Organization

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) was founded in 1987 to improve the quality of teaching and learning in America. By creating high and rigorous standards for what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do, along with an intensive assessment process to identify teachers who meet these standards, the National Board has positioned itself as a leader in education reform. There are more than 82,000 National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTS), with approximately 20,000 teachers going through this process as candidates each year.National Board Certification is widely regarded as the highest recognition a teacher can earn; however, it is much more than a means of identifying good teachers. Candidates define the process as the most comprehensive professional development of their careers, requiring them to demonstrate both the art and science of teaching through portfolios of instructional practice and content knowledge assessments. Teachers report that the process is powerful professional development, whether or not they achieve the certification.As a standards-based, job-embedded form of professional development directly connected to instruction and student outcomes, the National Board certification process has elevated professional development for teachers to a new level.Organization contact: Mary E. Dilworth, Vice President, Higher Education Initiatives and Research, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, 1525 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 500, Arlington, Virginia 22209 USA