As the semester comes to a close, it's a bittersweet time for me. This semester is my last semester and will have completed my Associates in Applied Science in Early Childhood Education. What a sweet, sweet VICTORY! You can read more about my journey on the About tab. This will help explain a little more. It is something that has been long overdue since starting college in the fall of 2006. I have found my passion and couldn't be happier with where I am in my professional career!
As a part of our capstone course in Leadership in Early Childhood, we also were required to assemble our professional portfolio. It was meant to be a reflective process, and that it was! The process of creating this really made you stop and think about all the things you have learned, the skills you have acquired, and then journey that you have went through in the process of obtaining your education! This is a tool that will help others to learn a little more about you as a person, professional, and an educator. The majority of us in our program are very non-traditional students who are home child care providers, center directors/assistant directors, or lead/assistant teachers in child care facilities. The number of years of experience combined is off the chart, and the wealth of knowledge is like nothing else!
I wanted to share my professional portfolio, and the journey we took as we assembled each piece of the portfolio.
The first part was writing a statement of purpose. This is where you state the purpose (oh, hmm...that makes sense!) of the portfolio and what you want to showcase.
Here is my statement of purpose.
As a part of our capstone course in Leadership in Early Childhood, we also were required to assemble our professional portfolio. It was meant to be a reflective process, and that it was! The process of creating this really made you stop and think about all the things you have learned, the skills you have acquired, and then journey that you have went through in the process of obtaining your education! This is a tool that will help others to learn a little more about you as a person, professional, and an educator. The majority of us in our program are very non-traditional students who are home child care providers, center directors/assistant directors, or lead/assistant teachers in child care facilities. The number of years of experience combined is off the chart, and the wealth of knowledge is like nothing else!
I wanted to share my professional portfolio, and the journey we took as we assembled each piece of the portfolio.
The first part was writing a statement of purpose. This is where you state the purpose (oh, hmm...that makes sense!) of the portfolio and what you want to showcase.
Here is my statement of purpose.
The next piece was the professional goals statement. The purpose here was to come of with some professional goals and objectives for your future. Here is what I said.
The next part was probably the hardest part to write, but one of the most reflective. The autobiography. Most people don't like writing about themselves because it involves revisiting events or experiences in their lives that may not have been the best of times. This was definitely a struggle for me, but at the same time helped me to realize how far I've come in my professional life. I have overcome many difficult situations to get to where I am today, and I wouldn't change that for the world! Here is my autobiography.
The next piece was the Teaching Philosophy. This was also a very reflective piece to write. This really makes you think about your ideals, thoughts, and the way you educate young children.
This is what I came up with.
This is what I came up with.
This was the first part of the portfolio. This part will help you understand more about the person, why they chose Early Childhood Education, and little more about what they believe.
The following parts are broken down based on the NAEYC Standards for Early Childhood Professional Preparation Programs. he Initial Standards are used in programs preparing candidates for first-time early childhood licensure and for positions in early learning settings that do not currently require licensure. The Advanced Standards are used in graduate programs preparing candidates for leadership roles in the field as accomplished teachers, administrators, state early childhood specialists, child and family advocates, professional development specialists, teacher educators, and researchers.
So our task was to take each standard and place with that standard an artifact of work that we have done in a class we have taken or in our environment where we work and teach. For each artifact included we were also to write a rationale statement. This statement explains why we picked what we picked, how it matches the standard, and what we gained from the artifact.
The standards are as follows:
Standard 1 - Promoting Child Development and Learning
For this standard I chose to use a research assignment I did over Spina Bifida. For each artifact we chose in each standard we had to write a rationale statement. This statement will tell why I chose the artifact, how it ties to the standard, and what I have learned from the experience.
The following parts are broken down based on the NAEYC Standards for Early Childhood Professional Preparation Programs. he Initial Standards are used in programs preparing candidates for first-time early childhood licensure and for positions in early learning settings that do not currently require licensure. The Advanced Standards are used in graduate programs preparing candidates for leadership roles in the field as accomplished teachers, administrators, state early childhood specialists, child and family advocates, professional development specialists, teacher educators, and researchers.
So our task was to take each standard and place with that standard an artifact of work that we have done in a class we have taken or in our environment where we work and teach. For each artifact included we were also to write a rationale statement. This statement explains why we picked what we picked, how it matches the standard, and what we gained from the artifact.
The standards are as follows:
Standard 1 - Promoting Child Development and Learning
For this standard I chose to use a research assignment I did over Spina Bifida. For each artifact we chose in each standard we had to write a rationale statement. This statement will tell why I chose the artifact, how it ties to the standard, and what I have learned from the experience.
Standard 2 - Building Family and Community Relationships
For this standard I chose to use my classroom welcome packet. Here is the rationale.
For this standard I chose to use my classroom welcome packet. Here is the rationale.
Standard 3 - Observing, Document, and Assessing to Support Young Children and Families
For this standard I chose to use a Developmental Checklist. My rationale will explain.
For this standard I chose to use a Developmental Checklist. My rationale will explain.
Standard 4 - Using Developmentally Appropriate Effective Approaches to Connect with Children and Families. For this standard I chose to highlight a web lesson plan I had created. Here is my rationale.
Standard 5 - Using Content Knowledge to Build Meaningful Curriculum
For this standard I chose to showcase one of the Winter themed learning units I have created. I really enjoyed being able to include this unit in my portfolio. Here is the rationale.
For this standard I chose to showcase one of the Winter themed learning units I have created. I really enjoyed being able to include this unit in my portfolio. Here is the rationale.
Standard 6 - Becoming a Professional
In this standard I didn't include a specific artifact. I showed the basic trainings that I have received as well as showing what organizations I am a member of. I hold memberships in Butler Community College Association for Early Childhood Education (BCCAECE), Kansas Association for the Education of Young Children (KAEYC), and National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
Just a few days ago during our final class, we were able to have some professionals from our area review our portfolios and give us some feedback. It was great to have the opportunity to sit down and have them look over our portfolios. They had some very good feedback that will help when it comes time to use the professional portfolio for a job interview. This is definitely a living, breathing piece of our professional life that should be visited often and updated as needed.
This process was such a great reflection for me of the journey through the associates program. To think of where I was when I started, what I THOUGHT I knew, and then to see where I am now. The accomplishments, gained knowledge, and connections I have made in a short 2 years has been mind blowing!
Thanks for checking out this post! I hope this gives you a new perspective on the Professional Portfolio and the differences we will see in everyone's different portfolios.
In this standard I didn't include a specific artifact. I showed the basic trainings that I have received as well as showing what organizations I am a member of. I hold memberships in Butler Community College Association for Early Childhood Education (BCCAECE), Kansas Association for the Education of Young Children (KAEYC), and National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).
Just a few days ago during our final class, we were able to have some professionals from our area review our portfolios and give us some feedback. It was great to have the opportunity to sit down and have them look over our portfolios. They had some very good feedback that will help when it comes time to use the professional portfolio for a job interview. This is definitely a living, breathing piece of our professional life that should be visited often and updated as needed.
This process was such a great reflection for me of the journey through the associates program. To think of where I was when I started, what I THOUGHT I knew, and then to see where I am now. The accomplishments, gained knowledge, and connections I have made in a short 2 years has been mind blowing!
Thanks for checking out this post! I hope this gives you a new perspective on the Professional Portfolio and the differences we will see in everyone's different portfolios.