Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL ePortfolio Proposal: Engaged Reflection for Future Growth Quentin Flokstra 50567072 ETEC590 Section 66A The University of British Columbia Dr. Franc Feng Spring/Summer 2015

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 1 ePortfolio: Engaged Reflection for Future Growth

Purpose The purpose of my ePortfolio (eP) is to create an online learning space to showcase and reflect upon my learning in the Masters of Educational Technology (MET) program at the University of British Columbia (UBC). Moon (2001) defines reflection as a form of mental processing that we use to fulfill a purpose to achieve some anticipated outcome (p.2). As such, this eP is primarily a personal opportunity to reflect upon, synthesize, and apply various technical skills and learning theories which were gained throughout the program. Moreover, this is an opportunity to demonstrate my own growth in understanding how to apply the use of educational technology within classrooms, as supported by sound pedagogical principles. As such, this eP will function as a space to show current and prospective employers of my own teaching philosophy and practices, particularly as it relates to the effective use of educational technology. As I work within an independent school in British Columbia, the need to satisfy the requirements for the British Columbia Teacher Qualification Services Category 6 is not necessary at this time, but may become a relevant factor at another point in my career. Within my own teaching environment, I am being asked to submit evidence of completion of the MET program in order to qualify for a new pay category. As such, this eP will provide, in part, that evidence. Audience The target audience of this eP is primarily those within the UBC MET community. Firstly, there is Dr. Francis Feng and other UBC instructors and

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 2 evaluators. Secondly, there are my peers in the program at this time, and those that will come after. Thirdly, I anticipate that professional colleagues and future employers may view this eP as a means of understanding my work and development within the MET program.

Objectives The objectives of my eP are as follows: Solidify my own learning process regarding the concepts and skills that have been covered throughout the MET program Demonstrate my knowledge and growth during the MET program Demonstrate my understanding of learning theories Demonstrate my understanding of the application of technology within classroom settings Demonstrate my research competencies Create a reflective space which is aesthetically pleasing and meaningful to myself and others Construct a metaphor which will link educational theory, my learning artifacts, and my reflections on my learning

Metaphor and Evidence/Artifacts As Brandes and Boskic (2008) note, an eP should not simply be a collection of artifacts but rather an opportunity to connect meaningfully with those artifacts. As they note, when we use metaphors, we are able to better illustrate [our] cognitive processes (Brandes & Boskic, 2008, p.14). As such, I am planning to use cooking as a framework for connecting the various aspects of the eP. One of my downtime

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 3 activities is cooking. Often I will use a recipe as a basis then, once I understand the end product, I will try put my own flair on the recipe and/or process. I make no claims to being a professional chef, but I will say that what I do is done well. I learn from my mistakes and I am not afraid of trying new things. As such, it is a great connection to the MET program and in being a life-long learner. Within the MET program, I have often tried to do new and interesting things with established ways of doing them. I do use established principles as they are fitting but adding my own flair is important. Moreover, having a good understanding of the essentials aids in being adaptable when faced with new challenges (i.e. new technologies). As such, having my personal/professional learning community (PLC) available for help is critical in aiding me to gain insights as needed. The cooking metaphor will be broken down into five elements. Firstly, there is choosing a recipe. This will look at the journey before I began my MET courses. There were other options out there, but I needed to assess the programs. I will include a reflection on this process and the considerations I made. Secondly, I will look at getting the essentials in place before cooking. Here, I will investigate the foundational courses of the MET program. Thirdly, I will look at putting my own flair into the recipes which will include the elective courses, including one that I did outside of MET. This will also include artifacts and reflections on some of the processes that I have tried within my own teaching environment. Fourthly, I will taste and enjoy as a reflective exercise of the whole portfolio with some reflections

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 4 and artifacts related to this course. Finally, I will also include a recipe book of tips, tricks, and tools that I have come across within the MET program. Within my eP, I will try to make the connections between cooking and my learning journey as indicated in the table below.

Getting the Essentials

(Core Courses)

Courses Artifact Ideas Link to Metaphor ETEC 500 Research Methodology -research proposal -article critiques It is important to have your essential in place when cook/bake. Sometimes you need reminders of the specific jargon needed when cooking. There are few essential tools when cooking (measuring spoons, spatulas, pans, etc.). In the same way, this course was foundational for the rest. Sometimes there were reminders of basics. Other times there were ways of pushing in how to look at a recipe (article critiques) and learning how to construct my own recipe (the research proposal) ETEC 511 Foundations of Educational Technology -theorizing et comic -research paper Instructional Design & e-texts -wiki page: History of Educational Technology

This was the first course that I took in the MET program. In many ways, it was like cooking on my own for the first time beyond survival cooking. When you learn how to really cook, you need to know the hows, whys, and techniques. It is also important to begin rationalizing ideas for doing things and learning new

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 5 ways doing things. Like cooking, I was able to hone my skills by being able to closely examine an area e with an in-depth look at e-texts. ETEC 512 -lesson plan critique -Information Processing website -thought papers Sometimes, we need to really spend time thinking about why things need to be cooked at certain temperatures and timing for certain recipes. We need to really understand the principles behind what we do. ETEC 512 really helped me reflect on educational theory and to solidify and challenge the way that I did things in my own classes. ETEC 510: Design of Technologically supported Leaning Environments -electronic textbook project and accompanying website -ETEC 510 wiki site (Twitter) This was the final foundational course that I took. It was a time to solidify some foundational aspects. It was also an opportunity to focus, as it were, on a favourite recipe, and to refine it and see what was possible. This I did by spending a lot of time working in a group to create a framework for the design of e-texts as well as to actually create an e-text. This was a big recipe! We found that our recipe (e-text) was not perfect, but we were able to set some very helpful parameters for the future of e-text research. Another project involved looking at the 510 wiki and making edits. In many ways, this is like taking one of my Moms or Grandmas recipe (an established

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 6 family tradition) and making some updates based on my own experience and research based on the current needs of my family.

