High School: Standards Portfolio
Introduction:
I feel as though my practicum experience at Poudre High School allowed me to understand the complex dynamics of highschools in relationship to public education, evaluate the inequities associated with assessment and grading, and consider my identity as a teacher under the public eye.
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This was my first teaching experience in a highschool and I learned a lot. I learned that students have lots of possibilities through the pathway programs and teachers are not nearly as harsh from what I remember from my teenage years. I also realized that a lot of high school teachers are very content with their jobs and duties to their students. The art program at Poudre is also very complex and allows students to access a variety of practices and mediums.
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Prior to this semester, I had little to no clue as to how to assess students work. Although I had considered the possibility of bias, I had not realized the severity of the situation until I read Grading for Equity. I am very thankful that my practicum instructors forced me to consider grading policies that provide all students with the opportunity to succeed. Assessment in art education looks a lot different from other content areas, but my experience has bettered my rubric writing abilities and illuminated the dymanics of summative vs. formative assessment.
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Through teacher/student pannels, seminars, and peer relationships, I have deeply contemplated what it actually means to be a public school teacher in the United States. I have realized that teaching is more of journey than it is a job with everyday tasks. I know that I will struggle and make mistakes in my first couple of years and I have accepted the important reality of this. If I do not fail, then I will not grow and learn. I'm very thankful for my practicum instructors for facilitating the conversations that helped me come to this realization. I have also realized that I really care about students character development and transferrable skills more than I do my content.
Standard 1: Demonstrates mastery of and pedagogical expertise in content.
Artifact #1: Resumé
Rationale/Reasoning for Artifact #1 I believe that my teaching and work experiences have best prepared me to become a "master" of my content. Although I do not think anyone can ever truly demonstrate mastery, I think that my service as a camp counselor, my practicum experiences, and my studies abroad have given me a full perspective of the arts and the field of education; and all the ways they intersect.
Artifact #2: Lesson Plan #1
Rationale/Reasoning for Artifact #2: I chose to include my first lesson plan for my semester at Poudre in this standard category because it demonstrates my knowledge of digital drawing and technical skills in relation to students' learning and growth. In the lesson, I detail how students might develop proficiency in this drawing program and practice their skills. I am transferring my knowledge of digital drawing to students, in order to prepare them for their future projects.
Standard 2: Establishes a safe, inclusive and respectable learning environment for a diverse population of students.
Artifact #1: Expectations/Managment Syllabus
Rationale/Reasoning for Artifact #1 Within this theoretical syllabus that I created for a Drawing I class, I summarized my expectations/non-negotiables for the class. One of these included, "Engage in brave conversations that challenge your thoughts and ideas but always hold your peer's humanity above all else." I believe that creating a respectable learning environment for all identities cannot happen without holding space for everyone's humanity and well-being.
Artifact #2: Student Work Analysis Protocol
Rationale/Reasoning for Artifact #2: My work on the Data Analysis Protocol establishes an inclusive learning environment because it analyzes assessment while acknowledging my own potential biases as a teacher. The way in which my students perform is can be directly explained by their various needs, learning styles, and accommodations. If I analyze work in this way, then I am attempting to understand how my students work, instead of making harsh assumptions.
Standard 3: Plans and delivers effective instruction and creates an environment that facilitates learning for students
Artifact #1: Lesson Plan #2
Rationale/Reasoning for Artifact #1: I created a lesson that taught students how to identify positive and negative spaces in artwork because I was preparing them to create a pendant that utilized this specific principle of design. The lesson recognizes students' multiple learning styles as well as assesses their ability to recreate designs that utilize positive and negative space. Students were able to effectively recreate positive and negative space in their own designs as a result of this lesson. Students were able to complete this assignment in a multitude of ways which allowed them to participate in an active, dynamic learning environment.
Artifact #2: Interdisiplinary Project
Rationale/Reasoning for Artifact #2: The Interdisciplinary Project embodies effective instruction because this unit plan was developed to probe students thinking and learning about a single topic across their Art, English, and Ag classes. When students are actively making connections across their classes, they realize that most concepts, such as change, are interrelated and therefore integral to their educational experience. For example, if an artist can visually answer questions about agriculture, then this presents a new way of thinking.
Standard 4: Demonstrates professionalism through ethical conduct, reflection and leadership.
Artifact #1: CEP Lesson Observation
Rationale/Reasoning for Artifact #1 Our EDUC450 instructor, Cori Hixon, provided me with this feedback form after I taught the Positive/Negative Space lesson. I feel as though this document demonstrates professionalism through reflection as it is a way for me to reflect on the effectiveness of my lesson. After reviewing this feedback, I learned that I need to test students understanding of the content in more ways than one. I do not think that I would have had this insight without this observation. Therefore, this is one of the ways that I am actively reflecting on my teaching in order to better develop myself as a professional.
Artifact #2: Experience at CAEA
Rationale/Reasoning for Artifact #2: About halfway through this semester, I had the opportunity to present at and participate in the Colorado Art Education Conference in Breckenridge. Afterward, I created a blog post that described my experience, what I learned, and how I might use it in the future. I feel that this demonstrates professionalism and leadership as I presented my own research and findings to other art teachers and learned from them as well.
Conclusion:
As I went through and filled out this Professional Dispositions Evaluation, I realized that I average Proficeent in nearly all of the nine categories. Although I may be developing for some of the dispositions, I feel as though I am am actively striving to better myself in these categories. For example, I feel like I could better develop a reflective practice. Oftentimes, I focus on the completion of a lesson or a unit and feel satisfied by just doing this. But, I need to do a better job of actively reflecting and altering instruction as a result. I feel that I scored myself the strongest for the last three dispositions because I have deeply committed myself to the teaching profession, I don't feel like teachers can be effective instructors without considering social justice and culturally responsive teaching, and I am constantly looking for ways to improve my pedagogy, curriculum, and methods for building relationships with students.