Teachers Without Borders/Professional Portfolio and Millennium Development Goals/Course Overview and Requirements

=Course Overview and Requirements=

This final course in the Certificate of Teaching Mastery focuses on the application of teacher training to local problems by focusing on any one of the eight Millennium Development Goals, and the sharing of your findings with colleagues around the world through your Professional Portfolio. The main purposes of this course are:


 * 1) To assist you in assembling your Professional Portfolio,
 * 2) To facilitate your personal growth and reflection as a teacher leader with respect to the Millennium Development Goals and our global community.

Your Professional Portfolio shows the world who you are, how you approach education, and contains evidence of your teaching.

Upon completion of Course Five you will be able to extend your commitment to the Millennium Development Goals by joining the Millennium Development Ambassadors Program. You can find more information about this program on our website: http://teacherswithoutborders.org/pages/millennium-development-ambassadors

Introduction
What is the ultimate purpose of education if not to improve the quality of life for our children, our communities, and our earth? It is in this spirit of service that you will be guided in Course Five to apply the theory and practice you have gained, thus far, to address a local need and share it globally.

In this course, you will complete the following two parts, and, with their satisfactory completion, you will be awarded your Certificate of Teaching Mastery.

Part One: Local Service Project for the Millennium Development Goals
It is one thing to say you believe in the Millennium Development Goals and quite something else to apply those goals to yourself, your family, and your community. There are many websites asking for money or signatures on petitions. While these initiatives are valuable, Teachers Without Borders' approach is to begin with the individual, in practical terms, and work in larger and larger circles from there.

In this context, the Millennium Development Goals are more than big reports and lofty goals. They start with you and your implementation of a service project related to one of the Millennium Development Goals. This is an opportunity to participate as a well-educated teacher in existing initiatives already taking place locally or a chance to fill a deeply-needed gap by creating a new initiative.

We also believe in action that can be measured. So, begin this process by asking yourself these questions: ''How have I shown support for the Millennium Development Goals personally? With and beyond my family? ''Here are some examples:

Goal 1: Eradicating Poverty - ''Have I taken care of my financial needs and those of my family? My peers? Have I helped others in need? Am I aware of regions where this goal is most pressing?''

Goal 2: Primary Education -'' If I have children, have they received safe, complete, valuable primary schooling? Have I helped others in need? How have I contributed?''

Goal 3: Promote Gender Equality - ''Do I treat men and women equally? Do I ensure that boys and girls are treated equally in my family, in my community, in my school and in my classroom?''

Goal 4: Reduce Child Mortality - ''Have I contributed, even if only a small amount, to groups working in this area? Have I advocated for the right of a child to live a free, safe, and healthy life?''

Goal 5: Improve Maternal Health'' - If I am a mother, have I taken care of myself? Have I taken care of other mothers? As a male teacher, have I stressed the importance of maternal health and well-being in my family, community, and my school?''

Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Other Diseases - ''Have I found a way to support ongoing efforts to eliminate diseases? Have I educated others about these diseases? Have I helped others in need?''

Goal 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability - ''Have I treated my environment with respect? Do I refuse to litter? Do I recycle or reuse? Do I work toward having clean water available? Have I helped others in need?''

Goal 8: Develop a Global Partnership for Development - ''Have I taught others about the Millennium Development Goals? Have I made certain that I joined with others in partnerships that work, in my community or my school?''

Part Two: Assembling your Professional Portfolio
This is an opportunity to demonstrate that you have taken what you've learned in the Certificate of Teaching Mastery and applied it locally. In addition, this is where you can share your work with the world. You will learn more about the Professional Portfolio and what is expected of you, as a Certificate of Teaching Mastery candidate, throughout its creation.

Your Professional Portfolio
The University of Washington describes a portfolio as: "a coherent set of materials including work samples and reflective commentary on them compiled by a faculty member to represent his or her teaching practice as related to student learning and development."

In short, a portfolio is a way of showing the range of your work. You can use your Professional Portfolio to promote your work, apply for a job, advance your career, and share your accomplishments with teachers from around the world.

