Finishing what was started two years ago….
Self Assessment Document
Masters of Curriculum and Instruction
Tomorrow June 3rd 4:00pm, I’ll be presenting my portfolio for review. It has been nearly two years since the completion of the individual coursework. Indeed, since early August of 2006 I have had the portfolio project looming in the background – unfinished and mostly untouched.
There were a number of reasons for putting off the review, and I could give you a list of preoccupations and altered priorities. The plain truth is I didn’t feel right presenting the portfolio from a position of presumption. I didn’t feel confident walking into a meeting and saying, “This is what I think I will do?” Instead, I decided to focus my energies on implementing the instructional practice and taking teacher leadership positions within the Fairview School District.
The result, after two years, is the labor of intense craftsmanship. I focused on establishing a classroom environment based on choice theory and quality work. I worked with Edline, for the benefit of the students and parents in our district. I even taught other teachers how to use this tool. I created more detailed unit plans based on individual learning styles and culminating in authentic assessments for learning. I incorporated an internet classroom assistant into my classroom routines, and embedded individual lesson plans with technology. Using web-based inventories, students created their own learning profiles and studied their own multiple intelligence capabilities. I created differentiated units with understanding by design.
As a member of the Fairview School District Strategic Plan and Accreditation for Growth committees, I spoke openly about my beliefs and professional convictions. I even had a hand in creating our district Mission Statement: Developing the whole student: Achieving excellence in academics, athletics, and the arts.
Certainly the time since my coursework completion at Gannon University was filled with ‘doing’ things. I feel confident being able to go into the meeting tomorrow and saying, “This is what I accomplished based on the learning in my courses.” I am hopeful the Gannon staff with find my work satisfactory.
2 Comments
Your students are fortunate to have a teacher who is putting what he has learned and studied into practice. Congratulations and I hope all went well at Gannon!
You dedication and thoughtfulness about the classroom and the students’ learning should certainly come through in the portfolio. You should take a great deal of pride in the accomplishments of yourself as a teacher and in your students as well.
Good luck and I hope we cross paths again in future courses.