Rationale: Tying It All Together – Reflective Overview of Artifacts
Each of the artifacts I have presented in my portfolio serve to show the journey toward my cognate focus. Every one shows how I incorporated the objectives of each course and synthesized them into final products. In revisiting the collection of my graduate coursework, and specifically those chosen for my portfolio artifacts, I found that there are two prevalent features: first, I operate as researchers on a daily basis through the interactions, discussions, assessments, and observations of my students, and second, my students provide me with data that is worth investigating beyond the surface of the grade alone.
While discussing the alternatives for my cognate project with my professors, what I recognized is that there are trends in society that impact the way we teach, as well as the content that students are drawn to. One of those trends is the prevalent interest of young adult dystopian literature, and another is the growing presence of technology as a meaningful and relational tool both outside and inside the classroom.
The artifacts that I have accumulated for your review present my journey of connecting literature and technology in a way that will allow me to develop a research project, which will investigate authentic reflections and dialog from and between students. This data will be based on my students’ thoughts and ideas during our dystopian literature book clubs, and will utilize blogging as a means for students to freely respond to that literature. My goal is to examine that data for underlying trends that may reveal why students are continually drawn to that genre, if they are making connections to the social/political commentaries that are prevalent in dystopian literature, and evidence of students feeling more or less hopeful during and/or after reading the novels. I am also excited to see if there are other observable trends that I have not yet considered. One of the main objectives in my cognate is allowing the students to become the directors of the inquiry so as to build their own sense of confidence and autonomy as they leave middle school and enter high school.
Each of the artifacts I have presented in my portfolio serve to show the journey toward my cognate focus. Every one shows how I incorporated the objectives of each course and synthesized them into final products. In revisiting the collection of my graduate coursework, and specifically those chosen for my portfolio artifacts, I found that there are two prevalent features: first, I operate as researchers on a daily basis through the interactions, discussions, assessments, and observations of my students, and second, my students provide me with data that is worth investigating beyond the surface of the grade alone.
While discussing the alternatives for my cognate project with my professors, what I recognized is that there are trends in society that impact the way we teach, as well as the content that students are drawn to. One of those trends is the prevalent interest of young adult dystopian literature, and another is the growing presence of technology as a meaningful and relational tool both outside and inside the classroom.
The artifacts that I have accumulated for your review present my journey of connecting literature and technology in a way that will allow me to develop a research project, which will investigate authentic reflections and dialog from and between students. This data will be based on my students’ thoughts and ideas during our dystopian literature book clubs, and will utilize blogging as a means for students to freely respond to that literature. My goal is to examine that data for underlying trends that may reveal why students are continually drawn to that genre, if they are making connections to the social/political commentaries that are prevalent in dystopian literature, and evidence of students feeling more or less hopeful during and/or after reading the novels. I am also excited to see if there are other observable trends that I have not yet considered. One of the main objectives in my cognate is allowing the students to become the directors of the inquiry so as to build their own sense of confidence and autonomy as they leave middle school and enter high school.
Rationale - EDCT 585 "The Beginning"
Choosing this artifact was a no brainer because this is where the idea for my cognate project was born. My essay, "The Dystopian Trend in Young Adult Literature, and Its Ties to Postmodernism" is one that I am quite proud of. I will not lie and say that I was not intimidated by Dr. Marker's class. Never before had I encountered so many philosophers and philosophical ideas, from Socrates and Plato to Adler and Dewey, and from Jane Addams and Maria Montessori to Paulo Friere and Henry Giroux, I will confess that I did not know if I would ever wrap my brain around it all. Admittedly, I felt like a teacher with absolutely no real grasp on the historical background of education; I felt somewhat inadequate. However, as I began to read the abundant articles and write those infamous "one pagers," things started to make more and more sense, and I gained more clarity. As I continued through this journey, picking my way through the mountainous pile of philosophers and philosophies, miraculously, I began to make connections that I had never thought of before; this was what I was looking for when I entered the Graduate Program - an intellectual boost!
