Victoria Wilson's Teaching Portfolio

Here you will find each INTASC standard in bold as well as a link to a sample assignment sheet, rubric, student example, or explanation that demonstrates how I've met each standard (with a brief rationale for each artifact beneath each standard).

INTASC Standards:

1. The teacher intern understands the central concepts, tools of inquiry, and structures of the discipline he or she teaches and can create learning experiences that make these aspects of subject matter meaningful to students.

To help make the subject matter meaningful for my students, I often had them complete quick-writes about how their personal experiences relate to the text.

For example, after reading an excerpt from Emerson's "Self-Reliance," students completed a quick-write about a time when they went against the majority. The following is a student example: Student Example

2. The teacher intern understands how students learn and develop and can provide learning opportunities that support a student's intellectual, social, and personal development.

I think it's important for students to work with their peers to complete tasks because collaboration allows students to bounce ideas off one another. As a a result, I often have students work with a partner to solve a problem or do an assignment. For example, I had my students work in pairs to complete the following graphic organizer: Graphic Organizer

3. The teacher intern understands how students differ in their approaches to learning and creates instructional opportunities that are adapted to diverse learners.

Because students come to the classroom with different strengths and weaknesses, I try to create assessments that are diverse in order to ensure that every student has the chance to shine. For example, I often give students the choice to prove to me that they understand something by expressing their comprehension through a drawing, multiple-choice quiz, or writing assignment. Here is an example of a drawing a student created to show me that he understood Edgar Allen Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher." Student Drawing

4. The teacher intern understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage student development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills.

To test whether my students understood the main ideas behind Lincoln's "Gettysburg Address," I asked my students to create bumper stickers that Lincoln could have given out during the speech. The following is an example of a bumper sticker that one of my students created: Bumper Sticker

5. The teacher uses an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to create a learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.

Using a SmartBoard, my students worked collaboratively to design a Civil War period home using the following website (see third activity on the right): Civil War Interactive Website

6. The teacher intern uses knowledge of effective verbal, non-verbal and media communication techniques and appropriate technology to foster active inquiry, collaboration, and supportive interaction in the classroom.

Using a SmartBoard, my students worked collaboratively to design a Civil War period home using the following website (see third activity on the right): Civil War Interactive Website

7. The teacher intern plans instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, state and national standards, students, and the community.

Read my sample unit plan to learn more about how I take into account state and national standards, students, and the community when developing lesson plans.

8. The teacher intern understands and uses formal and informal assessment strategies, consistent with instructional goals, to evaluate and ensure the continuous intellectual, social, and physical development of the learner.

When teaching vocabulary, I try to create both formal and informal assessments. I often have students fill out graphic organizers like this one. However, I also assign multiple-choice/matching tests like this one.

9. The teacher intern is a reflective practitioner who continually evaluates the effects of his or her choices and actions on others (students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community) and who actively seeks out opportunities to grow professionally.

While student teaching, I asked for feedback from my students, colleagues, and advisors to make sure that I was making good teaching decisions. I also talked with parents to get their opinions about assignments, student behavior, etc.

10. The teacher intern fosters relationships with school colleagues, parents, and agencies in the larger community to support students and well being.

I created a class wiki for my journalism students to serve as a way for collegues and parents to see my students' work. Feel free to visit the site at http://journalismchs.pbwiki.com/