Summary: The National Writing Project awards badges to educators who have organized, led and/or taken part in leadership development events focused on the teacher as researcher. The guidance criteria for earning the Teacher-Researcher Badge are detailed on this page.
What does it mean to be micro-credentialed as a teacher-researcher at the National Writing Project (NWP)? Teacher research is one of the core social practices of National Writing Project teacher-leaders. This badge acknowledges teachers who exemplify an action-oriented reflective stance in their own research on teaching and learning.
Connection to Core Principles: NWP teachers demonstrate a deep knowledge of teaching developed through study, research, and reflection. Teacher-leaders engage in meaningful inquiry about how different practices affect student learning. This badge recognizes the efforts
of teachers to develop and strengthen their writing instruction through the research cycle.
NWP Micro-credential: Teacher-Researcher
Someone who earns this badge has had a substantial engagement with teacher research. They likely developed a research question, came up with a plan for teaching/research, collected and analyzed data, and reflected on student learning in relation to the research question.
They may have participated in these possible experiences:
- Designing and carrying out teacher research
- Collaborating with one or more teachers in studying student learning.
- Collecting and evaluating data related to student learning.
- Presenting their teacher research to groups of teachers, either at Writing Project
workshops or at their school sites. - Using the results of their teacher inquiry to revise curricula or suggest new directions for
further inquiry. - Serving as a resource for other teachers who are studying their own classroom practice.