ATLANTA — Data released today show that Southern Regional Education Board states remain national leaders in both increases in and the total numbers of teachers certified by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) — even as some states are changing their policies on the certification.
The Virginia-based nonprofit NBPTS announced its class of 2009 today, and reported the new total numbers of teachers in each state completing the rigorous program aimed at improving classroom teaching and learning.
About 5,100 of the 8,900 teachers earning National Board certification nationally in 2009 were in the 16 SREB states. This brings the total number of National Board-certified teachers in SREB states to a remarkable 56,000 — representing more than two-thirds of the total.
Thirteen SREB states ranked in the top 25 nationally in the numbers of newly National Board-certified teachers. North Carolina has the most new National Board-certified teachers of any state this year, with 1,509, bringing the state total to 15,695, according to the NBPTS. South Carolina was third in the number of new teachers, with 798, bringing its total to 7,293. Florida was fifth, with 651, bringing its statewide total to 13,281.
Mississippi continued its large gains and now has 3,103 total teachers who have earned the certification. Other SREB states with sizeable numbers of teachers earning the credential are Oklahoma with 2,599, Georgia with 2,577, and Kentucky with 1,829. Virginia, Alabama, Maryland, Louisiana and Arkansas all have at least 1,397 teachers who have earned the credentials.
The numbers of National Board-certified teachers continue to increase even though some states have changed state policies regarding bonus pay and other incentives for teachers earning the credential. Some states have seen the number of teachers earn the certification increase rapidly, creating budget concerns. Also, state policy-makers and education leaders increasingly want to maximize the certification’s impact by ensuring that it provides high-quality teachers to schools that need them the most.
SREB’s Legislative Report shows that when legislatures adopted budgets for 2009-2010 last spring, Alabama added $5,000 to the salary bonuses for teachers who earn National Board certification and increased funding for the bonuses by 9.9 percent to $8.7 million. Kentucky added $2,000 to the annual salary bonus for teachers, raising its budget for the program 9 percent to $3 million. Maryland doubled its funding for teacher quality, which includes some funding for the program, to $1.4 million. A new Texas law allows school districts to use Educator Excellence Award Program funds to provide stipends for teachers.
The NBPTS has changed the focus of its program, recently announcing that it will develop a National Board certification for school leaders — SREB’s Learning-Centered School Leadership program is playing an advisory role — and in ensuring that teachers in the program play greater roles in improving schools, especially low-performing schools.
For more information, visit www.nbpts.org or contact SREB Communications.
