Talk Priority Schools

Achieving National Board Certification is a huge professional milestone, but NYSUT Vice President Maria Neira urged National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) from the Capital Region to answer the calling for another title: teacher leader.

“National Board Certification is not an endpoint — hopefully it’s the beginning for each one of you to take the lead in making a difference,” Neira said at a celebration honoring more than 220 “master teachers” from nearly 50 Capital Region school districts. “You can’t wait for someone to ask you, ‘Come and tell me what you think.’ You have to step up and lead in your own way.”

Teacher leadership can take many different forms, said keynote speaker Ellen Holmes, a National Board Certified Teacher from Maine who works for the National Education Association’s Priority Schools Campaign. Holmes asked the audience members to close their eyes and picture a teacher leader, then share their vision with a neighbor.

“I bet the person’s name would be different,” Holmes said. “We all have a different notion of teacher leadership … Teacher leaders don’t come in one size or one definition.”

Holmes urged NBCTs to take the time to ask themselves “What’s next?” She offered a long list of possible leadership roles for NBCTs: mentor, lead teacher, coach, team leader, department head, quasi-administrators. But it doesn’t have to be a new job title, Holmes stressed. She invited NBCTs to help the colleague who never comes out of her room, or another who might be thinking about pursuing National Board Certification.”

Read the full article on the NYSUT website.

NEA Executive Committee Member Christy Levings recently wrote an editorial for the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS). Concerned about recent discussions among “education reformers” about ignoring experience as a factor in retaining teachers, Levings related the argument to the medical profession. “No one would question that years of successful practice make a more desirable physician. I firmly agree that the same is true of teachers,” Levings wrote.

Noting the value of having opportunities for educators to advance their knowledge, including the achievement of National Board Certified Teachers, Levings also wrote that the public discourse should be shifted to what we can do to keep the best educators, rather than focus on dismissing others:

The discussion should not be about the picking and choosing of whom to keep and discard. Instead, the conversation should be about what the entire community of policy and education leaders should do to keep talented professionals on the job and schools funded to the level to support every student.

Read the entire editorial on the NBPTS website.

By Kathy Wiebke, PhD, Executive Director of the Arizona K12 Center and National Board Certified Teacher (NBCT)

“In every school and in every classroom, every student deserves to be taught by an accomplished teacher. In ‘those schools’ they deserve to be the same as any other school around the Valley and we must demonstrate equity and acknowledge that excellence is not attributed to a zip code; that knowledge is not linked to the color of a teacher’s skin; that excellence is everywhere and it’s at Mitchell Elementary School.”  – Daniela Robles

“If one-fourth of my staff display the growth I observed in Daniela, then this will all be worth it.” These were the words of Linda Crawford, the principal at Mitchell Elementary School, as she explained why she was supporting 20 teachers at her school as they pursued National Board Certification or its single entry alternative, Take One. This was the first time I had seen a principal devote a significant portion of Title I funds and school time to a professional development endeavor. More importantly, I had never seen one teacher recruit 20 teachers at her school to engage in what she called the “Pathways to Accomplished Teaching.” She told the teachers, “You select your path and I will support you.”

This all happened in a very unlikely locale. Mitchell Elementary School is in one of the poorest communities in downtown Phoenix. It has one of the highest crime rates in the city of Phoenix. Most of their students come to school speaking a language other than English. Most of the teachers grew up in communities similar to Mitchell. They understand the challenges that come from growing up Latino and poor. Couple this with new state laws around how children who are not proficient in English are taught, an economy that is in a downwards spiral, a district in corrective action, and immigration raids that are splitting up families and one wonders why teachers would voluntarily take on either pathway for professional improvement when it appears that their plates were already full.

