Exceptional Graduate Teachers Trying to Make a Difference: School Leadership, School Climate and the Experiences of New Teachers

This chapter explores the way school climate and school leadership shapes the experiences of graduate teachers working in diverse school contexts. The graduate teachers had all participated in the National Exceptional Teaching for Disadvantaged Schools (NETDS) program as part of their teacher education course at Deakin University, Australia. Using Bourdieu’s Social Field theory, we examine how school experiences (social field) interacted with graduate teachers’ social justice disposition (their habitus) and their preparedness for teaching in disadvantaged schools. This study provides direction for how schools can best support and effectively mentor beginning teachers in disadvantaged schools.