HHH’s National Board Certified Teachers were asked to share their certification experience and the impact the experience had in their classrooms. As there are several HHH members who are currently going through the certification process themselves or who are contemplating participating in the future, teachers also shared some advice for those members.

 

The HHHTA is proud to share these stories with the HHH Community!

1.  What prompted you to go through the process to become a NBCT?

Going through the National Board Certification process was one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences I have ever had as a teacher. I had first heard of National Board at a conference on Differentiated Instruction at the University of Virginia years ago. One of the presenters, who I was extremely impressed with, was Nationally Board Certified and I thought I want to do that! So when it was presented as an option for teachers in our district I knew I would go for it.

2. How did the certification process impact your classroom (ie: increase in parental involvement, improved teaching techniques, becoming more reflective)?

I am not sure if I realized what I was getting into (which may have been best) but going through the process has without a doubt made me a better teacher. It taught me to be reflective on what I was teaching and why I was choosing certain activities over others. In the past I have always worked hard to create organized, fun and worthwhile lessons but through the National Board certification process I really started to analyze my lessons more closely and was able to make adjustments to create even more worthwhile activities.

3. If you could give one piece of advice to someone going through the certification process, what would it be?

It is hard to explain National Board to someone who hasn't gone through the process and even when I earned the certification I don't think other people (even other educators) really understood what it meant. But for some reason that doesn't matter, the sense of personal pride and accomplishment I feel within myself has made all the hard work worth it. Some advice for those currently pursuing National Board certification...plan out specific time (lots of it) to work on National Board entries only and don't allow for any distractions. Also, in your writing you have to paint of picture of who you are as a teacher. Don't just write how great you are, prove it with specific examples!