Portfolio Handbook

Introduction

In this "Handbook for Professional Education Portfolios at Oklahoma State University" you will find the requirements for assembling and keeping your portfolio; an explanation of the philosophy, mission, goals and conceptual framework of the professional education program; and an explanation of the portfolio requirements set by the Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation and the Oklahoma Department of Education.

For the most part, the portfolio is a collection of work and evidence of your progress towards becoming a teacher with opportunities for you to reflect on this process. As you take your course work in professional education, begin to collect your "artifacts"--projects, papers, journal entries, tests, photographs, etc. Then you will select the ones that represent your progress towards the competencies and goals. Finally, you will reflect on these goals and the relevance of your work. Since we may be receiving updates and clarifications from the Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation and the Oklahoma Department of Education, there may be changes and updates as you move through the program. When this occurs, we will supply you with those changes. Be sure to ask your advisors or program coordinators and check the professional education web site for these as you prepare your portfolio for each submission.

There will be group meetings scheduled to help you assemble your portfolios at admission, prior to student teaching, and at the completion of student teaching. Watch for notices to be posted and listen for announcements in your classes. We hope this handbook will be a helpful guide to the professional education portfolio process at OSU. If you have any questions or comments, stop by our offices in Willard or give us a call.

Good luck! Just remember to collect, select and reflect!

Professional Education Unit Staff
325 Willard

INTRODUCTION

Professional Education at Oklahoma State University is committed to the development of professional educators through the integration of theory and practice in a range of experiences and settings. Throughout the program, students develop a professional portfolio in which they record, reflect upon and integrate their knowledge from their pre-service experiences.

Through intensive academic coursework and field experiences that are combined with continuous student reflection, the goal of the program is to produce individuals who believe everyone deserves the opportunity to learn and can learn; who act on the principle that diversity is to be valued; and who are committed to the belief that professional educators providing quality education are the backbone of society.

Rationale and Philosophy

In Oklahoma State University's Professional Education Programs, a portfolio is a set of materials that provides evidence of the candidate's learning, growth, and development toward becoming a professional educator. These collections of authentic, learner-specific documents are also acknowledgment that the development of a professional educator is an individualized process. They reflect the candidate's progress over a period of time and provide useful information in assessing the success of the programs in meeting their goals. The portfolio has four major uses:

1. Documenting active learning by candidates in their professional growth and development.
   
   
2. Providing graduates of the programs with a collection of relevant materials for their use in the profession and/or for use as a personal marketing tool in seeking employment.
   
   
3. Assessing the Professional Education Degree Program - an important source of data to give a more comprehensive and complete picture of the program.
   
   
4. Improving the Professional Education Degree Program - revealed patterns of success and/or deficiency serve as foci for changes in the program to ensure its relevance and the attainment of its goals.

The OSU professional education program provides a comprehensive experiential base of information, research, observation, practice and reflection. The program faculty understands that their candidates are active participants in their encounters and interactions with their environment and the world. The faculty recognizes that candidates may need assistance in understanding the importance, validity, utility and meaning of these experiences. They also need assistance in integrating and synthesizing knowledge and skills from different sources to solve problems and to enhance their perspectives. The development of portfolios can provide the reflective experiences needed to achieve these important goals. The program should enhance the ability of the future professional educator to respond appropriately to students in terms of their needs and interests, the needs and interests of society, and the characteristics of the various learning disciplines.

Candidates exiting the Professional Education Degree Program at Oklahoma State University should present appropriate documentation of the attainment of the competencies of their programs in the form of a portfolio. The portfolio development process should be a positive experience, addressing many professional activities through assignments, class interactions and field experiences.

Purpose

The Professional Education Portfolio demonstrates the talents, skills and experiences of each teacher candidate. It indicates each candidate's professional growth toward becoming an effective teacher, and it provides evidence of progress toward:

• Individual professional goals
  
• OSU program goals (general professional and specialized education)
  
• Oklahoma competencies, the standards and outcomes as set forth by the Commission for Teacher Preparation, the State Department of Education and the State Regents.
  

Additionally, the portfolio should be a useful tool in seeking employment by providing prospective employers with evidence of the candidate's professional growth. Work on portfolios will also assist candidates in developing reflective skills they will use throughout their teaching career as they continue to document their professional development.

Teacher candidates should consider this portfolio as unique, fluid and changing, an evolving display of life-long learning. Once candidates enter the profession with their first teaching position, their portfolios will be based on their personal goals as they relate to state standards, the local school district and their communities during the residency year.

The portfolio is defined as a documented profile of an individual's accomplishments, learning and strengths related to the Oklahoma General Competencies for Teacher Licensure and Certification and Oklahoma State University's Core Concepts and Goals Statement. The portfolio is required by the Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation for licensure and, for purposes of institutional accreditation, is a unit of measure which presents evidence that the institution is providing initial, on-going, and focused opportunities and avenues which lead to the candidate's achievement of competencies, standards, and outcomes.

