Recruiting and Retaining
AP Teaching Talent
By: Jillian M. Sansivero, MA
AP Language and Literature Teacher
Dallas, TX
What brings you to this
session today?
Recruiting and
Cultivating
AP Talent
First Things First:
Determine the qualities
that you would like to see
an AP teacher.
Things that are traditionally
valued:
1. Master Teacher-an expert
2. Someone with many years
of experience
3. Someone with connections
to an administrator
4. A “tough” teacher
Well---What is really important???
best choice?
Not necessarily.
1. With tenure comes comfort.
2. With comfort comes a tendency to not
want to change.
3. Why should I focus on results if I am safe
in this department?
4. So I lose AP; it is more work anyways.
Just because someone has
been there forever, it does
not mean that they are the
most qualified.
program more than you think.
-They want to impress their
administrators.
-They come to you with the
newest techniques from their
degree programs.
-They will work for less money.
-They have more time to
dedicate.
Hook them early and you
can:
1. Mold them into what you
want
2. Offer them lots of PD
3. Give them incentives
They will stick with you!
1. Are creative and innovative
2. Are not high maintenance; you
have other things to do.
3. Come from high quality
universities
4. Have shown you that they can
build strong relationships with kids
5. Are “tough” and can motivate
kids.
When we talk AP, aren’t we
also talking about a program
that depends on results?
Passing the test means
college credit.
should be rewarded.
Your students are the
benefactors.
Aren’t they the ones who
matter most?
My Research
I surveyed 50 high school
teachers (AP and non- AP)
from across the country to
find out what would motivate
them to take an AP position
or to stay in an AP position.
You might be shocked....
The Research Pool:
50% Regular HS Teachers
17% Pre-AP/Honors Teachers
33% Current or Former AP
teachers
All teachers listed the
following deterrents:
1. Increased Prep Time: 42%
2. Grading Load: 58%
3. Lack of Recognition: 16%
Regular High School
Teachers
50% said “very likely”
33% said “likely”
17% said “not likely”
Question 2: Which of the
following incentives would
influence you?
1. A stipend: 66%
(50% $1,000+)
(50% $250-$500)
2. Extra planning/conference
period:66%
3. Mentoring from other AP teachers:
66%
4. Paid for PD through the CB: 33%
5. Plaque/Certificate/Parking Spot: 16%
100% of “Likely” teachers
wanted:
1. A stipend
($250-$500)
2. Extra planning/conference period
3. Mentoring from other AP teachers
“Not likely” teachers wanted:
1. A stipend: 50%
($500-1,000)
2. Extra planning/conference period:
100%
3. Mentoring from other AP teachers:
100%
4. Paid for PD through the CB: 50%
5. Plaque/Certificate/Parking Spot: 0%
Question 3: How important
would it be for you to receive
mentoring from a seasoned
AP teacher?
50% said “Very Important”
50% said “Slightly important”
Question 4: If you were
required to be mentored as a
new AP teacher, which would
you like to have input on?
1. Frequency of meetings: 50%
2. Agenda for meetings: 33%
3. Teaching style of mentor: 100%
4. Personality of mentor: 60%
Question 5: To what degree
would PD opportunities attract
you to the AP program?
Very likely: 80%
Indifferent: 20%
Question 6: What types of PD
would you like to participate
in?
1. Online Workshops by CB: 40%
2. In person CB workshops: 80%
3. Retreats with other AP teachers: 20%
4. Annual AP Summer Conferences: 0%
5. AP Training at local colleges: 60%
Question 7: How important is
camaraderie among AP
teachers to you?
Very Important: 20%
Somewhat Important: 40%
Indifferent: 40%
Not Important: 0%
Pre-AP/Honors Teachers
or not)
100% said “likely”
Question 2: Which of the
following incentives would
influence you?
Pre-AP/Honors teachers
wanted:
1. A stipend: 66%
(33% $1,000+)
(33% $250-$500)
2. Extra planning/conference period:66%
3. Mentoring from other AP teachers: 33%
4. Paid for PD through the CB: 66%
5. Plaque/Certificate/Parking Spot: 33%
6. Appreciation Breakfasts: 66%
7. Selection of Roster: 33%
Question 3: How important
would it be for you to receive
mentoring from a seasoned
AP teacher?
33% said “Indifferent”
66% said “Slightly important”
Question 4: If you were
required to be mentored as a
new AP teacher, which would
you like to have input on?
1. Frequency of meetings: 66%
2. Agenda for meetings: 0%
3. Teaching style of mentor: 66%
4. Personality of mentor: 66%
Question 5: To what degree
would PD opportunities attract
you to the AP program?
Very likely: 33%
Indifferent: 66%
Question 6: What types of PD
would you like to participate
in?
1. Online Workshops by CB: 33%
2. In person CB workshops: 0%
3. Retreats with other AP teachers: 33%
4. Annual AP Summer Conferences: 66%
5. AP Training at local colleges: 66%
Question 7: How important is
camaraderie among AP
teachers to you?
Very Important: 0%
Somewhat Important: 33%
Indifferent: 66%
Not Important: 0%
Mentoring: The Key to
Cultivation
A Look at Mentoring:
Protocol Questions for
Data Collection
(Cook Study 2012)
•
1. Were you provided with a
mentor when you began your
teaching position?
•
78.5% reported receiving some sort of
mentoring.
•
21% reported receiving no mentoring.
