PERSONAL TEACHING PORTFOLIO.

Personal teaching portfolio: meeting the person behind the teacher.

My name is Monica Molina Salas, I am a swimmer, reader, film critic, pet lover, wife, and daughter but most of the time a teacher. I graduated from the Distrital University Francisco José de Caldas in 2014, but I started teaching some years before that, so I can say that I have been a teacher for almost 12 years. I have had the opportunity to teach little children, pre-teenagers, teenagers, adults, and even other teachers. I do not know the precise moment when I decided to become a teacher, but I can say that it has always been something that I have felt as a call, ever since I was a little girl. I started as an English teacher, but then I was asked to teach math, which I dreaded at the beginning but now I know that if it had not been for that particular experience I would have known the awesomeness of teaching content. Nowadays I work as a self-contained teacher in the fourth grade I there is nothing I love the most than the feeling I have when I start each learning experience.

"If we create a culture where every teacher believes they need to improve, not because they are not good enough, but because they can be even better there is no limit to what we can achieve" -Dylan William.

Personal teaching porfolio, a window to my process of growth as a teacher by becoming once again a student.

Through the 12 years of being an educator, I have realized that my philosophy of teaching goes around recognizing the uniqueness of each child to cultivate an environment where they can succeed intellectually, emotionally, and socially. My goal is to foster an atmosphere that empowers students to reach their full potential, providing a safe space where they can feel comfortable sharing ideas and taking academic risks. My purpose as a facilitator is to encourage curiosity-driven learning and offer students options to guide their learning journey. Collaborative teamwork and collaboration are key aspects of my teaching practices, therefore in classes, there will always be opportunities for group work and discussions to plant the value of collective achievement. Finally, and of course, as an English teacher, I highlight the importance of learning English to help students become citizens of the world.

So as to achieve those professional and personal objectives as an educator, some years ago I realized that continuous professional development is key, thus I decided to start studying for my master's degree in English Didactics for Self-directed Learning at the University of La Sabana, so to all the hats that I wear, now I also add the hat of the learner.

What I have learned.

I believe I now have a better understanding of learning as well as its importance in my teaching practices.

Personal teaching portfolio, a way to track down my learning process.

I have always known that as a teacher I never stop learning. I remember that when I started teaching content I felt that the more I wanted to teach my students about microbiomes, the structure of the government, ancient civilizations, etc, the more I had to learn about those topics and also how to connect them to the English learning process; that is when I knew that I had to look for a post-graduate program that would offer me the chance to understand those connections better. That is when I joined the master's degree in English Didactics for Self-directed Learning at the University of La Sabana where I am currently taking the subject called Reflective teaching and learning in context, which through participation in class discussions, forums, peer assessment, self-assessment activities I have learned the following aspects:

Meaningful Reflection: We started the course discussing the importance of reflection and from the texts and exchange of ideas in the forums I can now say that to make sure that reflection is meaningful, it should be concise, shared with others, structured (perhaps using rubrics), and in some cases structured based on academic studies. This approach helps avoid forced reflection and promotes deeper insights into teaching practices. For example, incorporating rubrics into my reflection process can provide a clear structure for assessing my teaching practices and areas for improvement just as we did in the assessment of lesson plan activity.

Emotional Aspect of Reflection: One key aspect that I can say that I will for sure take with me is the fact that reflection is more about the feelings experienced after teaching rather than just analyzing performance. Paying attention to feelings, especially negative ones, can lead to more profound and impactful reflections that drive improvement. For instance, reflecting on times when I felt unsettled after a class can lead to valuable insights and adjustments in my teaching approach.

Particularity, practicality, and possibility: The post-method pedagogy symbolizes a change in the direction of a more dynamic and responsive approach to teaching languages, with an emphasis on contextualization, flexibility, and critical reflection to empower both teachers and students. When I had to write about an anecdote in which I consider I influenced my students I could see the true effect of those concepts because I was able to comprehend that incorporating cultural elements into language teaching can enrich students' learning experiences and help them develop a deeper understanding of diverse perspectives. This approach can enhance students' sense of identity and belonging in the classroom.

