Take the NBCT Opportunity!
Jessica is a Nationally Board Certified Teacher (NBCT) at Cougar Ridge Elementary in Issaquah School District. She leads the district’s facilitation of the NBCT’s, including leading the New Hire Academy each August. Jessica has influenced well over 200 NBCT’s, accessed grants for support, and persuaded others who are new to the profession to reflect and refine their craft.
Why did you decide to become Nationally Board Certified?
There was only one teacher in our district who was certified when I decided to undergo the process. I was just wrapping up my third year of teaching and thought it would be good professional development. I liked that it was classroom-based and housed in a development continuum, great for new teachers.
What was the process like for you?
When I first was certified, it was “NBCT 2.0” — everything had to be done in a year. One colleague and I did it together. We wondered, “What did we get ourselves into?” [laughs] We had colleagues that wanted to help, but didn’t know how. Thankfully, the Washington Education Association (WEA) was in the process of connecting networks of NBCTs and we worked with a facilitator from Bellevue School District. We went to a monthly meeting with 100 teachers that were going through it. That’s where I got a lot of clarity and support. It was amazing to see there were so many teachers going through the same process.
It felt like a lot for one year, it was all-consuming. But I do believe the value of that was that it created this lens for you to re-visualize your practice. You ask yourself, “does this impact student learning?” Doing the entire process in a consolidated time-frame allowed me to grow up in my practice.
What have you learned from this process, and what have you utilized in the classroom?
Formative assessment strategies for sure! It’s all based in knowledge of students and what you know about them and what they need. As much as possible, within the tools of your district, teachers should think about how to differentiate for students. It’s not that it’s November 1 in X grade, it’s about skill building and gathering data. You’re not thinking about last year, per say, you are thinking about this new group of students where they are. You can’t walk away from the NBCT process without really believing your need to differentiate in the classroom.
What do you love about teaching in Issaquah?
I student taught here, and have taught here for my entire career. We have a lot of diversity. Our district is home to both families who stay here for their children’s entire school career and families who for personal or career reasons may be here from other countries or states — possibly here for a while or a brief time.
The community as a whole, our school’s foundation, administration, everyone, is supportive of educators. Our students know the value of education, too. That allows you to make a lot of gains with them.
My colleagues are the best. They care about their content and their students as people. That’s the neat thing about NBCT, you asses your content, but you bring reflective processes into your practice and view students as whole individuals.
I lead the facilitation groups in my district and I have seen maybe 230 teachers go through boards. You read the work they are doing, and you just can’t help but be impressed with who they are as colleagues.
What advice can you give other Washington educators?
“NBCT 3.0” is a good option for teachers now. It means it can take a year or longer to get certified. It does remove some barriers that teachers have had in getting that work/life balance. My advice would be to take advantage of the opportunity to create a time frame that works for you that allows you to reflect so that it changes you practice. There is so much value added to your teaching repertoire.
