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Introduction

Throughout the previous four sections of the portfolio project my skills, abilities and

competencies as a teaching candidate and future educator have been highlighted, and

demonstrated. The areas of competencies discussed include assessment of students, planning,

culturally responsive teaching, learner accommodations, classroom management, professional

development and professional and curriculum standards. I will now reflect on the previous

sections of my portfolio. This will include my journey through the Masters of Science in

Education Program at Medaille College and the creation of the Elementary Teaching Portfolio.

Section four of the Elementary Teaching Portfolio Project has given me an opportunity to

showcase my competencies within the educational field. Section five of the Portfolio Project will

be making reference to the professional standards of the Teacher Education Accreditation

Council/Council for Accreditation for Education Preparation (TEAC/CEAP) Claims. These

claims detail my vast knowledge of subject matter within my certification area, my ability to

meet the needs of diverse leaners through effective teaching pedagogy and best teaching

practices, as well as my ability to present myself as a caring educator. This Portfolio Project has

shown my journey and growth down the path of becoming an educator. Section five will allow

me to reflect upon that journey and learning experiences at Medaille College’s Master of Science

in Education program and this portfolio as a whole. Together my readiness to take on the role of

a professional teacher will be shown.

Portfolio Project/Teacher Education Learning Experiences

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My time spent at Medaille college has been extremely beneficial in providing me with the

proper tools and mindset to be the most effective teacher I can be. It was instilled within me to

always be thinking about and understanding the diversification of learning and learners

(TEAC/CAEP claim 1: Knowledge of subject matter, TEAC/CAEP claim 2: effective pedagogy

and best teaching practices for diverse learners). Having the opportunity to study at Medaille

college has allowed me to view new learning experiences as well as adopt new teaching practices

that will make me an effective teacher.

While at Medaille College it was mandatory to take a course entitled Culturally Responsive

Pedagogy: Fostering Culturally Inclusive Classrooms. Going into this course I had no idea what

to expect but I came out understanding that as teachers we must do our best to ensure that we are

always culturally responsive when teaching. We need to teach students in contexts that they will

understand. This involves utilizing the community assets around them. It is also important that

no matter the background of a student who enters my class that they are treated with the respect

and dignity that they deserve. They should be able to enter a safe environment free of judgement

and bullying. An environment where they get excited to go to everyday. (TEAC/CAEP claim 3:

Caring Educators). This course has taught me how to incorporate diversity within the classroom

whether it be in the form of books, music being played and lessons. All these forms will enable

me to encourage diverse students to become engaged with the lesson and provide them all with

an equal opportunity for success. (TEAC/CAEP claim 2: effective pedagogy and best teaching

practices for diverse learners). Every student no matter their race, gender or ethnic background

has a chance for success within my classroom and I will give them every opportunity I can to

achieve that success.

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Another class called The Core of Education that I took I found to be very insightful. This

course provided me with the skills of developing a lesson plan not only for one day at a time, but

rather got me in the mindset to start thinking about how my lessons will stretch out on multiple

days. (TEAC/CAEP claim 1: Knowledge of subject matter). Through the Corse of Education

course, I was able to gain insight in various ways of teaching and how we must be able to

differentiate instruction to meet the needs of all types of learners. (TEAC/CAEP claim 2:

effective pedagogy and best teaching practices for diverse learners). I was also able to hone my

skills in lesson planning and to showcase students work once the learning segments were

completed. This allows the students to know you take an interest in their work and are proud of

the work they have accomplished.

Lastly a Methods in Math and Science course that was taken during my last semester at

Medaille College was extremely helpful. I have always been a timid person when it comes to

teaching math and science as it was never my strong point, however this course has shown me

various ways and strategies to get the students engaged with the lesson and ensure that they are

learning the information they need to be. (TEAC/CEAP claim 1: knowledge of subject matter).

This course has also allowed me to gain the skills of developing lessons plans to meet include

other subjects also known as interdisciplinary integration. One thing that has become very clear

to me during my time in the MSED program is that as teachers we have so much curriculum

content to cover and so little time to do it in. The only way to ensure it gets covered is to

integrate it into other lessons. (TEAC/CAEP claim 2: effective pedagogy and best teaching

practices for diverse learners). For instance, the methods of math and science course I have

created a lesson plan that integrates science and math together. This is done by the students
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building a structure that must support 2 pounds of weight. Math was incorporated through

students learning to use a budget in order to pay for the materials to build the structure.

Reediness to Become a Teacher

I am extremely excited at the idea of working within a classroom setting and being able to

enrich the minds of students. This experience will not entirely be new to me as I have previously

mentioned in other sections of this portfolio project my related experiences within a classroom

setting. As I approach the completion of the Masters of Science in Education program at

Medaille college I am confident that I possess the readiness to become an excellent teacher who

has amazing teaching practices that leave students wanting to learn more. I am a caring educator

who has the best interest of all students who enter my classroom at heart. I am confident with my

knowledge of the subject matter I am certified in and I understanding of pedagogy and best

teaching practices.

My strengths in the field of education are also portrayed in each and every one of my artifacts.

Artifacts such as my lesson plan with three accompanying learning segments provides evidence

of not only my ability to plan a lesson plan that is engaging for students but to also extend the

central focus over a period of days and deepen students thinking. In creating this lesson plan, I

was able to successfully extend a central focus across three individual lessons, representing my

ability to plan and assess student progress effectively. My strengths are also depicted in the

various artifacts in Section Three. The classroom management tool demonstrates my ability to

control the classroom and ensure students are doing work in their free time that will benefit them

and their learning. It is my belief that this portfolio successfully demonstrates my abilities and

competencies as a future educator. I feel that it presents a well-rounded view of who I am as a

teaching candidate.
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Conclusion

In reflecting on my education experiences and journey while at Medaille College and making

connections to TEAC/CAEP claims I have been able to confirm my belief that I am a capable

educator who possess the skills that are required to be a successful teacher in the future.

Reflecting on my readiness to become a teacher has allowed me to understand that in order to

become an effective teacher, I need to be willing to engage in the learning process with the

students. As teacher we need to instill the notion of life-long learning in students. We need to be

able to take our own advice and become life-long learners as well. We are learning to improve

our craft of teaching not only every year with the new group of students who enter our class but

every day. I am a firm believer that I possess the skills necessary to be an effective educator I

understand that I have more to learn. In the following section I will provide a video interview

where I plan on demonstrating my best teaching practices, and pedagogy by answering questions

that may potentially be asked in an interview situation. My Elementary Portfolio has provided

concrete evidence of my ability to meet the teaching competencies while also demonstrating my

skill set, management skills, engage in professional development and my knowledge of my areas

of certification.