A Study Of American Professional Standards, Evaluation,and Certification For Accomplished Science Teachers

Numerous research studies and educational practices prove that teacher quality is a key factor influencing student achievement and educational quality. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB)Act signed into law in USA in2002requires that all teachers of core subjects be highly qualified, that every student has a highly acoomplishing teacher. American policy-makers and the public believe more than before that "the fate of American public education rests with teachers". In recent years US federal government has placed a highest policy priority on "investing in accomplished teachers and exellence in teaching". This dissertation study is intended to examine the professional teaching standards for accomplished science teachers, as developed by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards(NBPTS), the standards-based assessment and certification process and their impacts on teaching practice, student learning at schools, district and state levels, and thereby to draw useful lessons for the development and implementation of professional standards for school teachers in China.The dissertation is structured in six chapters, with the first as introducation to the background, objectives, methodologies of the study and definitions of key terms. Chapter One provides the context of science education and science teaching standards in USA, which emphasizes "Science for All Americans","Building a scientifically Literate Society" and "science education improvement as an integral part of education system reform"; it discribes major dimensions of science teaching standards, which lays an important foundation for NBPTS'professional standards for accomplished science teachers.Chapter Two provides a content analysis of the NBPTS's standards for accomplished science teachers, with interpretation of the five propositions and main standards applied to science teaching. Chapter Three on "Development of NBPTS's standards for science teachers", with description and analysisi on the committee members and process of development.Chapter Four on "Standards-based Assessment and Certification", elaborates on requirements, proceedures and processes of certification of accomplished (science) teachers.Chapter Five on "Impacts of NBPTS'Standards and Certification" provides an evidence-based analysis of the National Board Certification(NBC) impacts on teachers practices, student learning at school, district and state levels.Chapter Six on "Development of Teachers Evaluation and Support System" explores the NBC's successful experiences in linking teacher assessment to student learning to certify accomplished science teaching and provides an overview of NBPTS's efforts in developing teacher assessement and support system, which better reflect student learning and improve teaching practice for professional development of all teachers in improving teacher quality."Conclusions and Recommendations"summarizes NBPTS'basic experiences in developing professional standards for certifying accomplished teachers over the past25years and proposes recommendations to research, teacher standards developers as well as teacher education policy-makers, with useful lessons drawn from American NBPTS's experiences for education community in China at a time when tentative professional standards for kindergarden, primary and secondary school teachers have been issued.