A comprehensive induction is essential to support new and beginning teachers in the transition to the teaching profession or welcoming them into a new school.
New teachers need to understand the culture and ethos of their new school, understand their professional obligations, be supported to develop their teaching practice and be empowered to join their school's professional learning communities.
Assisting teachers at the beginning of their career helps:
- build teaching excellence
- improve teacher wellbeing and resilience
- retain teachers in the profession
- improve student outcomes.
Nationally consistent support for beginning teachers
The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) has drafted national guidelines for the induction of early career teachers and new school leaders.
Both sets of Guidelines have been drafted in response to the ministerially agreed National Teacher Workforce Action Plan. This plan aims to attract, prepare, and retain people into the teaching profession.
For more information, see: Induction (aitsl.edu.au)
Induction in practice
Induction support materials
Key resources are available online for graduate teachers, mentors and principals.
The resources include guidance and checklists and aims to help schools ensure that induction is a positive experience for all graduate teachers in Victoria.
For more information, see: Induction portal for new and beginning teachers.
Career Start
Career Start helps graduate teachers flourish in their first year in the classroom through:
- time release from face-to-face teaching to engage with induction supports
- a dedicated mentor to accelerate the development of their teaching practice
- networking opportunities within local learning alliances led by a dedicated learning alliance leader
- professional learning to develop professional practice, professional identity and support wellbeing.
Graduate teachers participating in Career Start will be invited to attend a series of termly workshops throughout year. These workshops provide a forum to:
- strengthen teaching practice
- enhance wellbeing practices, and
- build professional identity.
Career Start is expanding to support more graduate teachers in more schools in 2024 and 2025. In 2024, this includes all Victorian government schools in 5 of the department’s areas:
- Inner Gippsland
- North Eastern Melbourne
- Outer Eastern Melbourne
- Southern Melbourne
- Western Melbourne.
For more information, see: Career Start – Transforming the first year of the teaching career.
Principals supporting new teachers
A suite of information, tools and resources is available to support principals who are inducting new teachers into their school. The guidance and resources can be customised with additional information specific to each school.
For more information, see: Principals and School Leaders
Mentors assisting graduate teachers
Effective Mentoring Program
Mentoring and classroom observations are consistent practices during a graduate teacher’s two‑year induction journey. Mentor teachers may have completed formal training through the Effective Mentoring Program (EMP). Through the EMP, every graduate teacher in a Victorian government school will be matched with a mentor teacher.
Jointly developed by the Department and the Victorian Institute of Teaching, the EMP focuses on three elements of the induction journey: Wellbeing, Professional Practice and Professional Identity.
The two-day training program for new mentor teachers reflects a robust professional learning design intended to maintain high standards of mentoring practice across the system and is informed by the Mentoring Capability Framework.
The Mentoring Capability Framework sets out expectations and behaviours for mentees, mentors and schools in six domains.
For more information see: Mentor training for experienced school teachers
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