Portfolio Development: A Process for Reflective Practice

Dr. Lenore J. Cohen &

Dr. Teresa T. Field

Johns Hopkins University

Session Objective

To assist participants in portfolio development that demonstrates reflection and the impact on student achievement.

Beginning the process:

Get in groups. Take an item out of your pocket or purse that is

meaningful to you. Place it on the table. Now, choose an item that is not yours. Share with the group what meaning you believe that

item has for the person who selected it. Finally, the original owner shares the real story behind

their selection.What’s the difference between the first round of explanations

and the second?

THE PORTFOLIO PROCESS

GOAL: Identify an item that represents something meaningful about yourself

Take out COLLECTION of things in your purse REFLECTION in what to choose SELECTION of the artifact REFLECTION in developing rationale

Portfolios provide:

Multiple sources of evidence More than a snapshot--shows growth over time Gathered in authentic settings Provides links between “doing” and

understanding why it is done Requires decision-making Can be used to set future goals and track

progress

Reflection in Action

Reflection is: Written statements that provide insight about

professional growth Clearly articulated, meaningful statements that provide

evidence of teacher as critical thinker, problem-solver, and lifelong learner.

Reflection in action shows : your identification of the problem and reflection on the implications/ a plan of attack/implementation/reflection on the plan’s effectiveness

Personal Philosophy:The Context for Portfolio Development

Your portfolio is grounded in your educational beliefs and values—your Educational Philosophy.

Consider your best lessons. Are there common elements, are the “non-negotiables” in your lessons—elements you believe must be there for student learning to take place?

These represent your values and beliefs.

Educational PhilosophyI believe that the role of the teacher is to be a reflective practitioner. I believe that the teacher should continually seek out professional development situations where they not only enhance or refresh their experiences, but they also expand their knowledge base. An important part of reflective practice is furthering relationships with fellow teachers by sharing and participating in these situations together.Generating and creating new and effective teaching ideas is at the core of being a reflective practitioner.

I believe it is the role of the teacher to make the learning of their students relevant and meaningful. The more meaningful learning is for students, the more likely those students will better understand that knowledge and/or personalize their learning. I believe this because whenever I connect the student’s prior knowledge about a topic with new knowledge he/she tends to be more motivated to learn, attend to instruction with greater enthusiasm, and are more willing to ask critical thinking questions about the topic. When students “own” their work they often make extra efforts to extend their new learning, either on their own or with the assistance and guidance of their teacher. Although not all students will be motivated enough to extend their new knowledge on their own, it is the role of the teacher to encourage and foster their curiosity when it is piqued.

Experiencing the Process

Read INTASC Principle #8

The teacher understands and uses formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate and insure the continuous intellectual social, and physical development of the learner.

Develop personal interpretation

Think of 1 piece of evidence a teacher could collect that would demonstrate mastery/understanding of this standard.

INTASC PRINCPLE 8

The teacher understands and uses formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate and insure the continuous intellectual social, and physical development of the learner.

Assessment is a tool that I use throughout the learning process: from pre-assessment to gauge the students’ level of prior knowledge at the beginning of the unit, to informal daily assessments to determine whether students are meeting lesson objectives, to formal assessments to ascertain whether students are capable of demonstrating and applying what they’ve learned. I employ frequent assessments to understand my students and to tailor instruction to their intellectual, social, and personal needs. In addition, I encourage students to assess their own learning needs and accomplishments as one step towards instilling a sense of responsibility for their own learning.

Artifact 8.1: Picture Poems 4th Grade Language Arts

Rationale: I displayed the colorful, action-packed picture of “Thanksgiving” by Doris Lee to serve as a quick model and inspiration for just the prewriting step of composing a “picture poem” (A). However, when I assessed how the students captured the sights, sounds, smells, tastes and feelings to describe the picture in their journals, I realized the class needed more direction before attempting to write their own picture poem (B). The next day, I returned to the “Thanksgiving” picture again and asked the students to write one descriptive phrase for the picture using two randomly assigned words from a class brainstorming session. We collected these phrases on chart paper and were delighted with the vivid picture we were able to paint with words (C). When I shared a revised version of the poem with the class the next day the students were excited with the results and took away a valuable lesson on the role of revision (D). I too, took away my own valuable lesson on the role of informal assessment and the importance of modifying my instruction based on assessment. I felt confident that most of the class was ready to apply this process to their own picture poems, but I continued to assess student progress and provide individual guidance where necessary (E,F).

INTASC PRINCPLE 8

Artifact 8.2: Geometry Assessment

I began our geometry unit with a quick tour of the use of shapes in art to confirm the class’ familiarity with basic polygons. After spending time exploring and comparing different quadrilateral shapes, I designed a worksheet to assess my students’ understanding before moving on to other geometry concepts. (A). The assessment confirmed that the students had attained the objective of “identifying and naming” the shapes at an appropriate level. It also confirmed that most of the students had begun moving to the next developmental level of understanding involving the recognition of geometric properties, although this skill had not yet been fully developed. We continued exploring the remaining unit objectives involving the concepts of congruent and similar figures and lines of symmetry. At the conclusion of the unit, I designed a performance-based assessment which involved the students applying and writing about all the concepts in the unit (B). Because I modeled the activity and provided clear criteria (C), the students were able to demonstrate their understanding—and have a little creative fun, too (D,E)!

Portfolio based upon STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT… (BCPSS)

DSA Portfolio (Demonstrated Student Achievement)

– Instructional Goals– Student Sample Group– Evidence of Achievement– Strategies for Improving Attendance– Parent/Teacher Interactions

Suggestions:

Identify INSTRUCTIONAL GOALS Identify a TEACHER GOAL to match each

student goal--How will you work to achieve your student goals?

Applying the Process to BCPSS Portfolios

NOW! Think about your classroom. Identify an instructional goal that you are in the process of

addressing and brainstorm ways you could meet that goal. (Teacher Goal)

LATER! Reflect upon (and collect the evidence of) the lessons that

demonstrate growth toward that goal. Select 2 artifacts that are evidence that you demonstrate

competence in meeting this goal. For one of the artifacts, write a rationale for the artifact—a

reflective statement about why this artifact illustrates student achievement.

More ideas...

When you include student work, include the rubric for each assignment, then add a personal reflection/narrative about how this student met/didn’t meet the standards and why. What will you do next time/before the next assessment to move this child forward?