By Tom

The first Group Session! After lunch we all moved into the next room for the grand welcome. One of our own bloggers, Maren Johnson, got things rolling with an introduction to Twitter, encouraging everyone in attendance to tweet out updates from the conference. We learned how to post tweets, retweet, use hashtags, and so on. Everyone went immediately to their phones and iPads and got busy.

Cindy Rockholt, conference co-chair, then took over, orienting all of us to the upcoming activities. Each session presenter stood up  in turn, introducing themselves and giving a quick blurb about their session. (Including me. It’s tomorrow and it’s on blogging.)

Beth McGibbon, the other co-chair, then took the helm. She guided us through an activity designed to familiarize people to the unique relationship in Washington State between OSPI, CSTP and the WEA. All three agencies have a stake in promoting and sustaining National Board Certification, yet each has a distinct role.

The WEA’s roll includes Jump Start and Home Stretch, both of which are focused on supporting candidates during their certification. The WEA also runs an Ambassador program, which is focused on encouraging teachers to consider National Board Certification.

OSPI plays three roles in NB Certification. They handle facilitator training and cohort coordination so that candidates have a quality experience during their candidacy process. They also handle the conditional loans, helping candidates afford the process. Last, but definitely not least, they run the stipend program, delivering a well-deserved bonus to Washington’s NBCTs.

CSTP’s purview is teacher leadership and advocacy. They help NBCTs find themselves as leaders and build their own capacity in the roles they choose. They also amplify teachers’ voices on education policy. (One of CSTP’s teacher advocacy projects is the very blog you’re reading.)

The big news of the day, shared by Michaela Miller and Cindy, was about the new certification numbers for Washington State. We have 946 brand-new NBCTs this year, bringing our state total up to 8285. 14% of the teachers in Washington are now National Board Certified!   Not only that, but thanks to heavy recruitment, 34% of our new NBCTs work in challenging schools: 53% of them work in STEM fields. In addition, Washington State now has nine of the top twenty school districts in terms of percentage of NBCTs.

Katie Taylor, NBCT from CSTP took the stage. She introduced the Teacher Leadership Framework, a tool designed to help teachers identify the knowledge, skills and dispositions for leadership roles to which they find themselves attracted. Participants had a chance to delve into the Framework and discuss their interests in teacher leadership, as well as the challenges teachers face as they move beyond the walls of their classroom.

If you haven’t looked through this document, I highly recommend it. I was in the room when it was conceived and written back in 2009.  The basic impetus was the realization that NBCTs have demonstrated their expertise in the classroom and were now being asked to take on leadership roles, for which they may or not have the skill set. It’s important for our profession, therefore, to identify what those various roles are and list the essential knowledge, skills and dispositions they require. Thence the Teacher Leadership Framework, which is now used across the state, principally by school districts that are trying to develop a leadership corps.

Now it’s off for “snack time” and then to the first breakout session.