A View from the Hill: Our First Alabama Hill Day

Our First Alabama Hill Day

On April 17, 2013 a delegation of Alabama’s National Board Certified teachers convened in Montgomery to meet with our legislators. The purpose of our visit was to:

1. Lay the foundation for future relationships with our state representatives.
2. Provide a face to the term NBCT.
3. To help our representative understand the impact the NBCT’s make to the learning of Alabama students.
4. To thank our representatives for the stipend and to urge its continuation.

Why We Believe a Hill Day is Important

We strongly believe that students taught by an NBCT receive a better education than those who are not taught by an NBCT.  NBCT’s continually reflect on their teaching practice, we see students as individuals not as classes, and we make adjustments to curriculum to support the learning needs of each individual student.  We positively impact the learning of students.

Numerous studies have shown that students of NBCT’s outperform their peers.  They score higher on state assessments, are more engaged in the learning process, have fewer discipline issues, and lower dropout rates.  The impact of an NBCT is particularly impactful to low income and minority students. 

Given the significance that NBCT’s make to student learning, we wanted to educate our state representatives. 

What We Did

Our delegation met with more than 20 of our state representatives.   Although most had heard the term NBCT, few understood the ramifications of having an NBCT leading the instruction of Alabama’s students.  We were especially interested in meeting with representatives who have few NBCT’s teaching in the representative’s district.  We offered to provide training and support for those seeking certification.

Additionally, we had the opportunity to meet with two of Governor Bentley’s aides Blaine Galliher and Emily Schultz.  This conversation allowed us to share our concern that the governor is not hearing the voice of NBCT’s.  As a direct result of our meeting, we now have a new follower on Twitter, Governor Bentley! 

We ended our day on the Hill speaking with our state superintendent of education Dr. Tommy Bice.  Dr. Bice is a strong supporter of NBCT’s and having an audience with him reaffirmed the importance of building relationships with those in Montgomery. 

What I Learned

To be honest, I was terrified at the idea of meeting with legislators.  I am an educator, not a politician.  I really have no desire to mingle in politics.  What I realized was that the voice of an NBCT is important.  These legislators make decisions that directly impact my classroom.  It is crucial that they know me, hear my voice, and support policies that positively impact my students.  Although this was my first Hill Day, it will not be my last. 

 ~Pamela Harman, Alabama NBCT Network President

We Need YOU!

One mission of the Alabama NBCT Network is to promote best educational and leadership practices among all Alabama educators and preservice teachers. We know that NBCTs have proven that they are leaders within the field of education. Our readership wants to hear from YOU! Do you have a lesson, strategy, or tool that has proven effective in positively impacting student learning? Have you found a way to bring about positive change within your school, district, or organization? We want to feature you on this blog. We know that the best professional learning comes from one another. Share your teaching practice. Please write a 500-1000 word description in a Word document outlining your practice and the impact that it has had on your students, school, community, organization, or district. Then email it to us as an attachment at alnbctnetwork@gmail.com. We cannot wait publish the amazing things happening across Alabama.

photo credit: LizMarie_AK via photopin cc

Alabama Hill Day 2013

Dear Alabama NBCTs:

One mission of the Alabama NBCT Network is to reach out to our state legislature to build a strong foundation of support for all of us for the benefit of all of our students. With that goal in mind, we realize that many of our legislators may not know the impact that an NBCT can have upon student success. Who better to share this message than for us to meet with them face to face? Therefore, we are planning an Alabama Hill Day in Montgomery for Wednesday, April 17, 2013.

On our Hill Day, we will plan appointments with the legislators who make the policies that impact our ability to teach and provide our students with the best educational opportunities in our power. Our goal is let them know that by choosing to support teachers who pursue the National Board process, they are also choosing to provide Alabama students with the best education possible. Many of these legislators are the ones who supported the reinstatement of our National Board stipend. This will be an excellent opportunity to thank them for their support and encourage that support in the future.

If you are interested in joining us in Montgomery on Wednesday, April 17^th, please email us at alnbctnetwork@gmail.com by Friday, April 5, 2013. We need to get an accurate count of participants so that we can schedule appointments and speak to as many legislators that day as time will allow. Once we receive your commitment via email, we will send you more details about the day.

You may be wondering what you can do if you are unable to physically attend Hill Day with us in Montgomery. You can still participate virtually. April 17^th will be the perfect day to contact your local legislators via email, phone call, or social media outlets. This is our opportunity to let them know the importance of supporting National Board Certification and how it positively impacts student learning.

We hope you will join us on April 17, 2013 for Alabama Hill Day either physically in Montgomery or virtually. You can stay informed of all of Alabama NBCT Network’s activities through this blog, our Facebook Group, or our Twitter feed.

