A hypothetical recently graduated new teacher is accustomed to 24/7 broadband access to the Internet and staying in touch via text messages and e-mails. While looking for a job, the aspiring teacher attended a virtual career fair online during which he talked with personnel directors from 12 participating school districts.

He eventually accepted a job in a rural area. The teacher's mentor, whom he can only meet with once a month, arranged for the teacher to join an e-mentoring program that connected him with both new and experienced teachers in the same grade level and subject area.

This example illustrates the fact that most new teachers expect to be plugged in all the time and want the same opportunities when they move from higher education to the professional world, writes Joan Richardson in The Learning System. While providing classroom computers and Internet access has become the norm, few school districts are using technology as a way to attract new teachers or to enhance induction.

There are many ways that districts, universities, regional education service agencies and nonprofit organizations can harness new technologies as a way to appeal to incoming teachers and help orient them once they've been hired.
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