The Role of Portfolios in OSU's Professional Teacher Education Programs

Graduate and undergraduate candidates in teacher education should be aware that there are many types of portfolios and that throughout the candidates' experience at Oklahoma State University they will be asked to develop portfolios for several different purposes. Because a portfolio's purpose and audience affect its contents, there is not a single all-purpose portfolio. The content or evidence in a portfolio depends on the purpose.

During their academic career at Oklahoma State, candidates will be required to present their portfolios at three checkpoints; admission to professional education, prior to student teaching and at the completion of student teaching. The handbook outlines the requirements at those three stages. In addition, the OCTP may request a sampling of portfolios for program accreditation. Guidance will be given to candidates interested in completing a portfolio for job placement.

The table below explains the four major purposes for portfolios.

Purposes of Portfolios

THE PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION PROGRAM PORTFOLIO
SUBMISSIONS AND POLICIES

The portfolio will provide candidates with a personal tool for reflecting upon their teaching skills, knowledge and understandings. This portfolio is an edited collection of the teacher candidate's evidence of learning and professional growth and reflections representing progress through the entire professional education program. This portfolio differs from individual course portfolios in that it represents the integration of learning in all courses. Portfolios should show the candidate's progress toward professional goals, Oklahoma State University Professional Education Program Goals, and the Oklahoma General Competencies for Teacher Licensure and Certification. These are explained later in the handbook. The portfolio will provide the basis for assessing the candidate's progress in, and completion of, the program. Upon graduation, the completed portfolio may be edited and used as a dossier to help the new teacher in placement interviews. Throughout the program, the candidate is responsible for the safekeeping of the portfolio, but must make the portfolio available upon request for admission, prior to student teaching, at the completion of student teaching, or for program accreditation purposes.

Policy for Portfolio Development & Assessment

Candidates will compile their OSU Professional Education Portfolios throughout the years at OSU and into their residency year. The portfolio will be submitted for admission to professional education, prior to student teaching and at the completion of student teaching. It may also be requested for OCTP accreditation review. The steps involved for each submission are listed below. Detailed explanations of the requirements are in the next section of the handbook.

Per Title 712. Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation (OCTP), Chapter 10. Teacher Preparation, institutions shall require all initial and advanced certification program students to develop a portfolio following the guidelines listed below.

The portfolio development process will begin with enrollment in the professional education course work. This requirement is spelled out in the policy below.

Resolution passed by the OSU Professional Education Council

Be it therefore resolved that the Oklahoma State University Professional Education Council hereby requires that all candidates in the following categories present a professional portfolio in accordance with the guidelines of the Oklahoma State University Professional Education Handbook.

a. Degreed candidates seeking initial Oklahoma licensure who were admitted to an accredited Oklahoma teacher education program during or after Fall 1997.

b. Candidates who are entering freshmen beginning Fall 1997.

c. Candidates already enrolled in an Oklahoma institution prior to Fall 1997 and admitted to an accredited teacher education program during or after Fall 1997 who will graduate after September 1, 1999. and

d. Candidates holding a valid Oklahoma credential and seeking to add an advanced certificate who will complete certification area requirements after September 1, 1999. (Pending clarification from the OCTP and Regents)

Candidates are required to submit portfolios for full admission to professional education, prior to student teaching, and at the completion of student teaching. Furthermore, candidates will make their portfolios available for OCTP review with one week's notice.

SUBMISSION I: APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION TO PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION
Applicants should begin these processes with the first professional education course taken. A detailed explanation follows in this handbook.

SUBMISSION II: PRE-STUDENT TEACHING
A detailed explanation follows in this handbook.

SUBMISSION III: STUDENT TEACHING
(Completed during student teaching semester and submitted before OSU can recommend for licensure) A detailed explanation follows in this handbook.

ADDITIONAL CHECK: REVIEW FOR PROGRAM ACCREDITATION

The Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation (OCTP) will select a list of candidates at random for portfolio review. The OSU Professional Education Unit will notify those candidates whose portfolios must be submitted. Candidates will then have up to 10 days to submit their portfolios to OSU's professional education unit. The OCTP will not be evaluating the work of individual candidates. They will use a sampling of portfolio work to assess the Professional Education Unit at OSU. Upon completion of their review the portfolios will be returned to the candidates.

OSU'S CORE CONCEPTS AND GOALS STATEMENT

Philosophy

Oklahoma State University's professional education faculty seek to prepare individuals who believe everyone deserves the opportunity to learn and can learn; who act on the principle that diversity is to be valued; and who are committed to the belief that professional educators providing quality education are the backbone of society.

OSU's professional education programs are devoted to the concept of integration. Professional education students learn to integrate personal experience with fields of knowledge and with teaching based on sound theory and research-driven educational practice.

Mission

Students' attainment of unit and program goals is assigned and assessed in schools and communities in which continuous professional development for pre- service candidates, in- service school professionals, and university faculty is valued.

Last Updated Saturday, March 18, 2006