VCU coordinates national teacher certification program

By Mike Frontiero
VCU School of Education

RICHMOND, Va. – Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Education and the four Richmond-area school districts have launched a new partnership to address the professional development and training needs of teachers, administrators and other educational personnel.

The Metropolitan Educational Training Alliance (META), a partnership among the Chesterfield County Public Schools, Hanover County Public Schools, Henrico County Public Schools and Richmond City public schools and VCU, is undertaking a series of projects designed to improve teaching and learning in area schools.

"More students can meet and exceed state standards if more teachers meet and exceed standards for accomplished teaching," said Terry Dozier, Ed.D., a former National Teacher of the Year and National Teacher in Residence at VCU's School of Education. Dozier is coordinating and planning classes for META’s first group of 43 teachers.

META’s first project focuses on increasing the number of teachers in the metro-Richmond area who achieve advanced certification through the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan, and non-governmental organization whose mission is to establish and high and rigorous standards of what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do.

Currently, 142 teachers in Virginia are NBPTS certified, but only one teacher in the metro-Richmond area has achieved this distinction. Offered on a voluntary basis, NBPTS certification complements, but does not replace, state licensing. It is a professional certification increasingly used by states and local communities as a way to identify and reward exemplary teachers.

"NBPTS certification also is a powerful professional development experience that helps teachers deepen their knowledge of subject matter and become more skilled in daily classroom instruction and student assessment," Dozier said.

The year-long certification process, which began last month, requires teachers to provide direct evidence that their teaching meets NBPTS standards through a school-site portfolio that includes student work samples, videotapes of lessons, and reflective commentaries about their strategies to help students learn. The portfolio also must provide evidence of collaborative work with colleagues and outreach to parents. In addition, teachers complete a series of lengthy written assessments conducted at an assessment center that focus on teachers’ knowledge of subject matter.

"I’m thrilled to be in the program," said Jacquelline Marshall, a fifth grade teacher at George Washington Carver Elementary School in Richmond. "Achieving national certification will tell the world I have reached the ultimate level as a teacher."

Recent studies have identified several benefits of NBPTS certification to individual teachers and to the systems in which they work. For example, a study at the University of North Carolina, Greensboro found that NBPTS certified teachers are more effective in advancing student learning than teachers who sought, but did not achieve, certification. A survey of NBPTS certified teachers indicate that they are assuming more leadership roles and responsibilities within their schools and districts. Also, teachers report that achieving NBPTS certification has increased their satisfaction with the profession and made it more likely that they will remain in teaching.