Contact: Maridith Geuder
Teachers from Southaven to Macon to Long Beach who recently participated in a Mississippi State University mentoring program now are considered among the nation's best.
Of 36 Mississippi teachers earning 1998 certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, 30 participated in MSU's World Class Teaching Program. Since 1996, the intensive College of Education-based preparatory has been offered to interested educators planning to take the voluntary national exam.
This year's results are similar to last year. Of 19 teachers certified in 1997, 15 participated in Mississippi State's program.
More than 900 teachers in the nation earned the prestigious certification during 1997-98. With a total of 62 certified teachers, Mississippi ranks second in the Southeast and seventh in the nation in the number of board certified teachers, said MSU program director Peggy Swoger.
"Teachers who earn this distinction have spent one year investigating their own teaching and the learning of their students," she said. "This arduous process requires more than 300 hours of intensive planning, videotaping, analyzing, and writing. If other teachers and administrators want to understand the national standards, they need only visit the classrooms of these dedicated individuals."
National Board Certification requires rigorous performance-based assessments. Teachers are evaluated on the basis of portfolios and student work samples, as well as videotapes and analyses of their classroom teaching and student learning achievements.
They also must demonstrate knowledge of the subjects they teach by completing a series of written exercises.
The Mississippi Legislature provides funding to ensure that board-certified educators receive a $6,000 annual bonus for the life of their teaching certificate.