What Works!: Successful Writing Strategies for National Board Certification

by Bobbie Faulkner

Overview

WHAT WORKS! offers dozens of writing strategies to clearly and convincingly explain your teaching practice to the National Board Assessors. Writing for the National Board is a type of technical writing teachers rarely use elsewhere and this book lifts the mysterious fog surrounding how to provide evidence of the National Board Standards.

WHAT WORKS! provides organized information designed to propel candidates to successful certification. It’s a roadmap for National Board candidates presenting tips and information in a straightforward, conversational style.

WHAT WORKS! special features include:

• “WHAT WORKS!” and “HERE’S WHY! sections
• Sentence Starters for Descriptive, Analytical, and Reflective Writing
• Examples from Multiple Certificate Areas
• Candidate Vignettes based on Real Candidates
• Multiple Appendix Templates for All Certificates and Entries
• Sample Passages illustrating “Evidence” or “Lack of Evidence”
• Writing for the Assessment Center Tips

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781475807110
Publisher:	R&L Education
Publication date:	04/09/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	100
File size:	802 KB

About the Author

Bobbie Faulkner spent 38 years teaching grades K-6, is a Middle Childhood Generalist who certified in 1999, and renewed her NB Certificate in 2008. She has been a Candidate Support Provider for National Board Candidates for more than a decade and has mentored hundreds of candidates in person and through on-line websites.

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
Introduction

1. What Is National Board Certification?
2. Building Your Foundation
3. The NBPS Website, Getting Started and Getting Support
4. The Reflective Teacher
5. Writing for the National Board
6. Probing the Prompts
7. Writing About Student Work: Entry 1
8. Writing the Video Entries: Entries 2 and 3
9. Writing About Documented Accomplishments: Entry 4
10. Getting Feedback, Filling Out Forms, and Preparing for E-Submission
11. Writing at the Assessment Center
12. Candidate Care
13. Top Ten Confusing Topics and FAQs

Appendix
Figure 2.1 SSTARS Lesson Plan Template
Figure 3.1 Suggested Time Line
Table 8.1 Finding the Level 4 Rubric in a Video
Figure 8.2 Analysis of a Video by Minutes
Figure 9.1 Entry 4 Accomplishments Brainstorming List
Figure 9.2 Communication Log
Figure 9.3 Entry 4 Accomplishments: Combining Activities
Figure 9.4 Entry 4 Documentation Letter Template
Figure 9.5 Candy Corn Analogy
Figure 9.6 Entry 4 Significance of an Accomplishment
Figure 10.1 Ten Editing Tips
Figure 11.1 Assessment Center Sample Exercise “Nutshells”
Table 11.2 Assessment Center Sample Exercise “Nutshell” Blank Template

Editorial Reviews

The fabricated Descriptive Passages Examples give a sense of what this style of writing might look and sound like in a real entry. The Key Points provide succinct, concise reminders to keep in mind when writing. The Sentence Starters will be a lifeline when a candidate experiences writer's block and will keep the momentum going. My favorite feature of the book is the Evidence or Lack of Evidence section which really demonstrates the difference between showing and telling so candidates can be certain to show evidence their writing. Thank you for this wonderful resource! It is packed full of valuable, effective information and tips that can support candidates on their journey to National Board Certification!

Tina Leach

Another 'must read' from Bobbie Faulkner! This book has specific examples of how to write for the National Board - using exact prompts from a variety of certificate areas. She makes suggestions about how to approach prompts that clear up what seems to be murky to many candidates. Her lists of questions to ask yourself will guide candidates as they plan and execute lessons for this process — and then write about them descriptively, analytically, and reflectively. I will use this book a lot as I support candidates!

Kelly Mueller

When I began working on National Board Certification, I felt overwhelmed. After reading WHAT WORKS! I was able to see this monumental feat in terms of small, manageable steps. Bobbie Faulkner's writing style is the perfect model of clear, concise, and convincing—with writing tips and advice that is easy to read, understand, and use. She takes the vague language of the process and simplifies it into practical terms do candidates can write clearly, consistently and convincingly. You’ll see yourself in each of the candidate vignettes. She breaks everything down into useable steps to help you stay on track and avoid procrastination. I recommend her new book, Writing for the National Board to anyone attempting National Board Certification.

Valeria Walters

WHAT WORKS! is the perfect companion to your Standards and Portfolio Directions and will help you gain clarity on writing the 'National Board Way.' Not only has Bobbie included a thorough analysis of what each prompt means, she has given insight into 'What Works' when answering the prompt, and 'Why it Works.' She has also included examples from various certificate areas. This is a MUST HAVE guide for any candidate, in any certificate area, pursuing National Board certification.

Constance Alphonse

This book unlocks the intricacies and language of writing for the National Board process in an engaging way! Faulkner provides reflective questions for planning, sentence starters for writing, examples of how to answer prompts from multiple certificate areas and vignettes from candidates. I wish I would have had such clear examples of what the writing looked like when I was going through candidacy!

Julie Gale