Five teachers from the Indian River School District recently earned certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.
The one middle school and four elementary school teachers were among 35 from across the state to earn national certification for 2008-2009. The district now has 35 nationally board certified teachers, fourth most in the State of Delaware.
The newly certified teachers are as follows:
• Cathy Besden-Showell, North Georgetown Elementary
• Amy Denham, Millsboro Middle
• Margaret Lawson, North Georgetown Elementary
• Angela Robbins, North Georgetown Elementary
• Cheryl Watt, East Millsboro Elementary
Besden-Showell was certified in School Counseling/Early Childhood Through Young Adulthood, Denham in English Language Arts/Early Adolescence, Lawson in English as a New Language/Early and Middle Childhood, Robbins in Generalist/Middle Childhood and Watt in Generalist/Early Childhood.
More than 9,600 teachers nationwide achieved National Board Certification in 2008, a national record.
National Board Certification is achieved through a rigorous, performance-based assessment that typically takes one to three years to complete. As an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan and nongovernmental organization, the NBPTS advances the quality of teaching and learning by developing professional standards for accomplished teaching and creating and administering National Board Certification, a voluntary system to certify teachers who meet those standards. It also integrates certified teachers into educational reform efforts.
In Delaware, a total of 430 teachers have earned national certification.
