The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that operates a national, voluntary system to assess and certify teachers who meet high and rigorous standards of accomplished teaching. Teachers who achieve certification have demonstrated the ability, in a variety of settings, to make sound professional judgments about students' best interests and to act effectively on those judgments. The certification process has four components that require a great deal of time and energy on the part of the candidate. The components include three portfolio entries and a computer-based assessment.
A National Board Certificate is considered to be the highest credential the teaching profession offers; a certificate awarded by the National Board attests that a teacher has been judged by his or her peers as meeting rigorous professional standards. Teachers who have undertaken it consider it to be the most worthwhile professional development experience of their careers.
National Board certification has been incorporated into the Department's recertification regulations. Teachers who achieve National Board Certification in Massachusetts are awarded 120 PDP's, which is good for one round of recertification. It has also been added to the licensure regulations and is currently one of the options for the Professional license. (You can find the options for the Professional license at 603 CMR 7.11.)
Educators who are interested in applying for National Board Certification should visit the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards website.
A nonrefundable $75 processing charge is required when you submit your application, and the total cost for the initial attempt of all four components is $1,900. If you have questions regarding this information, please call the National Board customer service line at 1-800-22TEACH.
Title IIA funds may be utilized to help subsidize the application fee, based on district needs. Interested teachers should contact their respective district's Title IIA administrators for possible assistance.
For further information, please contact Liz Losee via email.
Last Updated: February 11, 2022
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