Legislature(2011 - 2012)CAPITOL 106
04/09/2012 08:00 AM House EDUCATION
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation: Craig School District | |
| Presentation: Nikolaevsk School Model | |
| SB83 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | SB 83 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
SB 83-TEACHER BOARD CERTIFICATION INCENTIVES
8:36:42 AM
CHAIR DICK announced that the final order of business would be
CS FOR SENATE BILL NO. 83 (EDC), "An Act providing for payment
and loan incentives to public school teachers for national board
certification."
8:36:48 AM
SENATOR JOE THOMAS, Alaska State Legislature, introduced CSSB
83(EDC), paraphrasing from a prepared statement [Included in
members' packets], which read as follows [original punctuation
provided]:
Senate Bill 83 is designed to improve teacher quality
in the state of Alaska by providing incentives for
teachers to become nationally certified.
Senate Bill 83 helps them become certified by
providing an interest-free $2,500 loan to cover the
cost of tuition. If a teacher is from a high poverty,
low performing area they get a stipend of $1,000 to
defray additional expenses, such as transportation.
When a teacher becomes nationally certified, they will
receive a $1,000 annual stipend for the duration of
the certification period, which is ten years. If a
teacher is serving a low performing, high poverty
area, they receive an annual stipend of $1,500.
Some school districts already provide an incentive for
teachers who have achieved national certification.
National board certification is a rigorous process.
Many people who have gone through the certification
process have told us that it is as rigorous as a
master's degree.
Better teachers are one of the keys to better
education. While we are discussing how to best fund
our schools, we should also be talking about how we
can make our schools better. Senate Bill 83 will
improve the quality of teaching in our state, and I
urge you to support this bill.
Greater degrees of teacher training are the primary
reasons why other countries have surpassed the US in
better student performance. High expectations for
teachers have a positive impact on students.
SENATOR THOMAS cited Finland, and its focus on teachers as
professionals.
8:39:26 AM
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA, noting that need based bills were often
sponsored by interest groups, asked what group was supporting
this legislation.
SENATOR THOMAS deferred to the upcoming public testimony.
8:40:49 AM
REPRESENTATIVE KAWASAKI expressed his support for the additional
stipend to low performing, high poverty areas, and asked how the
high poverty areas would be identified.
SENATOR THOMAS deferred to Mr. Richmond.
8:41:26 AM
MURRAY RICHMOND, Staff, Senator Joe Thomas, Alaska State
Legislature, clarified that this was the language used in
statute by Department of Education and Early Development to
identify these areas.
REPRESENTATIVE KAWASAKI asked if the national board
certification was handled by a specific group.
MR. RICHMOND replied that, although no group was mentioned by
name, the intent was for the National Board Professional
Teaching Standards Certification. He explained that if the
group were mentioned by name in the proposed legislation, and
subsequently changed their name, then the statute would become
invalid.
8:42:39 AM
REPRESENTATIVE FEIGE questioned whether teachers expected higher
compensation with additional certification.
SENATOR THOMAS replied that higher degrees generally resulted in
a higher salary and that this certification would also offer
that possibility.
MR. RICHMOND added that, although some school districts already
provided incentives for nationally board certified teachers,
most of the rural districts did not offer incentives.
REPRESENTATIVE FEIGE expressed his concern for the state
becoming involved with salary arrangements between districts and
teachers, and asked why a district would not offer this
incentive.
SENATOR THOMAS offered his belief that some school districts
were not aware of the opportunity, and may require prompting to
better understand the importance of the certification and its
overall impact for the students.
8:45:19 AM
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON referred to the fiscal note, which
indicated that participation by 120 teachers was anticipated in
the first year, with an additional 21 teachers in each of the
following years. She opined that large school districts could
afford the incentive, but she questioned whether rural schools
could afford these extra costs.
8:46:35 AM
SENATOR THOMAS noted that there were not any provisions in the
bill to offset the costs to the district, and that it was a
decision for each school district.
