Miss. sixth in teacher certification

Published 1:27 am Sunday, December 9, 2007

Mississippi ranks sixth in nation with teachers who have earned recognition as National Board Certified Teachers.

State Superintendent of Education Hank Bounds said Friday that 158 Mississippi teachers received the certification this week from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.

“Earning certification through the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards is a very rigorous process,” Bounds said in a statement.

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“Teachers who earn this designation demonstrate a commitment to excellence and a dedication to their students. Every parent should want their children to be taught by a nationally certified teacher.”

National certification takes between one and three years to complete and measures what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do. It’s a self-reflective process in which teachers must demonstrate how every aspect of their work improves student learning.

In Mississippi, NBCTs receive an annual salary supplement of $6,000 throughout the 10-year life of their teaching certificates. Over time, the state has produced 2,685 NBCTs. There are 68,821 NBCTs in the nation.