It turns out that the answer was a fairly simple one. The person asking them to do it was a much admired and respected colleague. Secondly, and one suspects equally important, it was their choice whether to embark on this journey. This was not a district mandate but rather their choice alone. In fact, when one teacher inquired if they “had to do it” the minute she was told no, she said, “sign me up.” It was almost as if there was a hunger for something they could call their own. There are so many mandates that fill the lives of these educators it is mind-numbing to fully comprehend that the decisions most teachers take for granted are not within their grasp. Every response is analyzed, and daily routines are questioned to such a degree that these teachers found themselves throwing their hands up and doing as they were told. read more »

By Jim Meadows, Ph.D., Washington Education Association

The Center for Reinventing Public Education (CRPE), based at the University of Washington, recently released a paper encouraging questions about the state’s investment in National Board Certification – specifically for our most challenging schools. With state revenue forecasts down and K-12 education budget cuts looming, the CRPE report uses contradictory, limited, and flawed data to undermine one Washington State’s most successful ongoing education reform efforts.

The paper does its best to raise uncertainty about investing in accomplished teaching in high-poverty schools at a time when all things education are on the chopping block, but the attempt is built on a foundation of limited and incomplete research and there are fundamental flaws in the work when viewed alongside more comprehensive studies.

A Washington State Board of Education study from June of 2010 used a high-quality analysis of comprehensive data sets over three years (2007-8, 2008-9, & 2009-10), and included comparison groups. The study found:

• Retention rates of NBCTs working in challenging schools are the same or higher than NBCTs statewide and higher than the other teachers in challenging schools.
• NBCTs in challenging schools have stayed in their school from one year to the next at rates greater than other teachers in challenging schools, and greater than or equal to NBCTs statewide. The challenging schools bonus appears to be a significant factor in retaining NBCTs in challenging schools .
• When asked about factors contributing to staying at their school, more than three quarters (79 percent) indicated the challenging schools bonus significantly or moderately contributed to their decision to stay.
• In Year One, 89 percent of the NBCTs were already located in a challenging school, while 10 percent moved from a non-challenging school to a challenging school. In Years Two and Three, an even larger proportion of NBCTs in challenging schools stayed in the same challenging school from one year to the next (92 and 94 percent, respectively).
• The percentage of NBCTs from non-challenging schools who transferred into challenging schools in year 1, 2 and 3 was, respectively: 10.2%, 7.2% and 4.2%)

CRPE did not consider other important factors affecting teacher decisions about transferring to challenging schools, including the impact of the weakened economy, limited open teaching positions amidst massive budget cuts, and uncertainty tied to new federal and state school improvement initiatives. read more »

By Lara Searcy, National Board Certified Teacher

S p r i n g  B r e a k. There should be respite in that phrase… unless, of course, you are working on National Boards. The deadline is March 31st, and I can feel the weight of my four entry binders on my shoulders (or in the classic “teacher bag” I carry everywhere I go) and the carpal tunnel settling into my typing fingers. However, I am content knowing that I am not alone in this process.

There are thousands of other teachers working over the break to document and show how their teaching positively affects student learning. This is the purpose, the goal, and the accomplishment… and I have never been so challenged, affirmed, or mentally exhausted in my career! During this process, I have been so fortunate to have the support and help from so many teachers in my district who have already accomplished this feat; therefore, it is because of them that I can truly respect the process because they are accomplished teachers and mentors. When I put my “box” in the mail at the end of this month, I will do so with the biggest sense of accomplishment, knowing that hundreds of hours of my life are contained in it.

But overall, in hindsight, I know it will be worth the time and effort because in showing how I impacted students, the process greatly impacted me.

So today, when my students asked me, “Mrs. Searcy, what are you doing for Spring Break?” I said “spending time with you” and laughed. Because students understand that teachers don’t go home “empty handed” at the end of the school day or before a break. They understand that the teacher will always be the student and that their homework eventually becomes my homework… and for that, my students give me respect, even when other professionals and politicians do not.

Teachers are their own unique brand and community. We immediately have empathy and stories to share. We wear our red pens like “red badges of courage.” You can spot us in a crowd by the books we carry, the hugs we receive, and the number of students who shyly approach us, asking, “Remember me?” five to twenty years later. Though I am still “young” in the profession (this is my fifth year teaching), I know that teaching is the “road less traveled,” but I like what I do and I do what I like, which has indeed “made all the difference.”

This post is part of a series from National Board Certified Teachers (NBCT) who have been invited to blog about their experiences working in a priority school.

