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NB teacher earns top honor in her professionFrom North Branch Schools Sue Howard of North Branch is one of 8,195 elementary and secondary school teachers nationwide who achieved National Board Certification in 2003, according to the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS). This achievement brings the total number of National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) to 32,130. Howard teaches fourth grade at Main Street School. She has been a teacher for 30 years and holds degrees in elementary education and professional development. ìI enjoyed the challenge; this process forced me to reflect on my many years of teaching and weave new connections between different subjects,î Howard said. ìI would encourage other teachers to go for it. It is an incredibly rewarding experience with great professional benefits.î Only one other North Branch teacher has earned National Board Certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS); Al Jones, a 5th-grade teacher, earned his certification in 2001. ìNBPTS celebrates and congratulates all teachers who went through the rigorous National Board Certification process,î said NBPTS Board Chair Roy E. Barnes. ìThis impressive achievement is widely recognized at the national, state and local levels as a benchmark for teacher quality. This is also an indication that policymakers, educators, business and community leaders, and parents recognize that when it comes to a quality education, quality teaching matters.î National Board Certification is the highest credential in the teaching profession. A voluntary process established by NBPTS, certification is achieved through a rigorous performance-based assessment that takes between one and three years to complete and measures what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do. ìTeacher quality has never been more important, and the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) is the only organization of its kind helping states to identify and certify highly accomplished teachers,î said NBPTS president Joseph A. Aguerrebere. ìThrough National Board Certified Teachers, states and communities are realizing the enormous benefits of using National Board Certification as a tool to attract, reward and retain highly accomplished teachers as required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act.î Forty-nine states and more than 500 school districts across the nation have implemented policies and regulations to recruit, reward and retain National Board Certified Teachers. ìIt is important to understand that the National Board Certification process not only identifies accomplished teachers, but also is a profound professional development experience,î said Aguerrebere. ìThis is a process that forces teachers to demonstrate how their activities, both inside and outside of the classroom, improve student achievement.î There have been more than 140 studies, reports and papers commissioned on the value of the National Board Certification process, as well as its standards and assessments. ©ECM Post Review |