As we began to enter the world of Postmodernism, I was once again extremely confused. It took the mapping of a visual "one pager" (which I have also included as an artifact) to grasp this fairly confusing Philosophical idea. At the same time, we were reading some articles and excerpts about and from young adult (YA) literature, including some excerpts from popular dystopian novels being read by my 8th graders. As a teacher of YA literature, I quickly made the connection with the articles, and began to formulate some thoughts behind the ties between postmodernism and dystopian literature. I discussed these connections with Dr. Marker and so began the formulation of my final paper for EDCT 585.
Rationale - EDCT 570: "Learning as a Lifelong Process"
I wrote my essay "Learning As a Lifelong Process: A Reflection on Personal Theory for Meaningful Education" during my first year in the Graduate Program. Even though I was a veteran teacher, this paper made me pause and examine my current teaching practices as they related to my philosophical vision. Taking this class concurrently with Dr. Marker's class really made me think about where I was in my teaching journey, and if I was heading in the direction of where my passion was. I was also tasked to examine my philosophies alongside philosophers such as Jane Addams, John Dewey, and even Mortimer Adler. I learned that I have an almost dichotomous approach to my teaching practice in that I believe there is a place for both a teacher-lead, structured approach, as well as a student generated perspective.
In revisiting this paper, I also reflected on where my journey began and the major influences on my teaching style. I took away from this experience the fact that I enjoy working in a collaborative environment that includes a village of participants: teachers, students, parents, community members, and administrators. I feel that open communication among all of these groups is crucial for both the growth in my students and in me. I am also passionate about infusing the core subjects with art and enrichment wherever possible. One of the joys of working in a Creative Arts Magnet Program, is that there is freedom of expression in many ways, and I find that students thrive within that freedom. I am also a huge advocate of real-world connection, and love to pair meaning field trips and exposure to professionals as they tie into our curriculum. This combination of strong academic expectations coupled with the enrichment possibilities offered at my site, to me present the best of both worlds.
I think that the final paragraph of this paper sums up much of what I took away from this experience, "My personal teaching philosophy embraces many core ideas, including the importance of home to school communication and transparency, a commitment to the core curriculum as a foundation of understanding and educational growth, and a dedication to students as emerging citizens with a passion for the lifelong process of education.
Rationale - EDCT 571 "Building Your Case Through Literature Review"
I Chose my next artifact from my EDCT 571 Course. This course really opened my eyes to the world of research and the differences between results that are qualitative and quantitative in nature. One major epiphany that I had during this course is that educators are constantly in the process of researching their students. Through daily interactions with my students, formal and informal assessment practices, and reflecting on the effectiveness of lessons, teachers live the lives of a researcher. Putting that research into a theoretical framework, however, was is whole different story, and one that many teachers never pursue. The question became, how do I take the data that I accumulate daily with my students and build a meaningful inquiry out of it?
Building off of my interest in YA dystopian literature from my 585 course, I began to research more on the subject and tackle my Literature Review. Through this course, I learned what peer-reviewed articles meant, and why they were considered more reliable back-up that non-peer reviewed literature. Finding peer reviewed literature was not as easy as I first imagined. Using the tools of the library and the very helpful expertise of the Education Librarian, I began to discover ways to locate articles through various search techniques, such as ERIC, GoogleScholar, Ebscoe, etc.. Another challenge of the Literature Review was how to take a mountain of information and organize it into a cohesive unit. Dr. Lane gave me some suggestions that were extremely valuable. I needed to examine each article that I felt had valuable information, and find a common thread that could be used to form categories. These categories then became the outline for putting my literature review together. I felt extremely accomplished after I had completed the literature review, and what was initially a daunting experience, became one that I feel I could tackle with confidence in the future.
I Chose my next artifact from my EDCT 571 Course. This course really opened my eyes to the world of research and the differences between results that are qualitative and quantitative in nature. One major epiphany that I had during this course is that educators are constantly in the process of researching their students. Through daily interactions with my students, formal and informal assessment practices, and reflecting on the effectiveness of lessons, teachers live the lives of a researcher. Putting that research into a theoretical framework, however, was is whole different story, and one that many teachers never pursue. The question became, how do I take the data that I accumulate daily with my students and build a meaningful inquiry out of it?
