Celebrating 25 Years
Our Mission
The mission of the National Board is to advance student learning and achievement by establishing the definitive standards and systems for certifying accomplished educators, providing programs and advocating policies that support excellence in teaching and leading, and engaging National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) and leaders in that process.
The National Board seeks to elevate the status, voice, and role of accomplished teachers in shaping a true profession. This includes: 1) raising public awareness with respect to the cognitive complexity, collaborative, and expertise-driven nature of teachers' work; 2) setting higher standards for entry, advancement, and leadership in the profession; and 3) recognizing accomplished teaching through a rigorous professional certification process comparable to those found in other professions such as medicine, engineering, and law.
Since 1987, more than 100,000 teachers have achieved National Board Certification.
Moving Forward
The National Board enters its second quarter century with two strategic and interconnected goals: promoting educator effectiveness across the career span and helping accomplished teachers lead the way in building a vibrant and respected profession. The National Board is:
- Restructuring its certification processes to maintain high and rigorous standards while increasing the accessibility and flexibility of the assessment process for all educators who wish to demonstrate and validate their practice.
- Field-testing new assessments for accomplished principals and developing new standards and assessments for teacher leaders.
- Building a suite of powerful new tools that educators can use to strengthen their practice. These include VOP (Video Observation Program), which uses videos of accomplished teaching coupled with written analyses that describe the NBCT’s instructional strategies and decision making. The resulting “cases,” in each of the National Board’s 25 certificate areas, are being indexed to the Common Core and other pertinent state and national standards. Several states and districts are already using these tools for evaluator training, supporting struggling teachers, and for teacher professional development.
ATLAS (Accomplished Teaching, Leading and Schools) uses these video cases to help future educators understand what accomplished teaching looks like in a classroom and, more importantly, to demonstrate how accomplished teachers design lessons, provide instruction, build classroom communities, and utilize assessments to facilitate student learning. A recent U.S. Department of Education i3 grant will pilot these tools in preservice and induction programs, with the goal of widespread national adoption.
In sum, the National Board is working on a range of exciting projects to expand the number and impact of accomplished teachers and leaders, while working to elevate the status, standards, and voice of the teaching profession.
And Coming in 2013
The National Board will launch a new and redesigned website and blog to highlight the numerous ways National Board Certified Teachers are advancing education reform and enhancing student learning.
Share Your Story!
Do you have an interesting or inspiring story to tell about your experiences as an educator? If so, tell us your story! Click here to Share Your Story!