Retaining Effective Teachers Policy
South Carolina requires that all new teachers receive mentoring. The state requires new teachers to participate in a mentoring program for at least the first year of employment to "inform, encourage, and support beginning teachers for the purpose of improving the quality of teaching in the state, raising the level of student achievement, and reducing the rate of attrition among our newest teachers." Local district administration is responsible for selecting mentors, who must possess at least one year of teaching experience and participate in additional mentor training, and pairing them with new teachers. The district must use at least two of the three following criteria when matching a mentor to a new teacher: matching areas of certification (matching certification is required for special-area educators), matching or close grade levels and/or close physical proximity.
Mentors must also be assigned "in a timely manner, before the teachers start teaching." To foster the relationship between the mentor and new teacher, the state outlines a four-step formative assessment process, which includes classroom observation, collaboration and development of a professional growth plan. Adequate release time is mandated to allow for meeting time between the pair. Districts determine mentor compensation; a stipend is one recommendation. A regular survey and evaluation process to assess the program's effectiveness is mandatory.
South Carolina recognized the factual accuracy of this analysis.