Become an Assessor
Assessing for NBPTS is a great professional development opportunity and an invaluable part of the National Board Certification process. As part of the NBPTS scoring staff, assessors participate in rigorous training so that they can score candidate responses to portfolio or assessment center exercises. Scoring is conducted during weeklong scoring sessions that typically occur during the summer months.
Why Become an Assessor?
NBPTS assessors consistently report that assessing for NBPTS is a great professional development experience. In fact, a survey of NBPTS Assessors revealed:
- 80 percent said the work was better than other professional development activity
- 64 percent said they had become more reflective about their own teaching practices
Incentives
- $150/day honorarium paid for each day worked
- A partial fee waiver applicable for future candidacy after serving at least two years as a member of the scoring staff*
- An opportunity for in-depth interaction with colleagues
- Exposure to more examples of teaching than most teachers will typically see during their entire careers
- An opportunity to learn ways to positively transfer enhanced teaching practices to the classroom and to peers
- Increased professional recognition
- Graduate credit
Training
Assessor applicants are trained to look for evidence of a candidate's practice in light of the NBPTS standards. Before scoring live submissions, assessor trainees must successfully demonstrate their ability to evaluate candidate materials. Training enables them to:
- Evaluate responses based on the NBPTS standards
- Use the NBPTS scoring system, the score scale, rubrics, benchmarks and other tools
- Identify biases and preferences including self-examination and awareness of both
Eligibility Requirements
To be eligible to serve as an NBPTS assessor, you must meet the following criteria and experience requirements:
- Bachelor's degree
- Valid teaching license or school counselor license/certificate if required by your state
- Minimum of three years of teaching or school counseling experience in a preK-12 setting
- Not be a current or non-achieving candidate for National Board Certification
Experience Requirements
- NBCTs: You must hold a valid and unexpired certificate as a NBCT in the certificate area in which you are applying to assess.
- New applicants: You must currently be working at least halftime in the certificate area you are applying to assess.
- Returning/experienced assessor: You must currently be working at least halftime in the certificate area you are applying to assess and successfully completed service as an assessor.
- Retired or reassigned teachers: You must have previously successfully served as an assessor within the past three years and be within a three-year window of having worked as a preK-12 classroom teacher in the certificate area you are applying to assess and have at least three years of experience in the certificate area you are applying to assess.