Learning Portfolio Preparation Guide

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Introduction

 

A licensure portfolio is meant to enable the faculty and staff of the Augsburg College Education Department to assess a candidate’s readiness for:

 

admission to student teaching and

K-12 teaching licensure.

 

Decision-makers within the education department use this information to determine the candidate’s attainment of the standards described in the Minnesota Standards of Effective Practice (MSEP, as stated in Minnesota Statues 8710.2000; http://www.revisor.leg.state.mn.us/arule/8710/2000.html)

 

An effective licensure portfolio demonstrates the candidate’s attainment of the MSEP. A well-documented licensure portfolio does not guarantee a successful administrative decision, but rather helps the candidate demonstrate his or her best case with respect to the state-mandated criteria.

 

All of the items listed below were taught and documented in the Augsburg  licensure course sequence. (See individual course syllabi for further information.)For this course, your portfolio is an edited collection of these artifacts, carefully selected to reflect the summative accumulation of knowledge, skills, and attitudes in order to demonstrate you are ready to student teach.

 

A licensure portfolio fulfills a specific purpose--documenting one’s attainment of the MSEP. After licensure, a successful licensure portfolio may form the core of an ongoing teaching portfolio. The teaching portfolio is a less formal document that is meant to encourage reflection and which may consequently lead to more effective teaching. The teaching portfolio is usually not intended as a document to be used by formal decision-making bodies.

 

The starting point for the contents of a licensure portfolio should be the MSEP. A thorough review of the MSEP and advising information from authorized representatives of the Education Department are crucial resources for the portfolio developer. It is important for candidates to recognize all relevant factors making up a given decision at a particular point in time and tailor their comments to these goals. In other words, the portfolio must address a particular audience, and reflect an appreciation for the purposes of that audience.

 

The categories and definitions of this list have been developed from the perspective of decisions regarding admission, student teaching, and licensure. As such, the portfolio is a summative, rather than a formative evaluation tool.

 

The principal categories defined below are seen as essential elements of a licensure portfolio. Within each primary category some suggestions are made with respect to content and quality. Not all sub-elements are seen as required—rather, many reflect components that are thought to contribute to a strong, effective portfolio. Also, many sub-elements contain illustrations of interesting innovations and variations for reflecting on one’s contribution to one’s field.

 

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 CONTENT GUIDE FOR THE LICENSURE PORTFOLIO

 

 

I. TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

Identification of the organizational structure of the portfolio in order to facilitate reading of the document.

 

 

II.  PREFACE

 

A statement of one’s individual purpose or rationale for the focus of this portfolio should be included, since the focus of a licensure portfolio will change depending on the nature of the decision being made. It is important to reflect on one’s goals and make these criteria apparent to the evaluators.

 

 

III.  EDUCATIONAL/PROFESSIONAL PHILOSOPHY

 

A reflective statement of the candidate’s perspective on teaching, scholarship, and professional development. This may include statements on such things as the purpose of K-12 schools or education in general, teaching philosophy of the candidate (e.g., Constructionist, Paideia-oriented, Freirian, experiential, etc.), activities which demonstrate the attainment of the MSEP, perspectives on scholarly activities, and/or progress on one’s other professional goals.

 

 

This may also include evidence of keeping current regarding pedagogical methods, ongoing scholarly activities, reflection on and working to develop teaching competence, attending professional meetings, and holding membership in professional societies.

 

 

IV. AREAS OF FOCUS FOR THE LICENSURE PORTFOLIO

 

The candidate should include all areas listed below in at least one way. Each candidate’s portfolio may (and most likely will) vary as each person focuses on his or her unique skills and accomplishments. It is very important to orient the portfolio’s focus around those criteria furnished by the State of Minnesota and any other criteria the Education Department has designated as critical for the decision the department will make regarding the candidate.

