Teachers who are certified as outstanding by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) are awarded large salary increases in many states and districts, but some researchers have questioned whether the NBPTS is accurately identifying the most effective teachers with its complex and expensive procedures. New research suggests that NBPTS-certified teachers are not making exceptional contributions to student learning in Tennessee, where the accountability system uses sophisticated methods to calculate the annual achievement gains of the students of every teacher in grades 3 through 8. In "The Value-Added Achievement Gains of NBPTS-Certified Teachers in Tennessee," J.E. Stone of the College of Education at East Tennessee State University examines the annual student achievement gains produced by the 16 NBPTS-certified teachers who teach in grades 3 through 8 in Tennessee, and who therefore have value-added score reports in the state's database. He finds that only 18 percent of the NBPTS-certified teachers' value-added scores reach the level of exemplary, which the state defines as bringing about an improvement in student achievement equal to 115 percent of one typical year's academic growth in the local school system. On the other hand, 13 percent of the NBPTS-certified teachers' scores would be considered deficient, which the state defines as bringing about a gain of less than 85 percent of a year's growth. None of the 16 teachers meets the standard for high-performing teaching established by a new bonus pay program in Chattanooga, which requires teachers to produce a gain of 115 percent of a year's growth in three core subjects for three consecutive years. For details, surf to http://www.education-consumers.com/briefs/stoneNBPTS.shtm
