National Board Certification What to Expect An Overview

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National Board CertificationWhat to Expect An
Overview

• Anita Maxwell
• West Virginia Education Association
• 2008

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NBPTS Mission Statement

• Maintaining high and rigorous standards for what
  accomplished teachers should know and be able to
  do,
• Providing a national voluntary system certifying
  teachers who meet these standards
• Advocating related education reforms for the
  purpose of improving student learning

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National Board for Professional Teaching
Standards (NBPTS)

• An independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan and
  non-governmental organization
• Created in 1987 in response to A Nation at Risk
  and A Nation Prepared
• Support from foundations, corporations, grants
  from the U.S. Department of Education and
  candidate fees

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NBPTS Standards

• NBPTS Board of Directors appoints teachers and
  others to serve on standards committees which
  include
• Teacher educators
• Developmental experts
• Leaders in disciplinary fields
• Teachers are involved from setting standards,
  advising assessment development and serving as
  scorers.

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• Standards in each certificate field were
  developed by the Standards Committee
• Standards are based on NBPTS policy statement,
  What Teachers Should Know and Be Able to Do and
  the Five Core Propositions
• In addition, they were reviewed publicly by
  education and teaching experts

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Five Core Propositions

• Teachers are committed to their students and
  their learning
• Teachers know the subjects they teach and how to
  teach those subjects effectively
• Teachers are responsible for managing and
  monitoring student learning
• Teachers think systematically about their
  practice and learn from experience
• Teachers are members of learning communities

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Requirements to Apply

• A bachelors degree
• Have taught a minimum of three years in a public
  or private school
• Holds a valid teaching license

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Developmental Age Categories

• Early Childhood (Ages 3-8)
• Middle Childhood (7-12 years)
• Early and Middle Childhood (3-12 years)
• Early Childhood through Young Adulthood (3-18)
• Adolescence and Young Adulthood (14-18)
• Early Adolescence through Young Adulthood
• (11-18 years)
• Candidates are responsible for knowledge of
  learners and content within entire age range.

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Certificates Available

• Art EMC and EAYA
• Career Technical Education EAYA
• English as a New Language EMC and EAYA
• English Language Arts EA and AYA
• Exceptional Needs Specialist ECYA
• Generalist EC and MC
• Health Education EAYA
• Library Media ECYA
• Literacy Reading Language Arts EMC
• Mathematics EA and AYA
• Music EMC and EAYA

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Certificates Available (conclusion)

• Music EMC and AYA
• Physical Education EMC and AYA
• School Counseling ECYA
• Science EA and AYA
• Social Studies History EA and AYA
• World Languages Other than English -- EAYA

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What Does the Process Provide?

• Ten (10) components that are assessed by trained
  teachers in their certificate area
• Opportunity for reflection about excellent
  teaching practice
• Measurement of accomplished teaching
• An extensive professional development experience

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Four Portfolio Entries

• Analysis and reflection of video recordings of
  classroom teaching (2 portfolio entries)
• Analysis of and reflection on student work with
  samples (1 portfolio entry)
• Documented accomplishments of work outside the
  classroom and evidence of how that work impacts
  student learning (1 portfolio entry)
• The submission deadline for the 4 portfolio
  entries is March 31, 2009.

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Online Assessment Center Exercises

• Six constructed response questions (each allowing
  up to 30 minutes for response) scheduled at an
  assessment center that demonstrate subject matter
  expertise.
• Assessment center exercises can be completed
  between July 1, 2008 through June 15, 2009.

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Scoring Facts

• Candidates must accumulate 275 points to achieve
  to achieve certification
• May bank scores for 2 years from date of initial
  score notification
• May retake any category that falls below 2.75
  during that 2 years
• Cost is currently 350 per retake
• Scores posted on a secure online site on or
  before December 31, 2009

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State County Incentives

• Salary Supplements
• Full or partial fee support
• Full or partial credential reciprocity
• State license renewal
• Time to complete portfolio
• Currently 32 counties offer an additional 1,000
  to 3,500 annual supplement

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State Incentives

• WV legislature provides a 3,500 for each of the
  10 years the certificate is valid
• The 2,500 fee is reimbursed for the first 200
  applicants each year half upon applying and the
  other half upon the completion of 10 scorable
  entries verified by the NBPTS
• WV provides subsidy fees (up to 600) for retakes
  which are 350 each

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National Board Certified Teachers

• The first 86 in the nation were certified in 1995
• Nearly 8,500 were certified in November 2007
• Total number of NBC Teachers in the nation now
  stands at 63,821
• Currently 360 WV teachers are certified
• 147 WV teachers are currently awaiting
  notification of certification by 12/31/08

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Is the Process Worth It?

• National Board Certification is not a solitary
  process. WVEA put me in touch with dynamic
  mentors and provided the information and
  resources I needed to succeed. Candidate
  sessions offered guidance and assistance with the
  portfolio entries from a panel of National Board
  Certified Teachers I now consider professional
  friends.
• Tony Nichols
  EC/Gen NBCT

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Still Not Sure?Consider Take One!

• 395 fee for completion of one portfolio entry
  that is classroom based.
• Take One! score can be transferred and the
  remaining nine components of the NBC process
  completed if the candidate so chooses.
• Decision to continue must be made within the next
  two years following submission.

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Take One! Requirements

• Available to all teachers and school counselors
  regardless of their experience level
• Educators in higher education, induction or
  pre-service teachers, principals, administrators
  and mentors
• Take One! participants must have access to a
  preK-12 classroom to complete the portfolio entry
• Entry must be submitted by April 15, 2009

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Additional Information

• Anita Maxwell -- 1.800.642.8261 extension 116
• amaxwell_at_nea.org
• www.wvea.org in Teaching Learning
• www.nbpts.org or 1.800.22.TEACH
• http//wvde.state.wv.us/certification/nbpts