A Toolkit for School and System Leaders

This toolkit highlights four successful models that have been used to expand Board certification in school districts across the country. It also provides ready-made resources that advocates can use to bring decision-makers and stakeholders on board and engage a team to design and lead the program. Resources include communication tools, visuals, testimonials, detailed case studies, planning tools and general tips based on Board-certified teacher-led initiatives that have shown success.

   
Below are examples and planning tools that you can use to create job-embedded professional learning programs in your district to help teachers advance towards the highest standards of practice. The tools are organized by subheadings in the Toolkit:

Engaging Decision-Makers and Key Stakeholders

Several of the tools provided can help teams organize productive stakeholder meetings, keep track of stakeholder commitments, and share program information. In addition, two examples and a template show the connection and alignment between the Five Core Propositions, state academic standards, the Charlotte-Danielson Framework for Teaching, Learning Forward’s Standards for Professional Learning, and more.

Building a Core Team

These tools highlight the value of using Logic Models to help articulate goals, define outcome measures, and set a plan of action. A Logic Model template and an example from Hillsborough County are provided.

Program Design

To facilitate your program design, a planning timeline and an example from Hillsborough County can help your team working backwards in planning for implementation. Wake County’s documents include a program flyer, an overview PowerPoint, and several classroom teacher resources for analyzing student work and getting to know students as individuals. From the Illinois National Board Resource Center we include documents that help school leaders, teachers and others understand their roles, responsibilities, and commitments in creating National Board Professional Development Schools.

Sustaining Momentum Beyond Year One

To help you sustain your program, we provide tools from Clark County, Nevada and Illinois. These will help NBPD schools think about program improvement and growth over time. Resources are will help programs set Year Two and Three goals, plan professional development, and think about how cohorts of teachers can move to focus on student impact and sustained change in school culture.