Teacher Selection and Interview Portfolios


Book Description

The major research questions for this study were: (a) What forms do teacher interview portfolios take? (b) What meaning do school principals make of these portfolios? (c) How, if at all, are teacher portfolios being used by principals in deciding whom to hire?This was a case study using qualitative research procedures. The study was situated in the hiring policies and practices of Central City School District from 1995 to 1999. Semi-structured interviews of 18 k-12 principals and 4 key informants were primary means of data gathering. Document analyses supplemented interview data.Interview portfolios typically consisted of lesson plans; photographs of projects, activities, and teacher-student interactions; and supporting examples of classroom practice. Statements of educational philosophy, credentials, letters of reference, transcripts, and other background information were also included.Most principals viewed portfolios as a way for candidates to express their educational beliefs, illustrate skills and methods, and supplement the interview with examples from applicants' experience. Principals expressed a desire for more evidence of having used the portfolio development process as a means of reflection and introspection.Overall, interview portfolios were not key contributors to principals' hiring decisions. The reasons for this varied. Some principals mentioned time constraints during interviews. Others expressed skepticism that portfolios provided meaningful evidence of candidates' teaching ability and people skills. Propositions and implications for future research center on portfolio format and assessment criteria, authenticity and self-knowledge, selection interview procedures, teacher preparation, teacher recruitment and hiring, and information management in Central City School District. Perhaps one of the most valuable benefits of the portfolio process lies in the development of a new norm for the profession: placing discussion and debate about what constitutes "good teaching" into a public forum.




Developing Portfolios in Education


Book Description

Developing Portfolios in Education, Second Edition, walks teachers through the practical aspects of creating portfolios and demonstrates how they can be used as an action research tool for reflection and professional development. Authors Ruth S. Johnson, J. Sabrina Mims-Cox, and Adelaide Doyle-Nichols include checklists, visuals, organizational strategies, and hands-on tools to help readers through every step of developing a professional portfolio. Key Features Emphasizes the role of standards as they apply to portfolio content and evaluation Includes chapter-opening scenarios that offer real-world examples of portfolio development New to This Edition Presents a chapter that links portfolio development to action research Contains updated material on electronic portfolio development Provides new step-by-step descriptions of the portfolio process written specifically for teachers Accompanying Student Resources on CD provide video clips of portfolio presentations, sample electronic portfolios for elementary and secondary teaching credential candidates, PowerPoint slides, tables, templates, and links to Web sites.




Portfolio-driven Reform


Book Description




The Professor Is In


Book Description

The definitive career guide for grad students, adjuncts, post-docs and anyone else eager to get tenure or turn their Ph.D. into their ideal job Each year tens of thousands of students will, after years of hard work and enormous amounts of money, earn their Ph.D. And each year only a small percentage of them will land a job that justifies and rewards their investment. For every comfortably tenured professor or well-paid former academic, there are countless underpaid and overworked adjuncts, and many more who simply give up in frustration. Those who do make it share an important asset that separates them from the pack: they have a plan. They understand exactly what they need to do to set themselves up for success. They know what really moves the needle in academic job searches, how to avoid the all-too-common mistakes that sink so many of their peers, and how to decide when to point their Ph.D. toward other, non-academic options. Karen Kelsky has made it her mission to help readers join the select few who get the most out of their Ph.D. As a former tenured professor and department head who oversaw numerous academic job searches, she knows from experience exactly what gets an academic applicant a job. And as the creator of the popular and widely respected advice site The Professor is In, she has helped countless Ph.D.’s turn themselves into stronger applicants and land their dream careers. Now, for the first time ever, Karen has poured all her best advice into a single handy guide that addresses the most important issues facing any Ph.D., including: -When, where, and what to publish -Writing a foolproof grant application -Cultivating references and crafting the perfect CV -Acing the job talk and campus interview -Avoiding the adjunct trap -Making the leap to nonacademic work, when the time is right The Professor Is In addresses all of these issues, and many more.