Let’s reach out to our legislators together and show them the power that NBCTs have in shaping the future of Alabama.

Alabama NBCT Network

photo credit: TranceMist via photopin cc

The Truth about the Common Core and Alabama Standards

In our effort to continue to keep the Alabama NBCT Network members informed regarding current legislation, we felt that this graphic breaks down the the bill and sheds light on the truth behind the Common Core (College and Career Readiness Standards).

A Call to Action

One of our missions at the Alabama NBCT Network is to keep all of our members informed of developments that impact the quality of teaching that we can provide for our students. Following is a message from Tammy Dunn, who is not only one of our network members, but also serves on the National Boards.

I am writing in hopes that we can mobilize the members of the Alabama NBCT network to contact their legislators about the importance of continuing our work with the Alabama College and Career Ready Standards (CCRS).  I do not know if you are aware, but the standards are under intense attack in the current legislative session.  The legislation is in the state Senate right now, Senate bill 190.  This bill would repeal the CCRS and would prohibit the SDE from developing a longitudinal data tracking system for students.

As NBCT’s, we are know the importance of challenging standards for ALL of our students.  We know the value of helping students to conceptualize understanding and to learn the process skills that will equip them to be life-long learners, no matter what course they take upon exiting schools.  While schools, districts, teachers, and students have struggled to learn how to implement the new CCRS math standards during the 2012 – 13 school year, their presence and implementation have opened up new forms of dialogue around how to raise expectations for our students and our teachers.  It would be such a shame for us to take a backward step.

The senators and representatives are hearing A LOT from opponents of these standards.  Unfortunately, they are not hearing much from supporters.  I think the NBCT voice needs to be LOUDLY heard.  We should be one of the groups advocating for our belief that all ALABAMA STUDENTS can learn and deserve to have rigorous standards and expectations.  We also know that student learning is the root of everything we do.  We need to have data tracking systems that helps schools, districts, teachers, students and parents easily see a student’s progress or lack thereof.

I am asking you to help me to contact the members of the NBCT network to ask them to contact their representatives.  Jabo Waggoner, my senate representative, is a sponsor of this bill.  I have called his office three times this morning and finally left a message.  I have asked for him to call me.  I have been told that a call is superior to an email. 

We need to educate ourselves about this potential legislation and weigh in.  We need the NBCT voice to be heard on behalf of deserving Alabama Students. ~Tammy Dunn 

Greeting from Your President

Hello, my name is Pamela Harman and I am so honored to be representing the NBCT’s of Alabama. 

Background

I have always wanted to become a teacher.  Having grown up in St. Petersburg, Florida in a single-parent home in a low-income neighborhood, I was not sure how I would accomplish my dream.  Although I received a scholarship to attend a local, community college, it did not provide enough funding for me to complete my schooling.  So, in 1986 I joined the United States Marine Corps.  I spend 4+ years in the Marines and gained not only funding for college, but also greater self-confidence and the realization that I can accomplish anything I set my mind to.

I completed my BS in education at the University of Alabama, Birmingham, my MS in geoscience at Mississippi State, and am currently working on my Ed.D  in teacher leadership through Walden University. 

I have been teaching high school science for 15 years and am currently working at Spain Park High School in Hoover.  I was honored to represent Alabama as the 2008 Alabama Teacher of the Year.

Professional Practice

I am the first person in my family to attend college and I strongly believe that all students should be equipped with the skills necessary to successfully attend college, if they choose to do so.  Instilling students with critical thinking skills, opportunities to collaborate, and avenues to gain mastery of the content are major tenets of my teaching philosophy.  I also feel that students are better equipped to learn when the teacher differentiates instruction (DI).  I have lead professional development training in DI locally, statewide, and nationally. I feel so passionately about differentiated instruction that it is the focus of my doctoral studies. 

Vision for Alabama NBCT

I feel the mission of Alabama NBCT is to support all teachers in growing professionally, to provide support for future NBCT’s in improving their professional practice, and to inform school systems, the general public, and legislators of the value of having NBCT’s as teachers.   It is my hope that NBCT’s across Alabama will come along side me to make my vision a reality. 

Pamela Harman, NBCT

See Us "Extending Our Reach"

The 2013 Alabama NBCT Network Conference was a HUGE success. We want to thank all of you who joined us and helped us provide the educators in Alabama with an amazing day of learning, connecting, and networking. We hope you will make plan to join us next year on January 25, 2014, where we will have a member of the first class of NBCTs, Rick Wormeli, internationally known educator, author, and speaker as our keynote.

The slideshow below captures the fun and learning that we all shared.