MR. RICHMOND clarified that the subsidy was paid by the state,
not by the school district.
REPRESENTATIVE P. WILSON asked about the percent of the loan.
MR. RICHMOND replied that it was a zero percent loan.
8:48:04 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SEATON pointed out that with the proposed bill,
the state paid an incentive to the teachers, instead of asking
the school district for payment. He offered his belief that
this was a creative approach to provide the best qualified
teachers, and he expressed his support.
8:50:00 AM
REPRESENTATIVE KAWASAKI stated his support for the intent of the
proposed bill, but he expressed his concern for the language,
page 1, line 6, that the school district or the department
should provide the payment. He asked who would be liable for
payment if the legislature did not fund the incentive.
SENATOR THOMAS replied that, should the department not have
sufficient funding, subject to appropriation, to make the
payment to the school district, then the school district would
not be held responsible.
8:51:31 AM
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA asked where the certified teachers were
currently employed throughout the state, and if there were
demonstrated advances in these schools.
MR. RICHMOND, directing attention to the handout titled
"America's partner in growing great schools - 2011 Statistics
for Alaska," [Included in members' packets] said that there was
also a report from the NBPTS (National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards) regarding the effect of the certification
for teachers in the schools. He reported that with
certification teachers became better leaders in the school, and
were more effective with the students.
8:53:37 AM
REPRESENTATIVE FEIGE asked for the duration of the term to the
interest free loan.
MR. RICHMOND replied that it was three years.
REPRESENTATIVE FEIGE offered his belief that teachers did not
remain in the rural school districts, as the environment was
"fairly adversarial," and the area was often a stepping stone at
the beginning of a teaching career. He asked what would keep a
teacher from receiving the certification and leaving the rural
school district.
SENATOR THOMAS expressed his agreement that there were issues in
the rural school districts, and that there was not anything that
could force teachers to remain in the rural districts. He
clarified that the teachers still had to repay the loan, and
would only receive the financial benefit while teaching in the
rural district.
MR. RICHMOND reported that the aforementioned study reflected
that the board certified teachers had the same retention rates
as other teachers.
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA offered her belief that professionals
stayed in a community when they were well received and had the
opportunity to raise a family.
8:58:20 AM
DOUG WALRATH, Director, Northwestern Alaska Career and Technical
Center (NACTEC), described the process in attaining his
certification, and the role it had played in his career. He
attested to the rigor and the relevance of the national board
certification process. He said that the certification was an
opportunity to better oneself, and was not about the financial
reward. He noted that he was unaware of national board
certification until a state initiative brought it to his
attention. He declared that the financial support to complete
the program was also an incentive. He lauded the leadership
training from the cross training in the program. He declared
his support for SB 83.
9:01:27 AM
REPRESENTATIVE FEIGE asked what incentives were offered by the
State of Idaho.
DR. WALRATH said that the biggest incentive was for the payment
of the initial enrollment.
REPRESENTATIVE FEIGE asked for the cost of the certification
process.
DR. WALRATH replied that the program fee was about $2,500, but
that there were other associated costs, such as travel.
9:03:50 AM
MICHELLE ACCARDI, Director of State Policy, National Board for
Professional Teaching Standards, stated her support for SB 83,
paraphrasing from a prepared statement, which read as follows
[original punctuation provided]:
I am a National Board Certified Teacher. I certified
in Exceptional Needs in 2005 while I was teaching in
New Mexico. I am currently serving as the Director of
State Policy for the National Board of Professional
Teaching Standards. Thank you for the opportunity to
testify before you today on Senate Bill 83, sponsored
by Senator Joe Thomas. This bill supports Alaska's
National Board program by providing a no-interest loan
for teachers seeking National Board Certification and
a salary supplement for National Board Certified
Teachers. My comments today will focus on the
efficacy of the National Board Certification process
and why supporting this bill makes sense for Alaska.
