DECATUR -- "The National Board Certified Teachers certification is one of the high honors educators can achieve in their careers," said Joyce Turnage, a pre-K teacher and program coordinator for the Decatur School District.
"I just received my certification on Dec. 1, 2018. I am so appreciative of this opportunity to become more in tune with myself and the profession. I am proud to be one of the 50-plus percent of NBCT who work in a low economic school district. Every student deserves high-quality teachers," said Turnage. "I needed the challenge for myself and time to reflect on my teaching skills.
Turnage strives to be the best teacher possible. She is strongly committed to her students and their families in Decatur. It was very important for Turnage to raise the bar for the community.
"I am excited to see what the future may hold for Decatur School District and the dedicated teachers that serve this community," Turnage concluded.
Before moving into the Decatur district, Kristin Wages, Northside Elementary music coordinator, received her NBCT certification through another district. Wages became one of 4,446 teachers from across the United States to renew her certification in 2018.
"Renewing my National Board Certification was a great opportunity for me to revisit the Five Core Propositions that define what an accomplished teacher should know and be able to do," Wages stated in a news release dated Oct. 31, 2018. "I look forward to continuing my journey learning and collaborating with teachers and professionals and advancing the profession."
The certification process is operated by the National Board Standards, which is an organization created by teachers for teachers. It believes that each and every student deserves to be taught by an accomplished and well-educated teacher.
"National Board Certification was designed to develop, retain and recognize accomplished teachers and to generate ongoing improvement in schools nationwide. It is the most respected professional certification available in K-12 education. Board certification is available in 25 certificate areas, spanning 16 disciplines, from Pre-K through 12th grade.
The certification process requires that teachers demonstrate standards-based evidence of the positive effect they have on student learning in alignment with the Five Core Propositions. They must exhibit a deep understanding of their students, content knowledge, use of data and assessments and teaching practice. They must also show that they participate in learning communities and provide evidence of ongoing reflection and continuous learning.
More than 118,000 teachers across the United States have achieved Board certification," according to nbpts.org.
Besides Wages, Decatur has three other teachers who earned the NBCT certification. Jacque Smith was the first teacher to earn the NBCT certification through the Decatur School District, followed by Janet Barkley and, finally, Turnage. Leagha Smith recently started the NBCT certificate process, which can take as much as three to five years to complete.
Jacque Smith received her certification in early adolescent mathematics. She earned the NBCT in early 2016. Her certification has helped develop math programs that help Decatur students excel in this area of their education.
"I am able to help the math teachers see the big picture. Smith said. "By seeing the big picture, the teachers can better utilize their resources to help the students understand mathematics."
In 2015, Janet Barkley, a first-grade teacher at Decatur Northside, decided to go for NBCT as the next challenge in her long career as an educator.
"This is my seventeenth year at Decatur teaching first and second grades and, in the last several years, it has been in the first grade, " Barkley said. "I have a master's degree and, a couple of years ago, I decided I wanted to try National Board. I started the process in 2015. After completing all components required to receive the certification, I became National Board Certified in December 2017."
Barkley agrees with Turnage in that the NBCT is a very hard process to go through but is well worth the extra effort to give her students the best education possible.
"It is a very hard process, but you learn so much about yourself," Barkley recalls. "It is one of the most rewarding experiences. You figure out what you are really good at and how to make it better. It also helps you to pinpoint the areas you thought you were good at and make them much better. Only 40 percent of the teachers going for the National Board get certified the first year."
The cost of the program can be more than $2,500 for the six components of the certification process. The State of Arkansas will pay around $5,000 annually (for five years if need) for teachers in high-poverty school districts. Should the certification candidates have to retake a component, that cost comes out of their own pockets.
Besides the four teachers who earned this high certification and the one currently undergoing the process, the Decatur School District has 21 of its 47 teachers who hold master's degrees in education.
The Decatur School District is indeed fortunate to have not only 21 teachers with master's degrees, which enables them to give their students the best education possible, but also a small group -- five to be exact -- that went the extra mile. Kristin Wages, Jacque Smith, Joyce Turnage, Janet Barkley and Leagha Smith (in two years) proved that, even in a low-income district like Decatur, the best of the best are always willing to sacrifice for the betterment of their students and fellow teachers alike.
General News on 03/20/2019