Building E-Portfolios Using PowerPoint


Book Description

A systematic approach toward creating a compelling electronic portfolio New to the Second Edition Expands coverage on planning and managing the development of an e-portfolio Addresses the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) Presents new content on integrating PowerPoint with the Internet, as well as other applications Incorporates "Questions to Guide E-Portfolio Preparation" at the end of each chapter Provides notes on using PowerPoint 2007 Focuses on the future of e-portfolios in a revised chapter Includes a troubleshooting section Also included This up-to-date guide includes a CD featuring several examples of e-portfolios, as well as a useful template. Intended Audience Designed for preservice and inservice teachers, this practical resource is essential for professional educator preparation.




Teacher-created Portfolios


Book Description




Introduction to Teaching


Book Description

An ideal introductory text for aspiring teachers, Introduction to Teaching: Making a Difference in Student Learning is grounded in the realities and complexities found in today’s schools. Acclaimed authors Gene E. Hall, Linda F. Quinn, and Donna M. Gollnick thoroughly prepare students to make a difference as teachers, presenting firsthand stories and evidence-based practices while offering a student-centered approach to learning. The authors focus on how to address one of the biggest challenges facing many of today’s schools—ensuring that all students are learning—and help teachers prioritize student learning as their primary focus. From true-to-life challenges that future teachers will face, such as high-stakes testing, reduced funding, low retention, and Common Core State Standards, to the inspiration and joy they will experience throughout their teaching careers, the Third Edition paints an importantly authentic picture of the real life of a teacher. This title is accompanied by a complete teaching and learning package.




Portfolios Matter


Book Description

Portfolios Matter provides teachers with everything they need to set up a portfolio system and use it to inform instruction and assessment in a balanced learning program. From laying the groundwork to deciding what to put in a portfolio to sharing portfolios through conferencing, this book will help new and experienced teachers on their journey towards creating successful learners. More valuable than a simple report card, portfolios are living documents that provide a useful record students can take with them through their school years. Includes everything teachers need to set up a portfolio system and use it to inform instruction and assessment in a balanced learning program.




The Responsive Writing Teacher, Grades K-5


Book Description

"This book is an instructive call to action for all of us who need to be reminded of what hope enacted as classroom practice can look like." — Cornelius Minor Every classroom is shaped by the skills, languages, social and cultural identities, perspectives, and passions of the children within it. When you approach writing instruction with a deep understanding of children in your classroom, everything else—assessment, planning, differentiated instruction, mentor and shared texts—begins to fall into place. And you can teach writing with inclusion, equity, and agency at the forefront. Authors Melanie Meehan and Kelsey Sorum show you how to adapt curriculum to meet the needs of the whole child. Each chapter offers intentional steps for responsive instruction across four domains: academic, linguistic, cultural, and social-emotional. Features include: Inspiration, classroom examples, and scaffolded tips for creating individualized resources Customizable information-gathering and planning tools, classroom charts, and writing samples Space for making notes and working through ideas Links to online content, including printable templates Just as you adapt instruction to your students, this book adapts to you. The authors designed every guide, tool, and resource to be usable in its original form, or customized as you see fit. This indispensable resource will make responsive instruction actionable—and your students feel valued and heard as they recognize the possibility and power they have as writers.




Portfolios for Professional Development


Book Description

In assessment, the portfolio has gained significant interest as a tool to monitor and appraise competence development in multiple domains of professional learning. In this book, a developmental use of assessment instruments is advocated, stressing a personalised or self-regulative and learning-oriented deployment of the assessment tool. Portfolio assessment viewed this way can support knowledge productivity of professionals, thus enhancing professional development. By this we mean the construction of knowledge through feedback and dialogue about performances as a recursive loop to inform the professional about accomplishment. Portfolio assessment therefore informs and scaffolds the learner to 'develop' further; it, so to speak, is pioneering development. Since the first introduction in several settings, teaching education, professional preparation, instructional program evaluation, student learning in several domains: nursing, teaching, training, and human resource development, portfolios have been studied extensively. It is challenging to gauge the routes along which the reasons for the interest in portfolios have shifted from one problem to the other. following lines during the past 15 years, shifting its perspective as insights grew and demands changed.