Building off of my interest in YA dystopian literature from my 585 course, I began to research more on the subject and tackle my Literature Review. Through this course, I learned what peer-reviewed articles meant, and why they were considered more reliable back-up that non-peer reviewed literature. Finding peer reviewed literature was not as easy as I first imagined. Using the tools of the library and the very helpful expertise of the Education Librarian, I began to discover ways to locate articles through various search techniques, such as ERIC, GoogleScholar, Ebscoe, etc.. Another challenge of the Literature Review was how to take a mountain of information and organize it into a cohesive unit. Dr. Lane gave me some suggestions that were extremely valuable. I needed to examine each article that I felt had valuable information, and find a common thread that could be used to form categories. These categories then became the outline for putting my literature review together. I felt extremely accomplished after I had completed the literature review, and what was initially a daunting experience, became one that I feel I could tackle with confidence in the future.
Rationale - EDCT 552 "From Informational to Relational"
I chose the final paper from my Technology Praxis course because it shows my complete transformation from a technological fledgling to a confident user of technology in my own classroom. Furthermore, one of the main focuses in my cognate project will rely on the use of students' blogging as a means to respond to literature. I tackled this class with a clear outcome in mind; to introduce technology into my classroom. Over these past few years, the mission statement of our Creative Arts Program shifted drastically and became one where "low media influence" was no longer realistic nor embraced by the parent body. There was a new, technological shift in both the real world and the expectations of our community. With the ever growing presence of world-wide technology, the expectations for students to become proficient in their use were inevitable. Additionally, with the new Common Core Standards, the knowledge and use of technology is imperative.
The reality was that students these days are far more tech savvy that the majority of teachers including myself; it was clear I was being left behind and I needed to do some catching up. I made a commitment to myself that this year I was going to create a classroom blog that would embrace the use of technology as a means of transmitting information and communicating with my students and their parents. Little did I know that technology is much more that a means of fact finding and e-mailing.
This course made me look through a different lens, one that was not focused on technology as just a tool, but technology as a reflection of cultural practice. As I began to use technology more and more within my classroom, and in my personal life, I began to notice that what I once looked at as an "informational tool" was much more than that. I learned that technology is relational and collaborative in its very nature; what information you give and receive filters through the human process of experiences. As reflected in this paper, this course tasked me to look outside of the box when it comes to technology; it is not just an informational tool. When I began to see the authentic conversations between students through the blogging feature on my website, I really began to see the potential. The conversations were rich in nature and the dialogue between students about what they were reading was inspiring. Ultimately, this led me to examine my practice and consider a transition in the idea of how I approach literature instruction from a teacher directed model to a student directed approach.
I chose the final paper from my Technology Praxis course because it shows my complete transformation from a technological fledgling to a confident user of technology in my own classroom. Furthermore, one of the main focuses in my cognate project will rely on the use of students' blogging as a means to respond to literature. I tackled this class with a clear outcome in mind; to introduce technology into my classroom. Over these past few years, the mission statement of our Creative Arts Program shifted drastically and became one where "low media influence" was no longer realistic nor embraced by the parent body. There was a new, technological shift in both the real world and the expectations of our community. With the ever growing presence of world-wide technology, the expectations for students to become proficient in their use were inevitable. Additionally, with the new Common Core Standards, the knowledge and use of technology is imperative.
The reality was that students these days are far more tech savvy that the majority of teachers including myself; it was clear I was being left behind and I needed to do some catching up. I made a commitment to myself that this year I was going to create a classroom blog that would embrace the use of technology as a means of transmitting information and communicating with my students and their parents. Little did I know that technology is much more that a means of fact finding and e-mailing.
This course made me look through a different lens, one that was not focused on technology as just a tool, but technology as a reflection of cultural practice. As I began to use technology more and more within my classroom, and in my personal life, I began to notice that what I once looked at as an "informational tool" was much more than that. I learned that technology is relational and collaborative in its very nature; what information you give and receive filters through the human process of experiences. As reflected in this paper, this course tasked me to look outside of the box when it comes to technology; it is not just an informational tool. When I began to see the authentic conversations between students through the blogging feature on my website, I really began to see the potential. The conversations were rich in nature and the dialogue between students about what they were reading was inspiring. Ultimately, this led me to examine my practice and consider a transition in the idea of how I approach literature instruction from a teacher directed model to a student directed approach.