Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / Supporters of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), founded in 1987, hoped that its certification process would create a cadre of publicly recognized master teachers who would take on professional roles that have traditionally been the responsibility of administrators rather than teachers. Such a change would allow teaching to become a true profession, regulated collegially instead of bureaucratically. A national survey of national board certified teachers (NBCTs) administered in 2001 found little evidence that they were in fact taking on new professional roles. This study examines fifteen schools with large numbers of NBCTs in three North Carolina school districts to determine if NBCTs in these exceptional places are gaining new professional roles, and what factors are enabling or preventing that change. Telephone interviews were conducted with state level officials in North Carolina, district level officials in each of the school districts, and one NBCT, the principal, and one non-NBCT at each school. Interviews were transcribed and coded for analysis. The results indicate that NBCTs in these schools are not taking on significant new professional roles as a result of their certification, and suggest two reasons for this lack of change. One is structural: the NBPTS, the state of North Carolina, and the three school districts studied appear to have narrowed the focus of national board certification so that it is concerned primarily with identifying and rewarding excellence in classroom teaching. This study found few explicit attempts to use NBCTs in professional leadership roles or to provide them with opportunities for professional leadership in addition to classroom teaching. Another concerns the perceived validity of the certification process: board certification is not broadly accepted among study respondents as a consistent and accurate designation of teaching excellence. The results of this study also raise questions about the persistence of egalitarian norms among teachers in schools with significant numbers of NBCTs. / 2031-01-01

A United States organization, called the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), was initiated to strengthen the pedagogy of teaching and, subsequently, improve student achievement. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of the NBPTS in terms of whether National Board Certified (NBC) teachers are effective in promoting positive classroom environments and student attitudes and in enhancing student achievement. The sample consisted of 927 Grade 8 and 10 science students from 12 secondary schools. Altogether, 443 students in 21 classes comprised the NBC teacher group and 484 students in 17 classes comprised the non-NBC teacher group. Students completed a learning environment questionnaire, the What Is Happening In this Class? (WIHIC), and an attitude scale based on the Test Of Science-Related Attitude (TOSRA). Scores from the science portion of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test FCAT, a state-mandated examination, were collected to measure achievement. This research is unique in that it is the first time that a learning environments study has included a sample of National Board Certified (NBC) and non-NBC teachers in order to compare their effectiveness in terms of secondary students' perceptions of their science learning environment, attitudes toward science, and science achievement. The study revealed that the revised version of the WIHIC and the modified attitude scale are valid and reliable instruments for assessing perceptions of the classroom environment and attitudes toward science among secondary science students in Miami-Dade County, Florida. / In addition, a much stronger association with learning environment was found for students' attitude than for students' achievement. The contributions and significance of this study are not only that it adds to the area of research that pertains to the efficacy of NBC teachers, but it also adds to the field of learning environments research. This study is useful because it could be replicated to provide additional empirical evidence about the effect National Board teachers have on students in the classroom and add to the growth of educational data on the impact of National Teacher Certification and classroom learning environments research.

Throughout the 1980's, the notion of standards came to the forefront throughout the education world. Groups questioned how to define quality teaching. The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards was developed to meet this need providing a voluntary national certification to identify accomplished teachers. Since its inception, researchers have explored NBPTS. Yet, few studies sought the perspective of critical stakeholders, building principals, in evaluating the effectiveness of the NBPTS process. This study seeks to gain the perspective of those key administrators by comparing their perceptions of the National Board Certified Teachers and non-National Board Certified Teachers on their instructional staff. <br>A portion of this study replicates a study originally conducted by Dr. Robert Alvin Griffin of Auburn University. The current researcher added components exploring the leadership roles of NBCTs and the influence of school location. This study is important in Pennsylvania due to the focus on teacher effectiveness and the link between principal leadership and student achievement. <br>The study revealed a significant difference between principal perceptions of NBCTs and non-NBCTs when considering characteristics connected to the Five Core Propositions of NBPTS: Commitment to Student Learning, Knowledge of Subject Matter and How to Teach It, Management and Assessment of Student Learning, Systematic Thought about Practice, and Membership in Learning Communities. These findings are similar to those in Griffin's study. In terms of leadership, mixed reviews were noted. The majority of respondents indicated that there is no difference in leadership between NBCTs and non-NBCTs on their staff. There were no significant differences noted based upon school location of rural, urban, and suburban. <br>Findings suggest the National Board Certification process is effective and NBCTs are perceived to be more effective than their non-NBCT counterparts in all of the areas assessed on the core survey. However, the leadership piece remains unclear. Most principals perceived NBCTs as engaging in a variety of leadership activities but in generally the same ways and roles as non-NBCTs. There is work to be done by both principals and NBCTs to cultivate the leadership potential of NBCTs and increase the collective expertise of NBCTs in schools. / School of Education / Instructional Leadership Excellence (ILEAD) / EdD / Dissertation

