The competent teacher differentiates instruction by using a variety of strategies that support critical and creative thinking, problem-solving, and continuous growth and learning. This teacher understands that the classroom is a dynamic environment requiring ongoing modification of instruction to enhance learning for each student.
Portfolio Rationale
The artifacts that I have attached are part of the Flip project presentation and Flip project quiz. These are both focused on the Illinois Learning Standard: State Goal 22- Understand principles of health promotion and the prevention and treatment of illness and injury. (K-12) IELDS 22 (EC). I took the approach as if I was teaching students in 9th grade and my presentation and quiz focused on why physical health is so important for the human body. In the presentation, I showed images of why smoking tobacco is bad for the human body, what a standard plate should look like with a balanced nutritional diet, ways of exercising, and how to involve children when exercising. The quiz contains 10 multiple choice questions that test the understanding of the presentation items.
The importance of these artifacts were to examine the learning standard of understanding principles of health promotion and the prevention and treatment of illness and injury. At the grade level of high school, students should have the understanding of what is good for the human body and what is not. The presentation teaches why tobacco is not good for the body while nutritious foods, physical activity, and child involvement is. On the quiz, I asked questions that will show understanding of the standard because they need to apply what they learned from the video in order or answer the questions. The Illinois Professional Teaching Standard 5: Performance Indicators 5N, 5M, 5O, and 5R were supported through my artifacts. 5N states: “uses technology to accomplish differentiated instructional objectives that enhance learning for each student;” 5M: “uses strategies and techniques for facilitating meaningful inclusion of individuals with a range of abilities and experiences;” 5O: “models and facilitates effective use of current and emerging digital tools to locate, analyze, evaluate, and use information resources to support research and learning;” 5R: “maximizes instructional time (e.g., minimizes transitional time);” (https://www.isbe.net/Documents/IL_prof_teaching_stds.pdf) All of these Performance Indicators were used because I maximized teaching and learning time for students by using their interest in technology to bring education to them while at home. Using technology accomplished the use of different mediums, enhanced learning for each individual student, allows students to go at their own pace to best fit their ability and needs, and models the current interest in technology to continue learning.
Learning in important to continuously develop as a teacher. I strongly believe that teachers learn just as much as their students do and these artifacts really proved that as fact. If teachers seize learning, why are they teaching fellow minds that are still developing? Throughout this pandemic, teachers have learned how important technology really is. They have learned that technology could continue the process of learning for their students while still catering to students with all different skills ranges and developmental needs. There is an endless amount of technology that has been discovered during this pandemic because teachers need to share videos, record their screens, grade the assignments, see their students work, and so much more. I have learned to focus on the learning standards and teaching standards when creating these artifacts. These artifacts will help me in my future classroom because of how much learning I did along the way. I used websites and apps that I did not even know about before creating these two artifacts and I plan on creating so much more. Technology is amazing and will continue helping students and teachers grow, far into the future.