Creating a teaching practicum portfolio is just one thing you must do when completing a college education program. During your time in college, you’ll have the chance to teach students and lead classes in schools near the campus. You can pick up some useful tips on how to work on and later put together your own portfolio.
Know What You Need
Before you sit down and start working on your teaching practicum portfolio, make sure that you know what to include and what your portfolio needs. You generally need a cover page that includes some basic information about your teaching experiences. This cover page can also include a photograph of you actually working in a classroom. Most states require that you add an artifacts section to your portfolio that showcases examples of the work that you did. Depending on your college, your portfolio may also need a copy of your most recent resume.
Work a Little Every Week
A common problem experienced by many teaching students is that they put off working on their portfolio until the last minute. The longer you wait, the more you will find yourself scrambling to gather all your materials. When you work on your teaching practicum portfolio at least once a week for an hour or more, you’ll have an easier time putting everything together. Try jotting down notes after each teaching experience and then condensing those notes down at the end of the week. This provides you with all the info that you need to create a great portfolio later.
Look at Presentation Methods
Not every portfolio created by every student teacher looks exactly the same. It’s important that you look at different presentation methods to decide which one is right for you. Though some students use an ordinary notebook, you may want to create a more professional teaching practicum portfolio. If you do use a notebook, you need to separate the book into different sections and create a cover that fits on the front. Some colleges now give students the option of creating digital portfolios too. You can use online resources to add colors, images, videos and even new fonts to the final portfolio that you hand in before graduating.
Become a Weeding Expert
As you look back over the time that you spent in college and in the classroom, you might feel tempted to include as much information as possible, but colleges prefer shorter portfolios. Before submitting your final project, go over each section and each page to determine what you can include and what you should leave out. Doris Dillon, who works in professional development, recommends weeding your portfolio for any unnecessary information.
Add Extra Information
Though you can and should weed through your teaching practicum portfolio, you can also look at some extra information that you can include. You might add a short video that another teacher took of you in the classroom or a video that shows you working with some of your students. A teaching portfolio can also include some basic or personal information about yourself, including the goals that you have for the future, a list of activities that you did with your students and a glossary of classes you took to prepare for your student teaching experience.
A student teaching practicum gives you valuable experience working with students prior to graduating from college. Many colleges now require that education students create a portfolio that provides the college with information about what they did in the field. Preparing for your teaching practicum portfolio is easier when you know what to include and the presentation methods you can use.
See also: Top 10 Best Online Master of Arts in Teaching Degree Programs