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1994. / Vita. Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 219-241). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2002. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-125). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2002. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-125). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 2002. / Title from title page screen, viewed March 2, 2006. Dissertation Committee: R. Kay Moss (chair), Barbara Nourie, Kathleen Crawford, Michelle Mueller, Barbara Heyl. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 192-199) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on October 10, 2007) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

M.Cur. / Caring is a natural capacity. This simply means that human beings care because they are human. It is a reciprocal process. It never takes place in a vacuum as the one caring must do it out of love, and respect for another human being and it must be done with the utmost gentleness, tolerance and consideration. In the nursing profession it is done to people who are in most instances vulnerable and in need of care. This therefore, dictates that the one caring must have appropriate values and act them out consistently. In the case of nurses, a set of appropriate professional values is needed to serve as a framework from which they can base their decisions and actions. These professional values must be such that they should facilitate caring in the product of the nursing education system. Scholars are in support of one another that as much as caring is a natural phenomenon, this must be taught and nurtured. Much has been said about the decaying moral fibre of the South African society. The nursing profession also does not escape this scourge. The Department Education recommended that a working group be formed to look at and work on 'values education to teach new values to the generation to come'. The ANC through its Ethical Transformation called for a moral renewal of the society. The nursing education system called for a caring campaign. The aim of this study was to describe guidelines to facilitate internalisation of professional values in student nurses to make them caring professionals. To realise this goal, the researcher undertook a quantitative and qualitative, descriptive, exploratory and contextual approach. The design was conducted in four (4) phases. Data was collected from the nurse educators through focus group interviews and from the student nurses by means of naive sketches. In phase 1 of the design, the groups were separately asked to describe their perceptions about which professional values they regarded as important for nursing. They were further more asked to describe how these professional values should be taught to student nurses in order to make them caring practitioners. Conceptualisation was undertaken in phase 2. Phase 3 focussed on document analysis to evaluate if the identified professional values and teaching strategies were reflected in the college curriculum. Guidelines were described in the last phase. These was to be used by the nurse educators and student nurses to facilitate caring in the practitioners of nursing The results of the study indicated that the groups identified appropriate professional values as well as teaching strategies to be used to facilitate caring. The documents that have been evaluated indicated and supported this. Some of the professional values as well as teaching strategies were indeed reflected in the college curriculum. The only problem that was noted was that the evaluation done in the college did not seem to support if these professional values are taught, or if the teaching strategies were indeed used. The tests and examination papers evaluated seem not support this. It also became clear that nurse educators needed to be moral agents or become role models to their students in this regard. From the guidelines it was highlighted that the values identified must form part of the college curriculum and be displayed on the college walls to be seen by all. The following guidelines were spelled out. Educators must periodically receive in service training on those teaching strategies that facilitate caring. It came out clearly that the quality assurance team must place values education high on their list of priorities. A concerted effort must be engaged in by all the stakeholders to ensure that both the formative and summative evaluations conducted in the nursing college reflect inclusion of identified professional values. Emphasis must be placed on the affective domain as it has been noted that teaching and evaluation in this domain are difficult to implement. The recommendations that emanated from the study are based on the findings that although values and teaching strategies were reflected in the college curriculum they did not seem to be appropriately taught and evaluated. It was, therefore, recommended that the guidelines described in the study be implemented. The researcher further recommended that the caring attitudes of nurse educators be explored, as they are the primary socialising agents.

No description available.