Ecological Cycle of the Novice Teachers in the Induction Process

Introduction

It is highly believed that the development of novice instructors in the context of the schools is crucial for understanding the ecological context of the education system and the schools. The novice teachers are defined as the ones who are recent graduates of the related departments at the universities but have little experience in the real educational context. They are obliged to comprehend the current context for themselves to establish a professional identity in that specific context, i.e. ecology. This can sometimes turn into a struggle for them (Fantili & McDoughall, 2009). This makes the ecological side worth to be researched and scrutinized.

Teacher induction programs are significant for the novice teachers to adapt into the school climate and “engage in discourse and mediate behaviors” (Scherff, 2008, p. 1318). Barnes (2016) examined the sociocultural challenges of the pre-service teachers and their reactions towards these responds and one of the novice teachers in this study (p.249) described her experience: “I do feel unprepared, but it’s the kind of unpreparedness where I know it can only be addressed through experience.” This is such a naive and sincere way that he or she feels worried and wobbled. The mission of the teacher induction programs, different from the preservice education, is to facilitate the novice teachers to set their own values, to comprehend context and to describe their experience. This chapter is believed to provide a more detailed look into comprehending and evaluating the ecological cycle of the novice teachers in Turkey. Even though it is limited to Turkish context, it is still thought that this theory would contribute into the professional development of the novice teachers within the socio-cultural context in the global world.