Australian Professional Standards for Teachers
The Australian Professional Standards for Teachers (APST) were developed by the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) as a statement to define the role and expectations of teachers in Australia. The APST framework covers four career stages, Graduate, Proficient, Highly Accomplished and Lead. The seven standards are set out over three domains of teaching as follows:
Professional Knowledge
Standard 1: Know students and how they learn
Standard 2:Know the content and how to teach it
Professional Practice
Standard 3:Plan for and implement effective teaching and learning
Standard 4: Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environments
Standard 5: Assess, provide feedback and report on student learning
Professional Engagement
Standard 6: Engage in professional learning
Standard 7: Engage professionally with colleagues, parents/carers and the community
Having these standards allows teachers to set personal goals and have professional conversations using a common language.
I have created this professional e-portfolio to display how I meet the APST at the proficient stage for two reasons. The first, and perhaps most common reason for most, was to share with colleagues and future employers. The second reason I wanted to create an e-portfolio against the standards was so that I could see if I was covering all the standards. I am able to use the standards and my e-portfolio as a self reflection tool for planning my professional learning and development.