Pedagogical Philosophy and Autonomy: Through the lens of Constance Kamii and the discussion in the forums I take with me that Piaget's legacy emphasizes the importance of autonomy in decision-making, which can empower learners to make informed choices and develop not just cognitively, but also morally and ethically.

Lesson plan.

Personal teaching portfolio, the collection of reflection about my teaching practices.

The process of designing a lesson plan for one of my classes was somewhat challenging in the sense that it has been a long time since I have not had to use a specific format for that, so in a way, I felt that I was starting from scratch and that although I considered that I had all the elements I did not know how to organize them all, however, in my initial lesson plan, I consciously composed an inquiry-based activity within the context of our unit on "How we express ourselves," focusing on the relationship between art, science, and human history.

As the central idea of the unit was "People express their world's perception through arts and science," my purpose was to encourage students to get immersed in the different ways humans communicate, create, and innovate across different historical periods. I structured the lesson in a way that I considered it could contain various engaging elements: I used an "exploration table" as a way to revise previous concepts, followed by students selecting an invention or work of art from a specific historical period and exploring its context, creator's biography, and influence on artistic or scientific production.

The end of the lesson involved students presenting their findings through the use of graphic organizers. Collaborative team was key in a way that students could discuss all the aspects that were mentioned before with the members of their group and also to develop their communicative skills. The end of the lesson involved students presenting their findings through the use of graphic organizers. Collaborative team was key in a way that students could discuss all the aspects that were mentioned before with the members of their group and also to develop their communicative skills.

After the peer assessment and teacher assessment moments, I recognized the need for improvement in several areas. Firstly, I felt concerned regarding time management, a common challenge in putting into practice this type of inquiry-based learning experiences. I realized that giving sufficient time for students to engage deeply in their discussion process was essential.

I also identified opportunities to strengthen differentiation strategies to handle the diverse needs of students. This involved the use of conversation models as a way to support learners with specific needs or those who may require additional structure to fully engage in the activity. Additionally, while the lesson included a self-assessment component through the reflection stage using the SOLO taxonomy, I recognized the importance of integrating more formative assessment strategies throughout the lesson to monitor student understanding and provide real-time feedback.

Overall by the time I had to implement the lesson plan, I felt satisfied with the adjustments that I made and I consider that those truly made the difference in the engagement of the students with the lesson.

My students.

Personal teaching portfolio, reflection upon my teaching practices by hearing the voices of my students.

Based on the adjustments that I made to the lesson plan and after that, its implementation, I can say that my students demonstrated significant learning outcomes and achieved the proposed learning goals effectively. Throughout the lesson, I could see that they learned about the relationship between art, science, and human history, as well as the diverse ways in which humans express themselves using these elements.

The learning goals proposed in the lesson were two: first, to encourage students to explore and understand the relationship between art, science, and human history; second, to foster collaboration, critical thinking, and communication skills through group discussions and presentations. Based on my observations during the lesson implementation, I observed that students actively participated in group discussions, shared their ideas and perspectives, and collaborated effectively to explore the meaning of the object they brought to the class. Additionally, during the discussion, students demonstrated confidence in their engagement with their peers in meaningful discussions.

The evidence that allows me to say that students achieved these learning goals comes from different sources. Firstly, I can say that when I was teaching the lesson and when I watched the recording of the class I could see that student engagement and participation throughout the lesson were notably high, showing their interest and involvement in the learning process. Secondly, the discussions carried out by students show their understanding of the content and their ability to articulate their thoughts effectively. Also, the use of formative assessment strategies, such as self-assessment using the continuum and the use of a language checklist, provided valuable understanding of students' comprehension and progress, allowing me to measure their understanding and provide timely feedback.

Reflecting on this experience, I am grateful for the feedback provided by my peers and my professor so I could implement effective adjustments to the lesson plan to improve student engagement and reach the learning outcomes. I consider that although this was a successful lesson, it works as a tool for me to keep in mind the importance of incorporating inquiry-based learning experiences, differentiation strategies, and formative assessment techniques to accommodate the diverse needs of students and promote meaningful learning experiences.

What? So what? Now what? :Listen to my final reflections on this course.