Makes the Grade

Lessons are being learned by students and their teachers as first-year educators work toward their master of science in education at Winona State University-Rochester Center.

These teachers are a part of the WSU Graduate Induction Program (GIP), which is beginning its 20th year. The program is a partnership between WSU and the Rochester public schools. The partnership is designed to assist new teachers, who recently completed bachelor's degrees, with challenges unique to beginning a career in education.

The program is 14 months long and begins with master's-level summer courses. When the school year begins, each graduate resident takes full responsibility for a classroom in kindergarten through sixth grade. Following their first year of teaching, Graduate Induction Program residents then finish their program with more summer courses.            

Jan Sherman, Graduate Induction Program Director and WSU education professor, says this style of hands-on learning is essential for the nature of an educator's work.

"Teachers are required to make hundreds of decisions on a daily basis," said Sherman. "Being coached and supported by veteran teachers, who we call clinical supervisors, helps first-year teachers make decisions that are in the best interest of students and their learning. Because of this intensive support, they are able to experience growth as a first-year teacher that would typically take three to five years."

This year, 16 graduate residents were selected through a competitive process to teach in Rochester Public School District 535. Sherman says nine of those positions were created by releasing veteran teachers from their classrooms and seven classrooms were already open. Of the nine veteran teachers who were released, five of them became implementation associates who are responsible for designing, introducing and implementing new curriculum support for teachers across the district. The other four became clinical supervisors who each support four residents through weekly meetings, observation and feedback, and demonstration teaching. Sherman says each of the parties involved benefit in several different ways.

"The university is able to work very closely with one of the largest school districts in the state in the mentoring and professional development of new teachers," said Sherman. "It also keeps the university in touch with the current best practices of teaching. The school district benefits in many ways, but the most visible is the availability of five teachers to work on curriculum at no cost to the district. The graduates benefit because they become highly skilled in a short time period. Because they earn their master's degree through the program, they significantly boost their earning power for the rest of their careers. The K-6 students benefit because we are developing a high-performing teaching force for Rochester and the region."

Since 1986, 312 residents representing 44 different colleges and universities have received their master's degree through the WSU Graduate Induction Program. Dawn Schuster, a 1991 GIP graduate, started her teaching career in the Rochester Public School District after completing the program. She has worked as a second and third grade teacher at Sunset Terrace Elementary School for the past 12 years. However, her involvement in GIP has come full-circle. Schuster is in her second year of a two-year term as a clinical supervisor for the program. She says the program continues to help her learn and grow in her career.

"Being a clinical supervisor is the best professional development experience a person can get," said Schuster, "because as I'm teaching the graduate residents, I'm also learning."

Each one of the graduate residents who teach in the Rochester School District receive full tuition for their master's degree and an $11,000 stipend. These fees are supported by the salary and benefits package which would be paid to teachers if the Rochester district had to hire professionals to teach the seven open classes which are filled by WSU-RC graduate residents. Lori Schoeppner, 2004 GIP graduate and 5th grade teacher at Folwell Elementary School in the Rochester school district, said she uses the techniques and routines she learned in the program each day as she plans her lessons.

"I feel this program prepares a first-year teacher with an abundance of support, resources, ideas and professional growth opportunities," said Schoeppner. "The program definitely made my transition into a new grade level less stressful. Though we were still considered graduate students, I felt like a professional while practicing my chosen career."

For more information about the Graduate Induction Program, contact Jan Sherman at 507-287-2199, or you can go online at http://rochester.k12.mn.us.

Last Modified: Friday, November 04, 2005 15:10 by Rhone Richard