Pathway to National Board Certification Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools

What Do I Need to Know to Achieve National Board Certification? National Board operates on Guiding Principles of Teaching. Those principles are found in the 5 Core Propositions and the Teaching Standards.

5 Core Propositions Proposition 1: Teachers are committed to students and their learning. Proposition 2: Teachers know the subjects they teach and how to teach those subjects. Proposition 3: Teachers are responsible for managing and monitoring student learning. Proposition 4: Teachers think systematically about their practice and learn from experience. Proposition 5: Teachers are members of learning communities.

First step in the Pathway Internalize the 5 Core Propositions and how those ideals manifest themselves in your teaching practice.

Time to Get Started!! Become familiar with the NB website. Decide what certificate area is the best match for your teaching career. Be sure to look at Component 1 before selecting your certification area.

Next step: Go to and pay the $75.00 Processing Fee. NBPTS will then put you on their list and you will receive all updates from NB as soon as they become available.

Do not go any further until you have read and studied the Standards that are listed for the Component 2 in your area of certification.

Overview Read over your portfolio directions entirely. Focus on “What I Need to Do?” Think about the type of lesson that would be the “best fit” for this Component. Think about what students you want to include.

National Board Helix When you are considering how to proceed, National Board has a representation of it’s philosophy in the form of a helix. Go to the helix and discuss as a small group how your entries will incorporate the ideals represented in the helix in planning and writing your portfolio.

Some absolutes to keep in mind on this pathway: Look carefully at the format specifications. You MUST follow them. Focus on the stated purpose of the Component explicitly.

Continuing on the Pathway….. First you must make the critical decisions about the lesson/unit to highlight and students to include, keeping in mind the helix model. Next, you must decide how to proceed with the Written Commentary to best display the requirements of the Component.

Helpful Hints for Writing Remember NB is looking for clear, concise and convincing evidence. Organize your commentary with optimum clarity in mind. Decide on the best writing style that clearly explains your lesson/unit. Pay close attention to the page limits.

Guiding Questions You are given guiding questions to ensure that all of the rubric items are included in your Written Commentary. You may choose to answer questions consecutively or explain your lesson in narrative form. Do not lose sight of CLEAR, CONCISE, and CONVINCING. Choose the style that allows you to meet these criteria.

More Helpful Hints Carefully re-read the Instructional Documents portion of your directions. Ensure that the documents you chose to include meet the criteria. Though spelling/grammar are not directly assessed, NEVER complete a Component without having it proofread/reviewed.

Helpful Hints (cont.) Review your written commentary carefully to ensure that statements that are political, religious, or state opinions or beliefs that could take away from the focus of your commentary are removed from the writing.

Reflection Important piece of your commentary. Don’t be afraid to discuss things you would like to improve about your lesson. Remember, if you stated goals, this is a good time to discuss whether they were met or not and why.

Before you reach the end of this pathway….. Remember, CMS offers you support as you proceed. Use the facilitated groups, expert staff and reviewers. Celebrate your progress as you go through this process! JUMP IN!!!