NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION: What makes a teacher 'effective'?

First-grade teacher Zakia Sims leads her students in a reading exercise at William Lloyd Garrison Elementary School.

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* I know her, she is one of the two new 2006 National Board Certified Teachers in my school district. She was recognized during the reception that I went to last January 25 at Bell Multicultural School. I saw a copy of this article from USA Today on the reception table at Logan Workforce and Professional Dev't Office, and another copy of this article was distributed to us during our NBC prep class yesterday. This article is really very interesting...

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With a master's degree from nearby Howard University and a highly coveted National Board certificate, Sims, 31, arguably is one of the city's most highly qualified teachers: Only 16 of the city's 5,000 teachers are board-certified. But in a few years, her credentials might not help her keep her job.

When Congress reauthorizes President Bush's No Child Left Behind education law in the next year or two, lawmakers almost certainly will add provisions that allow administrators to tie many teachers' jobs to student achievement.

So what makes ateacher effective? And should teachers' jobs — their careers, really — be pinned on a couple of pages' worth of bubble answer sheets their students fill in each spring?

Source: USA Today