The Professional Portfolio that you will compile as part of this final course in the Certificate of Teaching Mastery needs to include the following three parts:

Part One: Who I am, What I Believe, and How I Teach

In this section of your Professional Portfolio, you will have an opportunity to select assignments and reflections that you completed in courses 1 - 4 of the Certificate of Teaching Mastery. These materials will demonstrate evidence of your teaching excellence and show the depth of your thoughts and reflections about key topics explored in these courses.

Part Two: Millennium Development Goal

In this part of your Professional Portfolio, you will have an opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to the Millennium Development Goals by:


 * 1) Educating yourself about one of the Millennium Development Goals and sharing your expertise with your students, your school, or your community.
 * 2) Participating in an established local or international initiative or program in your community that focuses on one of the Millennium Development Goals.

Part Three: Promoting Your Work and Becoming a Mentor

Your Professional Portfolio gives you an opportunity to show the world more about who you are and how you can make a contribution to teaching excellence locally and globally. Upon completion of your portfolio, you will be able to share your work inside the Teachers Without Borders network and apply to become a Certificate of Teaching Mastery Mentor. As Mentor, you will be supporting your colleagues from around the world enrolled in the Certificate program.

Benefits of Professional Portfolios
Assembling a portfolio is an excellent way to reflect upon what you have learned, what you have applied to your classroom practices, and what you will do next. It's a record of your work, your thoughts, and it holds the seeds to your potential.

A portfolio can be a tangible way in which an educator can shape his or her career, based upon the idea that there is always room for improvement. Many teachers who engage in the process of creating a portfolio are proud of what they have produced. They see where they began, and they see how far they have come. Many report that the process of putting together a portfolio has helped them to clarify their goals, reflect on their professional identity and classroom practice, and take advantage of additional professional opportunities. Portfolios are the most convincing testament to a teacher's work.

Traditional portfolios come in the form of folders, boxes, or 3-ring binders that hold papers, pictures, cassette tapes, and more. An electronic Professional Portfolio, known as an e-Portfolio, allows you to store your work digitally. It can be shared easily and, when posted online, can be accessed by your colleagues from around the world.

Teachers Without Borders Portfolio Requirements
Part One: Who I Am, What I Believe, and How I Teach

In order to compile Part One of your Professional Portfolio, you will have to include the following 9 assignments from courses 1 - 4 of the Certificate of Teaching Mastery.


 * 1) Professional Statement - My beliefs, values, and approaches to teaching
 * 2) Inside My Room or Outside My Window - Take a photograph outside your classroom;  tell a story or describe where you are. 
 * 3) My Imagined Classroom Ten Years From Now - How do you imagine your classroom will function in 10 years?  What will students be doing? 
 * 4) My Students' Work - Samples of how planning turns into outcomes
 * 5) Feedback from Students - About your students' work and their process of learning
 * 6) Feedback from Non-Students - You not only teach children; you teach the family.  What kind of outreach do you make to the families you serve?  

Also, you will have to review the work that you completed at the end of each Certificate of Teaching Mastery course and select any 5 pieces that, in your opinion, best encapsulate your work in the CTM program and your competence as an educator.

Part Two: Commitment to the Millennium Development Goals

In Part Two of your portfolio, you will have to document your active commitment to one of the eight Millennium Development Goals. Whether you choose to focus on teaching about the Millennium Development Goals or getting involved as a volunteer in an established initiative in your community, your work will have to be shared in your portfolio. The work required for this part of your portfolio will consist of two parts:

Developing a plan to serve your students, your school, and/or your community by teaching about one of the Millennium Development Goals or volunteering. You will also have to develop a way to measure the impact of your work.

Proof of Completion: How are you going to verify your work? Include a letter from a supervisor or a colleague attesting to your completion of the assignment.

Part Three: Promoting Your Work and Becoming a TWB Mentor

Finally, you will have an opportunity to build on your work in parts one and two by collecting supporting documents that attest to your hard work and competence. Your Professional Portfolio should include the following:


 * 1) Your resume
 * 2) Letters of reference or recommendation
 * 3) Honors and Recognition

Once these supporting documents are added to your portfolio, you can submit it to the Teachers Without Borders Review Board for evaluation.

Copyright 2008, by the Contributing Authors. Cite/attribute Resource. fred. (2008, June 13). Education for the New Millennium. Retrieved May 04, 2010, from TWB Courseware Web site. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by/3.0/88x31.png