The Institutional Positioning and Issues of the National System of Teacher Certification by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS)

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to clarify the institutional positioning and issues of the National System of Teacher Certification by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) in the United States. First, I summarize the incentive system for National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) and the relationship between the NBPTS certification system and the teacher license system in all states. Next, using the Montgomery County public schools in Maryland, I analyze the relationship between the NBPTS certification system, teacher evaluation, and professional development. The reason for using this district as a typical school district promoting NBPTS efforts because the number of NBCTs are relatively large among the nation’s school districts.

The findings from this study are as follows: (1) the NBPTS certification system is positioned as an effort to promote school improvement, focusing on professional standards. The NBPTS certification system is not a mechanism to prove the quality of teachers but uses the expertise of NBCTs to demonstrate leadership both inside and outside school and to work with colleagues to tackle school improvement. Professional standards promote school improvement by functioning as a common language among teachers. (2) The NBPTS qualification process is one of the requirements for teacher license renewal in many states, which is institutionally positioned in the United States teacher license system. To acquire and renew NBPTS certification, teachers must demonstrate how they have contributed to student learning based on their teaching practice. The qualification process which is directly linked to teaching practice is becoming recognized, in many states, as a useful professional development activity. (3) “The Five Core Propositions,” which are the basis of the NBPTS standard, are adopted as a standard for teacher evaluation and professional development of the Maryland school district and are used as a system to maintain and improve the quality of teachers within the school district. The “Montgomery County Public Schools teacher performance standards” are incorporated in the “Professional Development System” which aims to continually improve teachers in the school district prove to satisfy all content of “performance standards” in formal evaluation. Furthermore, NBCTs in the school district are involved in the guidance and evaluation of new teachers and those who cannot meet “performance standards.” They are also used to guide school-based professional development activities.

The issues of the NBPTS certification system are as follows: (1) the penetration rate of NBPTS certification is only about 3% of all teachers in the United States, and the change or abolition of the incentive system for NBCTs has a big influence on the dissemination of NBPTS certification. (2) The NBPTS certification system is used as a strict standard for eliminating some teachers rather than an institutional design supporting the continued professional growth of some teachers within the school district.