Reflective Practice: What Exactly Are Teaching Portfolios?
The term “portfolio” varies dramatically depending on one’s career. Specifically for teachers, a portfolio can be a coherent collection of materials that represent one’s teaching philosophy, experiences, achievements and practices. Another outlook can be a teacher’s evidence of knowledge and skills that is used for self-appraisal and teacher-directed learning. Either way one defines a teaching portfolio, the content will vary greatly depending on one’s audience, purpose, context and individual needs. The way a teaching portfolio is collected and presented can also be greatly altered by the individual it is representing. S.M. Evans, author of books on professional portfolios, describes a professional portfolio as being, in a way, like storytelling, stating that “a professional portfolio is an evolving collection of carefully selected or composed professional thoughts, goals and experiences … that represents who you are, what you do, why you do it, where you have been, where you are, where you want and how you plan on getting there.” To provide something that represents a teacher’s philosophy, goals and career accurately and openly can seem daunting at first, but, like a résumé, one would start basic and build up continuously over time, experiences and achievements.
Portfolio Benefits
There are enough benefits that one can gain from a teaching portfolio to fill an entire book. Through the scope of reflective practice, portfolios can provide an organized, comprehensive assessment of one’s own practice. Like a teaching journal, this assessment can provide a clearer focus on specific and/or multiple areas that a teacher can use to grow upon. This source of record-keeping and clarity can help teachers prioritize their future decisions, goals and development.
However, portfolios are not just used for the future but can also be used in one’s current employment. In many institutions, teachers are required to provide various evidence showing class curriculum, participation, assessments and future plans. A teaching portfolio can contain such evidence while highlighting a teacher’s thinking, creativity, resourcefulness and effectiveness. An opportunity to provide such evidence to a supervisor and co-teachers might not be applicable very often or in any other way. Authors J.C. Richard, J. C., and T.S.C. Farrell highlight that a teaching portfolio can also be used to collaborate with another teacher. In this way, two or more teachers produce a joint portfolio to accompany classes they both teach. This approach to a portfolio can be extremely beneficial to those who work with co-teachers, such as native and non-native speakers, which is still the most popular set-up in Korean public school English education.
Being Marketable
More than ever, teaching jobs are becoming more difficult to receive. There are more hoops to jump through and a higher demand for proof of teacher performance. University teaching in Korea provides a great example of this change. A decade ago, English teaching university jobs were easier to come by, and almost anyone with a bachelor’s degree and a couple years of experience at a public school or private language institute could get one. Now, even with a Master’s degree and a few years’ experience, such university positions are harder to come by. The latest Korean policy in higher education is that universities are now looking to hire teachers who already have at least two years of college teaching experience. Extra elements containing proof of teacher performance are also expanding on job listings. Which elements are needed for the job depends on the institution hiring, but common items include teaching philosophy, lesson plans, a syllabus, a class curriculum and/or student assessments. If one looks at ESL job sites, such as Dave’s ESL Café, Waygook.org, esljobs.com and other teaching-abroad programs, for many jobs (public, private university), one can find several job applications requiring such items, all of which are commonly used in teaching portfolios.
Rising Popularity
A teaching portfolio, as a form of teaching reflection and development, is becoming more prevalent amongst teaching communities and academic fields. Over 1,000 colleges and universities are now experimenting with and using portfolios in their undergraduate and graduate programs. Many of these institutions are using portfolios as an alternate graduating achievement to the traditional thesis or are cutting their thesis programs entirely.
Why is This Happening?
An advantage that professors are claiming when training teachers in regards to teaching portfolios is that they provide a competence in a variety of areas related to the teaching field. Compared to writing a thesis, a portfolio provides a more holistic approach to preparing and training. The rising prevalence of technology, increasing globalization and a changing world of teachers carrying multiple roles during one’s professional career demonstrates the importance of a holistic approach towards reflective practice, growth and representation. The teaching field is advancing and changing quickly, and a thesis might be viewed as traditional or secondary in the future when dealing with teacher training. The bottom line to why many are favoring portfolios over theses is that great researching skills do not guarantee great teaching skills.
Tips on Starting Your Portfolio
- Know your purpose
- What is the reason for creating the portfolio? Is it to achieve a specific goal or goals? (working portfolio)
- Is it for a new job or promotion? (showcase portfolio)
- Is it personal? (reflection portfolio)
- Know your audience
- Is the portfolio for you, supervisors students?
- When providing a portfolio for a specific job, do not overload the interviewer/recruiter with a massive portfolio. It can be overwhelming, which can be viewed unfavorably. Instead, look at their requirements and give a little more than expected, but not too much.
- Take baby steps
- Looking at all the possibilities and elements a teaching portfolio can have might make it seem too burdensome. Focus on one element at a time. The first week, work on your teaching philosophy. The next week, focus on a lesson plan example. Your résumé content was not built overnight, was it?
- Explore e-portfolios
- Some are more tech savvy than others, but now there are plenty of website builders that make such a project easier to make, including Weebly, Google Sites, Square-space and uploading and presentations to Google Docs.
__________________________________________________
Gwangju-Jeonnam KOTESOL
Monthly Chapter Meeting
Date & Time: February 14 (Saturday), 1:45 p.m.
Place: Chosun University, Main Building, Left Wing, Room 4211
- Presentation: Creativity and Theatre in Language Education
Caleb Sekeres (Chosun University)
- Roundtable Discussion: A discussion of your questions and issues
Morning (11:00) Reflective Practice Session
Admission: No Charge
For more details:
Facebook: Gwangju-Jeonnam KOTESOL
Website: http://koreatesol.org/gwangju
Email: gwangju@koreatesol.org
Twitter: @GwangjuKOTESOL