40
•
2. Did you have any input
regarding the selection of your
mentor?
•
100% of teachers who received mentoring
reported having no input regarding the
selection of their respective mentor.
41
•
3. What was the title of your
mentor?
•
82.4% reported “Teacher”
•
4.1% reported “Administrator”
•
13.5% reported “Other”
42
•
4. Was your mentor familiar
with your content area?
•
84.9% reported “YES”
•
15.1% reported “NO”
43
•
5. Did you have any input with
your mentor regarding the
agenda of your meetings?
•
56.2% reported “YES”
•
43.8% reported “NO”
44
•
6. Did you have any input with
your mentor regarding the
frequency of your meetings?
•
45.2% reported “YES”
•
54.8% reported “NO”
45
did you receive mentoring?
•
42.5% reported once monthly
•
23.3% reported twice monthly
•
6.8% reported three times monthly
•
27.4% reported more than three times
monthly
46
•
8. How long did you receive
mentoring for?
•
60.3% reported only 1 year
•
34.2% reported 2 years
•
2.7% reported 3 years
•
2.7% reported more than 3 years
47
•
9. Were you satisfied with your
mentoring experience?
•
64.4% reported “YES.”
•
35.6% reported “NO.”
48
•
“I could not have made it without her
support and encouragement.”
•
“My mentor was attentive to my needs.”
•
“I had the support of the entire cluster.”
•
“She was open to freely give me support
that would build my lessons in the
classroom.”
49
•
“My mentor was a master teacher in my
content area.”
•
“I was assigned a mentor who visited
frequently and offered suggestions.”
•
“My mentor and I had the same planning
period and we taught 2 different sections
of the same class.”
•
“My mentor was approachable and very
helpful.”
50
•
Dissatisfied teachers said:
•
“My mentoring experience was very
unstructured.”
•
“I did not receive the needed teaching support.”
•
“My mentor was from a different campus with a
different schedule.”
•
“I taught 10th grade world history and my
mentor was a kindergarten teacher.”
51
•
“We never met for guidance and feedback.”
•
“My mentor was not familiar with my subject
area.”
•
“We had little chemistry and our teaching styles
were very different.”
•
“My mentor was assigned to me and did not
want to be a mentor.”
52
Some of these things are
logistically out of an
administrator’s control but
the following should
always be met:
Every teacher should receive
a mentor when they are put
in a new teaching position.
No one can do it alone; there are
many different things to adjust to.
Emotional and professional support
are paramount.
Every teacher should have
input regarding the selection
of their mentor.
Seeing a new perspective can be good,
but the new teacher’s particular needs
and style need to be at the forefront.
Contrasting teaching styles can be
jarring and might be better for the 2nd
year of mentoring.
Ways to give new teachers
input:
1. Have all of your new teachers and
new mentors complete a personality
test.
2. Have new teachers make a list of
qualities that they hope for in a
mentor.
3. Have mentors make a list of things
that they think are important to cover
with their new teacher.
Every new teacher should be
mentored by a teacher.
Although having a strong relationship
with your administrators is important,
they should not be the primary mentor.
New teachers need someone they can
“vent to” and share their teaching
experiences with.
Both mentor and new
teacher should work together
to set the agenda.
receive a mentor who is a
master teacher in their
content.
New teachers need lesson planning
support and thus need to be placed
with someone who understands the
standards and expectations set forth
by the department and academic
discipline.
Which of the following
incentives would influence
your decision to stay in the AP
program?
1. A stipend: 0%
2. Extra planning/conference period:
33%
3. Mentoring from other AP
teachers:33%
4. Paid for PD through the CB:100%
5. Plaque/Certificate/Parking Spot: 33%
6. Recognition Breakfasts: 100%
How important would it be for
you to receive mentoring from
a seasoned AP teacher?
100% said “Slightly important”
To what degree would PD
opportunities attract you to
the AP program?
Very likely: 100%
What types of PD would you
like to participate in?
1. Online Workshops by CB: 100%
2. In person CB workshops: 100%
3. Retreats with other AP teachers: 100%
4. Annual AP Summer Conferences: 100%
5. AP Training at local colleges: 100%
How important is camaraderie
among AP teachers to you?
Very Important: 66%
Somewhat Important: 33%
You have them....
Ways to Keep Them
1. Offer mentoring
2. Use incentives (we’ll talk about
this later)
3. Pay for your teachers to go to
Professional Development
Workshops
4. Give them extra time to plan
and grade
We live in a capitalist
society.
Even though teachers often
do things from the
“goodness” in their
hearts....
APPROPRIATELY
and
treating them like
GOLD
We know that:
All teachers like to feel
appreciated and valued by their
administrators.
Teachers tend to be proud of
each other’s accomplishments.
Teachers value hard work and
accomplishments.
What current perks do
you have in place for
your Advanced
Placement teachers?
think, teachers are real people
with real lives!
-Spend those extra hours grading at
night
-Be in a better mood
-Spend more time creating new,
more exciting lessons
-Attend a professional development
workshop on a weekend
-Tutor more after school
-Review best practices
If they can now afford to:
-Have a date night
-Save for a vacation
-Buy things for their children
-Get a manicure/pedicure
-Enjoy a nice glass of wine
All it might take is:
-A gift card
-A plaque
-An appreciation meal
-Thank you cards
-A small bonus around the
holidays
-Chocolate and wine!
Questions &
Answers