EPL3

1. EPL3 EPL Components and The Professional Portfolio

2. Overview of EPL 3 Five EPL Day Visits These are assessable day visits. The LM student can take sessions, blocks or build up to whole days, at the discretion of the mentor teacher. Three week block EPL 3 (Monday 17 May – Friday 4 June) The LM student should show a willingness and ability to assume a leadership role for the teaching and planning for this block. The experience should build to LM students becoming responsible for planning, management and delivery of approximately up to 2 sessions per day. In the final week LM students should be able to take responsibility for the class for some full days. During this block, a decision is made as to whether the mentor teacher is confident that the LM student will be able to continue on to complete the 10 week block (which is made up of EPL 4 and the Internship) that is to follow.

3. Key requirements Planning and Teaching for Success – Planning and implementing a unit of work (or sequence of learning experiences) This Embedded Professional Learning component requires LM students to engage in the planning of a unit of work (or sequence of learning experiences) and other planning that is required for the three week block. This work may link to assessment requirements for other university courses such as ‘Teaching Reading’ and ‘Numeracy in Action.’ LM students should implement their plan, modifying where required to cater for the needs of LM students and the actuality of the teaching context. They should create and use various learning resources, assessment and data gathering tools as appropriate.

4. The Working Portfolio This is a working document that provides a record of preparation, planning and reflection throughout the EPL. It includes: • EPL notes • Preparation and Planning • Observations • Class Profile • Resources • Teaching Log • Individual Learning Plan

5. The Professional Portfolio The Final Year Professional Portfolio will contain specific examples and demonstrated evidence of good practice by the LM student in accordance with the QCT ‘Professional Standards for Queensland Teachers’ – (Graduate Level) This portfolio is the focus for development of the ILP and informs the summative assessment for this EPL.

6. The Individual Learning Plan This is an opportunity for critical reflection on progress towards demonstration of the QCT standards. The purpose of the plan is to take positive action to build on current strengths and devise specific strategies for improvement, consolidation and extension in identified areas of need.

9. Distinction between “folios” • Working portfolio - your folder that documents EPL experiences • Professional portfolio - a folder that illustrates your progress towards demonstrating the QCT standards (an assessable requirement of EPL3) • Folio for EQ teaching positions - a folio that shows how you meet the EQ selection criteria for a teaching position

10. Four steps in developing your Professional Portfolio • Collecting, categorising and annotating evidence • Selecting the best evidence • Reflecting on your selection • Organising and presenting your portfolio

11. Collecting the evidence • Label a folder with sections according to each of the QCT standards as a temporary sorting system • Collect examples of planning, reflections, profiles, assessment tasks, etc that you believe demonstrate the knowledge and practice indicators for each standard • You can start now.

12. Categorising the evidence • Decide on a format for organising your evidence • According to each standard • According to major themes in the standards e.g. Teaching and Learning, Professional Relationships, Professional learning and reflection • According to key questions based on the standards e.g. “How do you design and implement learning experiences that… • According to types of artifacts e.g. learning experiences, instructional resources, assessments, reflections, etc

13. Annotating the evidence • Attach an annotation recording information that will help you select your best examples for each standard • Date, year level, curriculum area • Reflection on: • What the sample reveals about your ability to demonstrate the chosen standard or standards e.g.create meaningful learning experiences, ability to develop literacy,etc • The strengths and areas for development revealed in the sample • What you learnt that will impact on your future teaching and professional development

14. Selecting pieces of evidence • The Professional Portfolio shows evidence of your understanding and demonstration of each standard not every indicator for that standard. • Be highly selective

15. Selecting evidence (cont’d) • Select inclusions in your portfolio on the basis of: • The extent to which a work sample demonstrate a standard • The extent to which one sample can demonstrate multiple standards • Aim to demonstrate evidence of each standard - align with your ILP goals.

16. Reflecting on your evidence • There should be critical reflection on each piece of evidence showing how it links to one or more of the QCT standards • The reflection should include: • (a) contextual information • (b) a critical analysis of what the sample reveals about the knowledge and practice embedded in the standard

17. Organising and Presenting the portfolio • You may find it easier to organise your final portfolio according to reflections on each of the standards, followed by evidence organised into categories e.g. unit plan, Learning experience plans, daily reflections, OR • The folio could begin with reflections (1-10) that direct the reader to specific samples or sections of a sample that demonstrate a standard.

18. Possible Organisation • Table of contents • Clearly identified sections • In each section - reflection on the standard • Evident and annotations for each standard • OR direct the reader to evidence in subsequent sections where evidence is organised by “type”

19. References • Ewing, R., Lowrie, T., & Higgs, J. (Eds.). (2010). Teaching and communicating: rethinking professional experiences. South Melbourne, VIC: Oxford. • Foster, B., Walker, M., & Song, K. (2007). A beginning teaching portfolio handbook. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.