By Peggy Saunders, National Board Certified Teacher

In my job as a Literacy Coach, the topic of student behavior comes up frequently.  One area of behavior that we discuss is homework – not doing it – usually on a regular basis.  Here are some of the questions we had.  They may sound familiar to you:

• Why don’t all our students do it?
• When do we grade it all?
• What do parents think about it?
• Does it help our students learn the math?

I started by thinking about math homework, and more questions came:

• How much class time do we spend checking it?
• Does everyone understand the problems after we check?
• How can we individualize for students that need more or less practice?

One of the resources I used to help me think about this topic is Rethinking Homework (2009) by Cathy Vatterott. The PDF linked here, Designing Quality Homework Tasks, can help with creating tasks to improve learning, motivation, and student ownership of learning.

The Homework Partners is an idea I had about using student partnering to help students learn math.  The correct answers for the assigned homework would be displayed on an overhead, and students would work in partners (or later, small groups) to check and repair their own understanding.  Days could be alternated for helping with or help from, or two short sessions could be used.  Choice is used to support motivation and student ownership of learning.

This post is part of a series from National Board Certified Teachers (NBCT) who have been invited to blog about their experiences working in a priority school.

By Shellie Sallas, National Board Certified Teacher

Every year, on the first day of school I asked my students what the goal of reading is…with great enthusiasm they always respond, “To read FAST!” This breaks my heart.

How can students reach 5th grade and not understand that reading was about so much more than speed? If my students have this perception, then other students probably have the same thoughts on reading. Certain reading programs place significant emphasis on reading with great speed and fluency, and funding was based heavily on students’ fluency rates. This results in 5th graders who are reading 230 words in one minute, but comprehend little to none of what they read.

In this age of teacher accountability, many teachers are afraid of losing their jobs so they are abandoning their best practices and shifting their focus to preparation for the state tests and away from developing thoughtful learners.  The instructional focus needs to shift back.

If we are simply teaching reading, math, science, etc. to students instead of teaching students to become thinkers, innovators, and problem solvers, we are truly doing our future generations a disservice. If we want students to achieve success and be prepared to solve the problems of tomorrow, we must teach them how to think and support them as they learn how to explain their thinking. If students can think well, they WILL achieve success in a variety of contexts, including the state tests.

This post is part of a series from National Board Certified Teachers (NBCT) who have been invited to blog about their experiences working in a priority school.

By Jennifer Skellett, National Board Certified Teacher

I heard the other day on the news that teachers are bad, greedy, and bringing down the country’s economy. Such harsh words for what we actually do. More importantly, not true.

Quality teachers on average work beyond their contract hours, donate food for snacks and school supplies because the schools or families can’t afford to buy them. Teachers who work in high-needs schools tend to carry serious emotional bricks home with them due to the fact that their students couldn’t do their homework because their dad was deported the night before.

Teachers also help to counsel students like the one who witnessed her mom’s roommate’s murder. Yes, both true stories from where I teach.

The work we do in and out of the classroom will never add up to what we get paid. I have never complained about how much money I make. I knew going in to my profession I wasn’t going to be a millionaire. On the other hand, I knew that the job would have security and a pension; both of which are now being attacked in various states around the country.

Teaching is a profession that is incredibly challenging. The reward is not in the meager paycheck we take home, but in the smiles on the faces of our students when they feel successful that day. I suppose if this is what the news media sees as bad, I don’t want to be good.

This post is part of a series from National Board Certified Teachers (NBCT) who have been invited to blog about their experiences working in a priority school.

By Amy Buffenbarger

The National Education Association hosted a National Summit on Family, School, and Community Engagement last week in Alexandria, Va where educators, education leaders, parents, family and community activists, business leaders and representatives of the faith community met for two days of small group and panel discussions.

Participants shared success stories and discussed the challenges faced with strengthening the bonds between families, communities and their public schools. Parents work hard and don’t have much time to visit their childrens’ classrooms. Sometimes there are language barriers between educators and families. Legislators don’t prioritize family and community involvement as highly as they should. Some educators could use more training in reaching out to parents. In other cases, the education system has changed so much since the parents were in school, they simply don’t understand it anymore. read more »