to span international boundaries. Researchers and policy makers are rightfully concerned that despite significant investments to establish teaching careers, many teachers across the globe quit the profession within the first two to five years. Beginning teachers are situated in a dynamic contextual landscape that both influences their development and practice and dictates professional expectations for instruction and professional learning. Taking a global perspective, this systematic review of international research literature sought to establish the understanding of teacher induction and mentoring program support of beginning teachers through the following research questions: 1) which nations and regions are represented in research literature that details formal or programmatic support of beginning teachers in their first five years of teaching? 2) what international research evidence is there to describe various contextual factors that affect experiences of beginning teachers? and, 3) how do teacher induction and mentorship programs respond to the various contextual factors affecting beginning teachers? For the purposes of this review, the conceptualization of contextual factors included various societal, organizational, and personal forces that influence the professional practices of beginning teachers. Upon detailing our review method and sampling procedures, we synthesize the convergences and divergences of the findings within each of the contextual factors. Finally, we summarize the international systematic review findings in a heuristic model that offers a visual representation of the implications of our findings, and discuss the implications for policy, practice, and future research.