HAL

HigherEd Assessment of Learning (HAL)

While developing into professional educators, teacher candidates need to showcase evidence of work completed in order to demonstrate their growth and development as career professionals. This showcase can be useful in securing and/or advancing a teaching position by highlighting individual strengths, abilities, and teaching experiences. Teacher candidates at UTK are thus required to begin an electronic portfolio of required artifacts during the teacher preparation program and are encouraged to continue this practice as they advance in their careers. 

Additionally, UTK must present evidence to State and National Accreditation bodies demonstrating that our teacher candidates meet or exceed established criteria for teacher preparation quality. This evidence includes artifacts that are part of the teacher candidates’ required electronic portfolios. In order to collect these artifacts, UTK uses a system called HigherEducation Assessment of Learning, also known as HAL. 

HAL is based on the Google for Educators and Canvas Catalog platforms. Access to these platforms is free for teacher candidates, as access is provided for all students by UTK. 

To access HAL, teacher candidates need to do two things:

1) Sign into Google using their UTK email address (netID@vols.utk.edu) and password. Teacher candidates trying to access HAL using a personal Gmail account will receive an error message. Detailed directions on how to sign into Google using UTK’s netID@vols.utk.edu email address and password can be found on this website and this video.

2) Access Canvas Catalog. Canvas Catalog is separate form the Canvas dashboard used for UTK coursework. Access to Canvas Catalog is located here: https://oithost.utk.edu/canvas-catalog/html/ (Select "log in using Net ID and Password"). If you do not have access to the Canvas Catalog "HAL" site after logging in using these directions , please email gse@utk.edu with your name,  netID, and your licensure area,

HAL Required Artifacts

Throughout the teacher preparation program, candidates will be required to upload specified artifacts to HAL. Required artifacts to upload to HAL during the internship are listed below: