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Tips for Success

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

GETTING STARTED

All the information and forms are on the NBPTS website. I suggest doing the following as soon as you decide to pursue certification.

• Create a Google folder with subfolders for each component. This makes it easy to share portfolios with multiple reviewers, get feedback, and revise. Upload all forms and information packets into the correct folders.

• Find out if your school district, state, or professional organization has an NBCT support program. My county offers a yearlong cohort for teachers pursuing NBC led by experienced mentors. I didn’t join but was still matched with a great mentor who read my portfolios and offered feedback. My county also paid for a sub for two days so I could edit my portfolios.

• Pick two to three classes to focus on, record, and provide student work samples. Choose at least two different grades and classes with diverse needs (English learners, advanced academics, students with IEPs) when possible.

• Print the permission slips for students who will be on camera or provide work samples and hand them out with a printed explanation to parents. Translate them if needed.

• Consider which component you’ll start with. I began with C2 (Differentiation) because it seemed easiest. I saved C1, the test, until the end. Completing the other components helped prepare me for the test.

• Join NBCT Facebook groups. The moderators tend to be current or former scorers and assessors.

• Find a cheerleader who will listen when you complain and want to give up. Mine was Rachel Grover, 2023 Virginia School Librarian of the Year, who also certified in 2023.

Organizing

• Read everything carefully! For my first C3 video, I taught a creative, engaging lesson on communication. But I couldn’t use it, since it didn’t show students engaging in “meaningful research.”

• Use a naming convention to easily identify documents.

• Before submitting, triple-check that you have everything. NBPTS won’t tell you if you missed something.

Writing

• NBCT writing is utilitarian. Get used to its style and vocabulary. Examine each word and character. If it isn’t doing the job of explaining/proving a point, out it goes. Space is at a premium.

• Create a Google Doc for each written commentary with a template for your response. Put headings in bold with the suggested number of pages in parentheses. Copy and paste the questions into the Doc. Delete the questions and page number parentheses during revision.

• Don’t waste space by creating separate paragraphs; begin your commentary on the same line as the bolded heading. Italicize a couple of words at the start of each answer.

• Abbreviate, but don’t assume readers know acronyms. Write out the term the first time, followed by its abbreviation in parentheses.

Editing

Phew! It feels good to have gotten this far. Now, revising and editing is key.

• After an initial review, let the writing sit for at least a few days. Make your commentaries polished and error-free before asking others to review.

• Solicit many readers, including some NBCTs, librarians, and educators. When sharing files, create a copy for each person so they aren’t influenced by others’ comments.

• After a few revisions, use this common strategy from Rachel: Make paper copies of each written commentary and use different color pens to highlight the wording/ideas from each of the following: The questions in the written commentary section; NBCT Library Media Standards; NBCT Five Core Propositions; and AASL Standards. The highlighting shows you how much you have on each; then you can revise so they’re covered equally.

C1: taking The Test

• To prepare, I reread the NBCT Library Media Standards and Five Core Propositions a few times. I answered practice questions, including the essays.

• I knew technology would be one of my weaknesses, so I met with my school’s technology specialists for a tutorial and took notes.

• I practiced timed writing twice leading up to the test.

• During the test, after reading the question, write bullet points of ideas and go back to elaborate. If you run out of time, at least you get credit for the ideas.

C3: making The Videos

• Read the directions again and again. Plan the lessons you record to showcase different things.

• Cut your film to the best 15 minutes or less. Provide context, mentioning aspects of the lesson beyond the video. Scorers want to see/hear you talking with students and students talking with one another.

• Ask someone to film the lesson and tell them exactly what you want to capture. They need to get close enough to hear the students who speak softly.

• Tell participating students what you’re doing and why. Assure them that only a few librarians will see the videos.

• Practice filming the class with other lessons, so students get comfortable with it.

• If a student doesn’t have a signed permission slip, sit them to the side and tell the videographer not to film them.

• At first, I used a handheld iPad, which provided poor sound and video. I got better results with a clip-on webcam attached to my laptop and a rolling cart. I also wore a lapel microphone.

• The lesson doesn’t have to be perfect as long as you recognize this in the written commentary. Describe what happened, the choices you made, how these contributed to student learning, and analyze it all.

• Congratulate yourself. You’ve learned so much, and the gold is within reach!

*National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. (2024, January 18). NBCTs certified in Library Media [Excel Spreadsheet].

Maura Madigan is the author of Learning Centers for School Librarians and Project-Based Learning for Elementary Grades. She is a librarian in Fairfax County, VA. Her most recent story for SLJ was “Building Better Book Fairs.” Follow her on Twitter/X: @mauramadigan7.