For 25 years, the National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards has been at the forefront in
establishing the highest measure of teaching
excellence. It is the highest recognition of
excellence in professional educational practice in the
United States. Yet, National Board Certification is
not simply about rewarding high quality teaching. As
in other professions, such as medicine and law,
National Board Certification assures the public that
the people who educate their children are experts in
their fields and have the skills to help all students
learn.
The National Board Certification process is sound-but
does it work? The answer is an unqualified yes. In the
25 years since the National Board was founded,
National Board Certification has become one of the
most heavily researched areas in the teaching field.
On June 11, 2008, the National Research Council (NRC)
of the National Academies completed an extensive,
multi-year study of National Board Certification. In
the most rigorous and comprehensive study to date, the
highly respected NRC formally affirmed the National
Board's positive impact on student achievement,
teacher retention, and professional development. The
findings from the NRC study:
Showed that students taught by NBCTs make higher gains
on achievement tests than those taught by teachers who
have not applied and those who did not achieve
certification
Substantiated previous research showing that National
Board Certification has a positive impact on teacher
retention and that NBCTs are more likely to stay in
teaching longer than other teachers
Observed that the National Board Certification process
is an effective professional development experience
that positively affects teaching practices
Acknowledged that NBPTS Standards and National Board
Certification have taken the culture of teaching to a
higher level
Several independent studies indicate that students of
NBCTs do better on standardized tests than students of
non-National Board Certified Teachers.
A study by L. Vandervoort of Arizona State University
demonstrated that students of National Board Certified
Teachers also showed learning gains equivalent to
spending an extra month in school.
Other studies, demonstrate that students of NBCTs
exhibit great comprehension of classroom instruction
and better writing abilities and are able to apply
knowledge more successfully than students of non-
NBCTs.
We have evidence that NBCTs create more challenging
curricula, present subject matter in greater depth and
provide better feedback. They are also better able to
adapt their teaching strategies to reach diverse
student learning styles within their classrooms.
The Board Certification process is also a key strategy
for helping save and create jobs for effective
teachers. A recent report found that the nationwide
cost of replacing public school teachers who have
dropped out of the profession is $7.3 billion
annually. However, research has shown that up to 90
percent of Board Certified Teachers stay in the
classroom. The rigorous standards and assessments of
the Board are also being used as a recruitment tool to
evaluate the effectiveness of incoming teachers in
school districts across the country.
As a recognized leader in defining educator
effectiveness, National Board is strengthening its
role as a force in school transformation at the
national, state and local levels. NBPTS is working in
a number of ways to leverage the best practices of
National Board into successful school-wide reform,
including the following examples:
Implementing a $27 million Teacher Incentive Fund
federal grant that NBPTS received in fall 2010 to
reform teacher and principal evaluation and
compensation systems in 23 high-need urban and rural
schools in Richmond, Virginia and Maine. The key to
this school transformation model is its unrelenting
focus on infusing National Board best practices into
all facets of building teacher and principal
excellence - recruitment, development, evaluation,
advancement and compensation.
Collaborating with states and districts to implement
current and future School Improvement Grants and Race
to the Top grants using NBPTS whole school job-
embedded professional development.
Teaming up with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to
help define effective teaching.
Launching an NBPTS Principal Certification program in
2013 to identify effective principals and inform the
development of state and district principal evaluation
systems.
Developing a new NBPTS teacher evaluation framework to
help states and districts improve their educator
development and evaluation systems.
Partnering with a number of business and philanthropic
organizations, including Amgen, GlaxoSmithKline and
Oracle, to specifically focus on enhancing the skills
of math and science teachers.
Let me talk a little bit about the National Board
program in Alaska. There are currently 135 National
Board Certified Teachers in Alaska, with over 40
percent of the state's NBCTs teaching in Anchorage and
about 20 percent teaching in Fairbanks. This number
represents about 1.5 percent of the Alaska K-12
teaching force, compared to three percent of teachers
nationwide. However, Alaska's growth rate last year
was 11.6 percent, compared to the national growth rate
of 6.9 percent. This is reflected in the new total
numbers of NBCTs. In December 2011, fourteen new
Alaska teachers earned National Board Certification,
tying 2004 for the highest number recorded.
