RUNNING HEADER: FINAL REFLECTION

Final Reflection

Sean Watson

National University

TED 690 – Professor Daniel Weintraub

06/28/2019
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Abstract

This paper is a reflection of my teacher journey with regards to creating and developing a

Professional Development Quest Portfolio (PDQP) for TED690 Capstone Course for National

University. The paper covers my journey developing the PDQP, changes that I made, things

that worked, implications, frustrations, artifact selection, and advice that I would give to future

teacher candidates.
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My journey as a teacher has been an adventure that never ceases. This paper is a

reflection of my journey as I embark on my first year of teaching in my own classroom. The two

whole years I’ve spent going back to school to get my Masters in education and a multiple

subject credential was filled with new content that embodies what teachers need to learn in order

to become successful. These two years have helped me improve in my time management and

realizing that there is no such thing as the “perfect” teacher. There is; however, hope in the

future for teachers to create meaningful relationships, grow in accountability, and to grow with

their students. Successful growth as a teacher is seen in the formulation of lesson plans,

differentiated learning, classroom setup, management, and creating rubrics. There is always

room for more growth, new ideas, and the implementation of creative lessons, content, goals, and

expectations in the classroom.

Upon arriving at my final course to receive my Masters, I was pleasantly surprised at the

opportunity to create a Professional Development Quest Portfolio. At first, it seemed like a

daunting challenge to create such a portfolio that embodies the Teacher Performance

Expectations of California with six domains. Upon completion of the first week of the course, I

really struggled to find artifacts that I could share with professionals as well as employers in my

search for a teaching position. In searching for artifacts I noticed that certain photos I had during

my student teaching really captured me as an educator and my student’s celebrations of learning.

I also thought that uploading a bunch of lessons plans and papers covering theories and

instructional strategies would be valuable strategy. To my surprise I later realized that enhancing

my portfolio into pictures that capture these strategies, or a YouTube video of myself teaching in

action were of better use in showcasing my PDQP. “One of the most effective methods for

achieving this is to create a chart that cross-references your materials with the performance
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standards or themes.” (Costantino & De Lorenzo, 2009, p. 53) For example in domain F,

Developing as a Professional Educator, I used a clip from the application called Powtoon. This

site lets you create a digital literacy video to introduce information that is attractive to the eye

and explains things in a very creative and distinct way. Using an application like Powtoon is

new and becoming very trendy in the teaching world. This change in my portfolio from the use

of essays to more visuals, pictures, and new applications was influenced by my classmates

advice and discussions on what artifacts would help enhance my PDQP. Just like at any school

community, collaboration and teamwork is needed in order to be successful.

Overall, my only frustration was building a website using Weebly. This application at

first seemed impossible to navigate and manage but with a lot of patience, trial and error, and

repitition I was able to take command, enhance and direct font sizes, insert photos, documents,

and videos into my PDQP. All the while reflecting on what artifacts to upload, I noticed how I

really honed into creating meaningful artifacts and introductions in a professional way. As I

complete my PDQP, I really want to stand out and be unique in my eportfolio. I want the

reviewer to see who I am as a person, but also as an educator. I believe the portfolio should

celebrate not only in classroom expectations, but also hobbies and interests that I bring as an

educator. “Electronic portfolios have the advantages of accessibility, portability, creativity,

proof of teacher technology skills, enhanced self-confidence, and dissemination to a broader

community.” (Costantino & De Lorenzo, 2009, p. 32)

Some advice I would give future students is to really take the time to reflect on your path

as a teacher and choose artifacts that you think really capture who you are. Be unique, be the

change. Selecting artifacts can be very simple with a photo or complex with a certain lesson plan

you want to illustrate in a particular domain. A lot of patience is required in developing a PDQP
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as it is not a weekend project. Developing a quality PDQP requires hours and days of review,

reflecting, and detailed explanations as to the purpose of each artifacts usage. The discussions

and collaborate sessions are really great tools for anyone creating a PDQPto take advice from the

class and instructors and to get examples that help in creating a PDQP that reflects you as the

teacher you are. I highly recommend participating in these sessions as well as asking questions

if there are any doubts. Overall, discussions (sharing the PDQPs) and collaborate sessions were

very beneficial as they gave me many resources to help me choose artifacts while developing my

PDQP.

In conclusion, this journey has been quite the adventure that still continues. My PDQP is

something that I will update and change as I move forward in my professional career as an

educator. Depending on its usage, I am currently seeking employment and this PDQP will be

part of all my applications in the future. I currently have a PDQP product particularly for

employers but I know that it might change in the future as I continue to grow. Creating this

PDQP is a great way to show the accumulation of my experience and to celebrate my

accomplishments.
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Reference
Costantino, P., & De Lorenzo, M. (2009). Developing a professional teaching portfolio: A guide
for success. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.