In attempting to identify causes of the high rates of attrition of beginning teachers and possible solutions to their exodus, this study identified what beginning high school and middle school teachers in the Baltimore County Public School system found were their most urgent concerns and most valuable types of assistance. A questionnaire was sent to 244 beginning teachers during October 1993. One hundred teachers returned completed questionnaires. The same teachers received a second questionnaire at the end of that school year, Spring 1994, that asked what type of assistance they preferred. Results of the first survey indicated that teachers were most concerned with preparation time and evaluation followed by classroom control, managment and discipline, and students with special learning problems. Top-ranking out-of-class concerns were physical and emotional stress, followed by learning how things are done by teachers in the school, finding out about resources, knowing when to use special services, and understanding union issues. Analysis of the second survey and teachers' preferred types of assistance found that opportunities to observe the teaching of their colleagues was regarded as most valuable, followed by having a teacher serve as mentor, and increased resources and workshops focusing on beginning teacher concerns. The paper includes copies of both surveys. (Contains 17 references.) (JB)