There are several reasons that account for this
increase. Especially in a very rural state like
Alaska, it is critical to provide high quality
candidate support. The process is most impactful when
cadres of teachers can pursue the process together.
NEA-Alaska has immolated the very successful Jump
Start program in Washington state that supports
candidates for National Board Certification. Jump
Start is a four-day course designed to familiarize
participants with the National Board to better prepare
them to be successful in the certification process.
NEA-Alaska has invested almost $60,000 in 50 Jump
Start attendees over the past three years.
The State Department of Education and Early
Development recognizes the value of National Board
Certification as one method of attaining an Alaska
Master teaching certificate, and NBCTs are considered
highly-qualified. So, Alaska has the foundation from
which a strong National Board program can grow and
flourish. Senate Bill 83 would put in place the
policy to support that growth and to help sustain it.
National Board Certification is one of the most
powerful tools to grow and sustain educational
excellence in Alaska, but its full potential is far
from realized. NBCTs can serve as a means for
effective change. For all these reasons-effective
teaching, improved learning, teacher retention-I ask
you to support Senate Bill 83.
In closing, I want to underscore the transformative
nature of the National Board Certification process.
When asked what's so special about the National Board
process, an NBCT I know replies that it is the
professional equivalent of becoming a parent. Once
you have a child you look at the world differently. In
a similar fashion, when a teacher experiences the
National Board Certification process, he or she looks
at teaching with new eyes.
9:09:36 AM
REPRESENTATIVE KAWASAKI asked what the failure rate was for the
certification process.
MS. ACCARDI indicated that the one to three year process had
about a 70 percent completion rate, with a slightly lower rate
for the exceptional needs area.
REPRESENTATIVE KAWASAKI asked if there were other national
professional boards that would be competitive with this program.
MS. ACCARDI replied that NBPTS was the only organization
providing this certification.
9:11:34 AM
CHAIR DICK noted that, even as a long time teacher, he was not
aware of this program until it was brought forward by this
proposed legislation.
9:11:59 AM
DEENA PARAMO, Superintendent, Matanuska-Susitna Borough School
District, stated her support for SB 83, paraphrasing from a
prepared statement, which read as follows [original punctuation
provided]:
I am testifying today in support of SB83.
Please know that I strongly believe:
1. The National Board Certification assists teachers
in becoming more effective.
2. The National Board Certification improves student
learning and engagement.
The National Board Certification is a rigorous process
for which teachers engage to improve their
instruction. A main focus of the National Board
Certification process is on teacher reflection---
specifically, reflection on a teacher's own skills and
knowledge in teaching and his/her effectiveness.
In addition to the writing and research necessary for
the certification, throughout the process, teachers
must video tape classroom lessons to submit as entries
to be scored. The National Board then analyzes
various components of the lesson including lesson
goals, evidence of student learning, and evidence of
engagement to assist the teacher in seeing his/her
teaching more objectively. The instructor him or
herself, then learns to analyze his/her lesson with a
critical eye.
Watching students' actions and reactions in various
lessons also helps identify effective teaching
strategies that increase critical thinking and
engagement and those practices that diminish student
achievement. This process of observing, identifying,
and practicing helps continue to improve teaching
approaches in the classroom to influence positive
changes and increase success for students.
Overall, National Board is all about building &
enduring, reflective practices that ultimately improve
instruction and learning. MSBSD sees that SB83 is
about honoring and placing value on effective teaching
practices, not strictly tenure or experience.
MSBSD has 10 teachers (out of 1200) who currently hold
certification through the National Board. MSBSD does
award stipends for National Board Certification as
well. I can attest that the MSBSD teachers who hold
the certification get results in student achievement.
