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Fulton adds 40 teachers to National Board Certification ranks

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards has announced that 40 Fulton County teachers have achieved National Board Certification, one of the most prestigious honors an educator can achieve. With a total of 164 National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs), Fulton County leads the state in number of credentialed teachers.

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards established national certification in 1993 to provide advanced evaluation of experienced educators and to complement the state certification process. Teachers can gain national certification in their select teaching areas including English/language arts, ESOL, foreign language, social studies, physical education/health, music, art, exceptional needs, library media, career and technical education, mathematics, science, school counseling, and literacy.

During the certification process, teachers demonstrate their knowledge and skills through a series of performance-based assessments tied to national standards. Educators document subject matter knowledge, provide evidence of effective teaching skills, and demonstrate their ability to manage and measure student learning.

Teachers interested in pursuing certification and requesting financial assistance first apply to the school system. Fulton funds the application fee for selected teachers and also offers twice-monthly support workshops. One workshop each month is structured around general topics such as videotaping, descriptive, analytical and reflective writing, choosing work samples and artifacts, and scoring and assessing commentaries. The second workshop focuses on group collaboration in one of three major certificate areas. In addition, individual appointments are scheduled with National Board Certified teachers to address specific questions.

Once certified, Fulton teachers receive not only the 10 percent salary increase on the Georgia salary schedule, but also an additional 10 percent increase on the local Fulton County pay scale. In return for the financial and professional support, Fulton candidates agree to complete the certification process, remain in Fulton for at least two years following certification, and assist future candidates.