Do Students Learn More
from National Board Certified Teachers?

Utilizing a sophisticated model built from 600,000 North Carolina elementary student test scores during a 3-year period, an independent research team has found that National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) are far more likely to improve student achievement as measured by the state's highly touted standardized testing system. The research team, led by labor economist Dan Goldhaber of the University of Washington and the Urban Institute, has noted that these findings “provide direct evidence that the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) is identifying and certifying teachers who will raise student achievement” and they “could put to rest some of the controversy in education circles surrounding the national certification.” In particular, the study concluded that National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs): Are more effective at raising student achievement than teachers who pursue, but fail to obtain, NBPTS certification; are more effective at raising student achievement—outside of the year in which they apply—than teachers who do not pursue NBPTS certification; have a greater impact with younger students; have a greater impact with low-income students.

Students of NBCTs improved an average of seven percent more on their year-end math and reading tests than students whose teachers attempted but did not earn certification. The influence of NBCTs was most pronounced for younger and lower-income students whose gains were as high as 15 percent more when taught by NBCTs. This is the first large-scale study using standardized tests to link NBCTs and student achievement, and study results confirm that the NBPTS assessment process identifies teachers who systematically produce larger achievement gains.#

For a more complete analysis of the study, see www.teachingquality.org