9:14:54 AM
PETE LEWIS, Superintendent, Fairbanks North Star Borough School
District, stated his support for SB 83, and noted that the
previous testimony had covered the key elements of the NBPTS
process. He declared that "having solid staff development and
training does make a difference." He touted the NBPTS process
as rigorous, and led to better instruction and improved student
achievement. He expressed his agreement to recognize this with
a financial stipend and the loan program.
9:16:02 AM
STEVE ATWATER, Superintendent, Kenai Peninsula School District,
stated support for SB 83, paraphrasing from a prepared
statement, which read as follows [original punctuation
provided]:
I am calling in to testify in support of CS SB 83. I
encourage you to pass this bill out of committee.
One of the expectations that I have for all the
employees of the Kenai Peninsula Borough School
District is that they will work to improve their job
performance. On the Kenai we recognize the importance
of professional development and have spent a lot of
time refining our professional development processes.
I am pleased to note that our teachers report that our
work in this area is helping them better meet the
learning needs of our 9,000 students. Representative
Seaton's remarks this morning are evidence of this.
But as you know, much of a teacher's professional
development is pursued independently of the home
school district. And while teachers' PD work away
from the districts is well intentioned, it does not
always lead to the desired increase in student
learning. I believe however, that our teachers who
receive their national board certification
consistently have excellent evaluations and good
student results.
The five core propositions for national board
certification include teachers working as a part of
learning communities. It is well established that
teachers who collaborate with one another are more
effective than those who do not. I mention this
because increasing the level of Teacher collaboration
is one of our district goals. Adding board certified
teachers will thus allow a district to reap benefits
beyond the immediate teacher's classroom, it will lead
to other teachers learning from the board certified
teacher. It is fair then to assume, that the addition
of board certified teachers to a district will help
several other teachers improve their craft.
As you know, there is a lot of conversation about
raising standards as a way to improve education. And
while this is a necessary part of the school
improvement equation, in itself, it is not enough. We
must also improve our teachers' pedagogical skills. I
believe that the rigorous national board certification
process is an excellent way to do this. I know that
it will help our teachers meet our student's learning
needs.
In closing, I am convinced that increasing the number
of board certified teachers in Alaska will lead to a
higher level of achievement for our state's students,
I encourage you to pass this bill.
Finally, I want to end my testimony with a comment
from one of our board certified teachers. The
certification process is what makes a person a better
teacher, not the certificate. Teachers that start the
certification process are good teachers, but the
process helps them analyze and articulate their
teaching. To name a few things: I found myself having
to articulate how I knew a student was engaged during
a classroom lecture, I had to analyze how I assessed
all students, how I accounted for diversity, I had to
show that I was an active member in my profession, I
had to video tape several lessons, analyze them and
speak to the lessons. All this reflection and
analyzing made me look at what it was about my
teaching that made me a good teacher. Many times
teachers work at a level of unconscious competence,
where they do things very well but maybe don't even
have to think about what it is they do. This process
requires a teacher to be conscious of this and reflect
on what it is that they do well and not so well. This
process also made me very aware of areas I am weak in
and had to improve upon. The time required to
complete this process is immense but the benefits are
tremendous.
9:19:22 AM
CHAIR DICK closed public testimony.
9:19:32 AM
REPRESENTATIVE CISSNA stated her support for SB 83.
9:19:48 AM
REPRESENTATIVE FEIGE moved to report CSSB 83(EDC) out of
committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying
fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSSB 83(EDC) was
reported from the House Education Standing Committee.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB0083 EDC Version D.pdf |
HEDC 4/9/2012 8:00:00 AM |
SB 83 |
| SB 83 State_Profile_2011_AK.pdf |
HEDC 4/9/2012 8:00:00 AM |
SB 83 |
| SB 83 support documents-1.pdf |
HEDC 4/9/2012 8:00:00 AM |
SB 83 |
| SB083-EED-TLS-2-11-11-3.pdf |
HEDC 4/9/2012 8:00:00 AM |
SB 83 |
| SB 83 sponsor statement.docx |
HEDC 4/9/2012 8:00:00 AM |
SB 83 |