 

A. What we do--Concepts and Strategies of Teaching

 

*       How to assess and evaluate student ability and performance (MN Standard 8: Assessment)

*       How to plan instruction to meet student needs (MN Standard 7: Planning Instruction)

*       How to implement instruction to promote student learning (MN Standard 4: Instructional Strategies)

*       How to manage children and classroom life effectively (MN Standard 5: Learning Environment)

*       How to help students develop emotionally and socially (MN Standard 2: Student Learning; MN Standard 5: Learning Environment)

 

 

B. Who we teach--Knowledge of Children and Youth

 

*       How students develop and learn (MN Standard 2: Student Learning)

*       Current issues affecting children and youth (MN Standard 9: Reflection and Professional Development; MN Standard 10: Collaboration, Ethics, and Relationships)

*       Similarities/differences across communities, cultures, learning styles, abilities, special needs, and lifestyles (MN Standard 3: Diverse Learners)

 

C. Where we work--Contexts of Schools

 

*       Foundational knowledge of schools and education in the US (MN Standard 9: Reflection and Professional Development)

*       Leadership skills (MN Standard 9: Reflection and Professional Development; MN Standard 10: Collaboration, Ethics, and Relationships)

*       Collaboration and teaming skills (MN Standard 10: Collaboration, Ethics, and Relationships)

 

D. Who we are as individuals and teachers--Personal Stance and Knowledge-base

 

*       What I know; how I learn (MN Standard 1: Subject Matter)

*       How I think: critically, creatively, ethically, reflectively (MN Standard 1: Subject Matter; MN Standard 9: Reflection and Professional Development)

*       What I believe about education and people: personal philosophy (MN Standard 9: Reflection and Professional Development)

*       What I can do to develop as a professional (MN Standard 9: Reflection and Professional Development)

*       How I communicate and understand the communication of others (MN Standard 6: Communication; MN Standard 10: Collaboration, Ethics, and Relationships)

 

 

 

 

V. REVIEWS AND EVALUATIONS

 

The review of these area in the portfolio should involve a reflection on the effectiveness of individual activities as well as considerations for future practice. It is strongly recommended that these reviews be provided by: the candidate him- or herself, by colleagues, by supervisors, and by the K-12 students with whom the candidate has worked.

 

 

A.  Self-Assessment

 

Chronicle development as a teacher and scholar, highlight very best practice, and record success and challenges from your perspective. This section involves the candidate’s personal reflections and should not include input from colleagues or students. If the candidate has developed plan for professional activities, it may be reviewed here.

 

1. Assessment of Professional Performance  Reflect on a whole range of professional activities, including: delivery skills/expertise in the classroom, other communication skills, degree of student learning, experimental teaching methodologies, contributions to the community, etc. Identify positive experiences (what worked with respect to teaching and scholarly activity), negative experiences (what did not work), and general observations. This may (and most likely should) include ongoing reflection and discussion of issues raised at previous evaluation opportunities.

 

2. Goals for Student Teaching  Identify and reflect on areas in which you intend to work during your student teaching experience(s). In what areas are you needing special attention? Review some of the areas you identified in item 1 for this section (Assessment of Professional Performance) to see if these areas are among the domains in which you think you could make some progress during student teaching. Again, make sure to identify positive experiences, negative experiences, and general observations.

 

3. Ideas for Improving Performance

 

 

B.  Supervisory Input

 

Comments by college faculty and K-12 teachers (including those mandated by other decision-making process such as service-learning evaluations/letters of recommendation and other chosen by the portfolio developer) on the areas defined by the MSEP should be included in this section. Some distinction should be made between those reviews the faculty member has initiated, and those that are required by the review process.

 

1. Possible documentation to be included: S-L/fieldwork evaluations., letters of recommendation, student teaching evaluation forms (at the end of student teaching), etc.

 

2. Reflection  Identify positive experiences (what worked with respect to teaching and scholarly activity), negative experiences (what did not work), and general observations. This may (and most likely should) include ongoing reflection and discussion of issues raised at previous evaluation opportunities. The candidate should reflect on the ideas raised by his or her colleagues.

 

3. Ideas for Improving Professional Performance

 

 

 

 

 

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