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StateImpact Indiana

The First Year

StateImpact Indiana follows three Indiana schoolteachers during their first year in the profession.

Think about the teachers you had as a kid. How many of them had been teaching for more than 10 years, 20 years, even 30 years? Quite a few probably, because that’s how the profession used to work.

But over the last decade, that’s changed. The education landscape is full of politics and changing protocol around standards, tests and accountability systems. It’s a different career than it used to be.

Now, 40 to 50 percent of new teachers don’t make it past their fifth year.

What is it like to be a new teacher? What happens in classrooms that cause half of new teachers to leave and what makes the other half stay?

StateImpact Indiana’s Claire McInerny is following three Indiana teachers this school year to learn about what makes their first year challenging, what is different than they expected and what makes all the time and hard work worth it.

Gabe Hoffman

Indianapolis

Gabe

Gabe Hoffman teaches third grade at Nora Elementary School in Indianapolis.

Sara Draper

Brown County

Sarah

Sara Draper teaches second grade at Helmsberg Elementary in rural Brown County.

Chris Conway

Fishers

Chris

Chris Conway teaches math and science to fifth graders at Riverside Intermediate School in Fishers, a suburb of Indianapolis.

All posts about First Year

June 9, 2016

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Conway: Focusing On The Positive To Create A Successful Year

Chris Conway found that focusing on the positive impacts he made throughout his first year of teaching puts him in a good place to start his second year.

June 8, 2016

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Draper: Expectations Have To Change Through The First Year

Second grade teacher Sara Draper experienced her ups and downs through her first year, but says the first year affirmed her desire to teach.

June 7, 2016

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Hoffman: First Year Challenging, But A Success

First year teacher Gabe Hoffman reflects on his first year in the classroom.

March 24, 2016

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How Do New Teachers Balance School And Personal Life?

First year teacher Gabe Hoffman is working to balance his demanding school schedule and making time for his personal life.

January 20, 2016

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How Do We Keep New Teachers In Schools? Good Principals

Teacher retention is an important issue in Indiana right now, and one family of educators wrote a book on how principals can best support new teachers.

January 14, 2016

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Halftime Report: Reflections On The First Semester

The latest installment in The First Year series checks in with two of the teachers on winter break, to reflect on their first semester in the classroom.

December 9, 2015

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In The Trenches And At Home, New Teachers Need Support

Getting through a transition year, like the first year in the classroom, requires support from fellow educators but also outsiders.

November 19, 2015

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Audio Diary: Sara Draper’s Parent-Teacher Conferences

Sara Draper reflects on her first parent-teacher conference experiences.

November 19, 2015

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Audio Diary: Gabe Hoffman’s Parent-Teacher Conferences

Gabe Hoffman reflects on his first parent-teacher conference experience.

November 19, 2015

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Audio Diary: Chris Conway’s Parent-Teacher Conferences

Chris Conway reflects on his first parent-teacher conference experience.

November 5, 2015

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By October, New Teachers Replace Idealism With Reality

Late fall is when a lot of new teachers get frustrated and disillusioned by the job.

September 30, 2015

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How First Year Teachers Find Their Rhythm In The Classroom

A few weeks into the school year, the first year teachers are using a lot of trial and error to see what teaching tactics work, and don't work, with their kids.

September 1, 2015

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Meet Chris Conway

Chris Conway teaches fifth grade math and science at Riverside Intermediate in Fishers.

September 1, 2015

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Meet Sara Draper

Sara Draper teaches second grade at Helmsburg Elementary School in Brown County.

September 1, 2015

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Meet Gabe Hoffman

Gabe Hoffman teaches third grade at Nora Elementary School in Indianapolis.

August 27, 2015

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Turning The Tables: Students Interview The Reporter

Students in Hoffman's class listen as reporter Claire McInerny teaches a lesson on interviewing techniques.

August 12, 2015

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The First Day In Mr. Conway’s Fifth Grade Class

Chris Conway kept an audio diary of his first day of school.

August 5, 2015

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Mrs. Draper Starts Her Year In Second Grade

Sara Draper documents her first day of school at the beginning of her first year teaching.

August 3, 2015

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The First Day Of Third Grade In Mr. Hoffman’s Class

Gabe Hoffman kept an audio diary of his first day of school of his first year teaching.

July 30, 2015

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First Year Teachers Can Spend More Out Of Pocket On Supplies

Continuing our series on first year teachers, we look at how much it costs for a new teacher to start their classroom.

July 29, 2015

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Meet The First Year Teachers

StateImpact will follow three first year teachers over the next school year to see the ups and downs of a first year in the classroom.

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