The Inland Echo

By Esther Baker

The Professional Educator Standards Board announced today the new teacher assessment for professional certification that will officially launch in January, 2010. Required by the state legislature, the Washington ProTeach Portfolio was developed by a team of Washington educators facilitated by Educational Testing Service (ETS), a world-wide leader in assessment development, delivery, scoring and score reporting.  Through the PESB-awarded contract to administer and operate the assessment, ETS will ensure assessment validity and reliability.

Beginning September 1, 2011, teachers must pass this assessment in order to gain professional certification. The ProTeach Portfolio has a number of advantages for teachers establishing their credentials in Washington State. Registration is open year long, with up to 14 months between registration and submission of the teacher portfolio. Online registration in a user-friendly web format allows candidates to organize their own web site in which they can create their portfolio over time. Scoring is conducted by qualified Washington educators in a secure environment. Verification of teacher eligibility is conducted through existing data maintained by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, making registration simple and transparent.

For the ProTeach Portfolio, candidates will be required to submit three entries that include evidence of student work and teacher classroom instruction that must meet the Washington Professional Certificate standards and criteria. These entries address Curriculum, Instruction, Assessment, Professional Growth and Contributions, and Building a Learning Community. Candidates will be required to meet a single passing score and will be able to  to retake any entries on which they do not meet the standard.

“The innovative resources of ETS are making the Washington ProTeach Portfolio a state-of-the-art portfolio assessment.  The use of Washington educators in the electronic scoring closes the loop for continuous improvement to the licensure system, as well as providing an excellent professional growth opportunity to experienced teachers,” says Esther Baker, Program Director, Teacher Assessments for the Professional Educator Standards Board.

“ProTeach takes our state to a new level, and honors teachers’ professionalism by establishing a means for teachers to build a portfolio of evidence of student learning as a result of their best practice” said Stephen Rushing, Chair of the Professional Educator Standards Board. “This represents the culmination of years of work and insight by lawmakers, board members, and educators from across the state.”

The Professional Educator Standards Board was established by the Legislature in 2000 and is responsible for setting and upholding high standards for the profession, ensuring that students encounter high-quality educators throughout their school experience. This deliberative body fulfills the state’s intent for the profession to be self-governing, with a composition primarily of practicing educators and administrators joined by representatives from educator preparation programs, parents and citizens.

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