#1 Professional Learning for Teachers

I’m a National Board Certified Teacher and can tell you first hand that the experience of pursuing National Board Certification was incredibly valuable. I was able to reflect on my practice in ways I never had before and it helped me evaluate my growth as a professional.

I highly recommend pursuing National Board Certification to any teacher who is driven to excel and be a change agent in the profession.

Besides being a valuable personal process, I’m always impressed by the caliber of teachers I meet who are National Board Certified. If you meet a National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT), find a way to work with them! If you’re looking online for a teacher resource, buy the one created by an NBCT! If you’re attending a conference and deciding on a session, attend the one lead by an NBCT! They are the best of the best in the profession and have achieved this status through a rigorous evaluation process.

The certification process has undergone changes to make it more accessible and feasible. It is now less expensive to certify and you can complete the four components over three years instead of all at once like in years past. Here are some links to sites you’ll want to visit to learn more about National Board Certification. There are support groups all over the country (you’ll definitely want to sign up for one to help you certify) and more and more opportunities for our most accomplished teachers to occupy leadership roles in our field.

National Board for Professional Teaching Standards – Here’s where it all begins! There are 25 certificate areas to choose from. Find the one that’s right for you.

National Board Resource Center at Stanford University – An outstanding candidate support program with virtual options.

 

Here I am (center) collaborating with two other amazing National Board Certified Teachers: Tammy Harris (left) who was working for National Board for Professional Teaching Standards at the time of this photo, and Linda Bauld (right) who was the director of the National Board Resource Center at Stanford University for many years.