Emily: The watercolor background of Emily's site immediately strikes me as interesting. While professional sites and blogs should typically be simple and clean, as an artist, I can't help but admire someone who chooses a beautiful abstract painting as a background. Not surprisingly, since Emily is a Secondary English Education major, she doesn't have an issue with general mechanics. The layout of her blog is clean and easy to read. Her Google site is put together well, but it seems impersonal—with the exception of her resume, of course. Also, she includes attachments and organizes her pages well.
Martha: Martha's blog uses a popular template depicting a grassy field and dandelion seeds, so, naturally, it's pleasing on the eyes. However, Martha does very little to format her blog posts, such as using links, boldface font, or bullet-point lists. Her Google site has an easy-to-use table of contents on the side of the page, and she includes a philosophy of teaching in the form of a letter; a link to a file containing her resume is attached. I like that she has the file attachments but also the text on her actual site, because that makes her page easier to use and read.
Harper: While I don't mind the bookcase background of Harper's blog, I'm confused by the "about me" and archive sections being placed at the bottom. With blogs, I'm used to seeing someone's biographical information at the side, although I admit Harper's layout allows for easier reading of the posts themselves. I also don't like the "ED 483" title of her blog. Her Google site's homepage has a quote that is partially layered over an image, which doesn't look good. Also, her philosophy of education and resume are near the bottom of her links in the table of contents, and they should be featured higher up.
Part two of my post about e-portfolios will be to answer a few questions.
What is a teaching portfolio or an electronic teaching portfolio?
An online teaching portfolio may include a blog or website describing an educator's experiences relating to the field of teaching. The content should be appropriate and professional, and it may include items such as resumés or lesson plans.
Why would I need a teaching portfolio?
While I don't know how many employers actually look at teaching portfolios, they can help to establish an educator's voice. Sometimes it's nice to see the person behind the resumé, and a job interview may not necessarily give employers a dimensional enough view of the applicant.
When should I start compiling a portfolio?
A portfolio can be useful around the point of student teaching, because the aspiring teacher will be applying for jobs soon and will also have many experiences to share (I presume).
So, exactly how should I start building my teaching portfolio? In other words, what are the foundations to my e-portfolio?
Foundations for an e-portfolio include basic biographical information, statement of purpose, resumé, cover letter, and in-depth descriptions of notable achievements with supplemental content (e.g. a video of presenting at an education conference). An teaching e-portfolio may also include personal work, such as photography, lyric essays, etc.
Monica, Excellent blog am not very good point on your materials listed. Your example showing a disparity between the about me information and the blog personal information is something I did not consider and will now take a closer look at. Your understanding of the materials to be included is noticed and relevant.
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