As school districts, universities, and local education agencies begin to provide induction programs for beginning teachers, there is a growing need to attend to quality and more carefully evaluate such programs to ensure they meet the needs of beginning teachers. This paper specifically addresses the nature of induction programs for secondary social studies teachers. It reviews relevant literature, examines the experiences of three social studies teachers who participated in a year-long induction support program, and suggests unique aspects of being a social studies teacher that calls for support. It addresses the void in the literature about how to support the implementation of standards-based practice in social studies classrooms, specifically to engender sustainable practices that promote democratic citizenship education. Three social studies teachers, from different districts, volunteered to be part of a social studies-specific induction program called Alternative Support for Induction Secondary Teachers (ASIST) for one year. Two taught history in middle school, and one taught freshman geography and study skills. Multiple sources of data provided the opportunity to build case descriptions. Across all three cases, beliefs and practices tended to shift minimally. While it appears that the ASIST program had little impact on the development of their beliefs and practices, the three beginning teachers did attempt some alternative methods and assessments. When they attempted new strategies, lessons tended to be active, but lacking in additional elements related to powerful social studies instruction. Common to all three was an evident confusion about the nature of democratic citizenship education and the definition of inquiry related to it. Contains 33 references.(BT)