Giving it some flair (elective courses )

Course Artifact Ideas Connection to Metaphors EDUC 540 (TWU) Christian Perspectives on Teaching and Pedagogy -professional growth plan -mini-research paper on motivating students -paper on fostering classroom community This course I took prior to the MET program and is linked to the community I am regularly part of. It is important to share recipes with our communities closest to us. In fact, it is within my faith communities that I will be sharing most of what Ive learned. As such, it is important to me to have this community provide some framework for some of my recipes. Moreover, as I noted, I took this course before MET and this whetted my appetite for what was possible in learning and growing. I also set out my own personal vision for growth and learning. ETEC 530 Constructivist Strategies for E-Learning -constructivism mind map -revised Socials 11 course website This course was a natural follow up to ETEC 512 in order to provide further rationale behind making choices. When I cook, I often appear to add spices at random and sometimes I feel that way too. However, there are reasons and I need to articulate those reasons to others. So, as I thought through constructivism, I applied and articulated the ideas in how I could see this

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 7 work more effectively in my own classes. Again, as with my own recipes, there is always room to tweak and improve in order to enhance it for myself, and more importantly, for my tasters. ETEC 531 Curriculum Issues in Cultural & Media Studies -need for digital literacy education video Sometimes it is fun to spend time dabbling in a particular area of interest or perceived expertise. For me, this is my stir-fries. I think I have a pretty solid recipe and a rationale to go with it, but it is good to evaluate that and to experiment with it. This was ETEC 531 for me. I thought I had a pretty good understanding of cultural and media studies. I also thought I was okay at video editing. Well, this course showed me that thinking through any area is beneficial. I was able to further refine my ideas around media education and was able to ground those ideas in research particularly regarding digital natives. So, while I did have a good beginning, I was able to refine it. I also learned how much work video editing is. In the same way, when I begin to go backwards with my recipes and create my own sauces rather than buying them, I realize the time needed to get the flavour just right. ETEC 532 Technology in the Arts and Humanities Classroom -integration of technology website Once again, this course was valuable in forcing me to articulate (and visualize) a

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 8 rationale for doing what I do. It was also good to think how I could best support other aspiring chefs as my integration of technology website project showed. ETEC 565A Learning Technologies: Selection, Design, and Application

-Moodle course (Guest Access password is @Canadian1) -565A Portfolio Digital Story This course pushed me to go off book more, much like cooking without the aid of recipe forces one to apply understanding and principles to create new and exciting dish. The first step to this was re-imagining a course that I have taught regularly, namely Socials 11. Launching this course onto Moodle was challenging and frustrating at times. This was like trying a new way of doing things. Another important thing was using new tools and techniques as I did with my digital story. I have told the story of how I got into teaching, but I wanted to present this in a way that would challenge me. I have used many digital tools so I wanted to use a new one, so I did to challenge myself.

Tasting and Enjoying Reflecting on the Process ETEC 590 Graduating Project -eP proposal -course site with introductory video Once you have cooked your dish, it is important to taste and enjoy the fruit of ones labour. Now, once I have learned a lot of new skills and principles, it is time to enjoy the whole fruit of my labour. It is like cooking a multi-course meal using a variety of techniques and

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 9 skills and recipes. And, like most meals, it is best if shared. And so, as I wrap up the MET journey, I reflect and enjoy with so many that I have met on the journey. Figure 1: Table of MET Artifacts as Linked to Metaphor

The Media For my eP, I plan to choose to use Wix. Having used other platforms in the past I wanted to use something new. I was impressed with the available theme options particularly since there is an easy to adapt cooking theme. Moreover the design and layout vision hat I have seems very workable. Overall, I plan to integrate many images representative of cooking from both my own pictures as well as those licensed under creative commons share-a-like attributes. I will use QuickTime player to screencast my guided tour of the eP and do my final edits using Final Cut Pro. The video will likely be uploaded to You Tube for a smooth integration into my website. The Procedure The following table contains a timeline meant to guide my completion of my eP.

Date Tasks to be Completed Week 4 (June 1-9) -discuss with peers ideas regarding eP -list and line MET artifacts -plan out metaphor for eP -complete a draft proposal for eP -create an assessment rubric for the completed eP Week 5 -review peers ePs and post comments

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 10 (June 10-14) -finalize platform choice for my own eP -read and consider feedback on my own eP -revise eP proposal as needed Week 6 (June 15-21) -examine and incorporate feedback -begin building website pages for eP -write reflections for artifacts for core courses -begin uploading artifacts to website Week 7 (June 22-28) -finalize artifact selection based on ongoing discussion with peers and PLN -write reflections for elective courses -select and choose images for website Week 8 (June 29 July 5) -revise and edit reflections -edit and refine artifacts -edit and refine images Week 9 (July 6-12) -provide artifacts for peer review -read and consider feedback give on my eP -incorporate feedback as needed Week 10 (July 13-19) -take overall view of website to ensure continuity with metaphor -edit and revise eP as needed -begin building page for ETEC 590 reflection -use assessment tool to self-assess my eP Week 11 (July 20-26) -provide information to peer reviewer to access rationale and framework -read and consider feedback on eP from peers -write script for guided tour Week 12 (July 27-August 2) -review and change eP as needed -reflect on changes made to this point and included on 590 reflection page -do guided tour of eP Week 13 (August 3-7) -complete video editing for guided tour of eP -upload and embed guided tour video

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 11 -submit and share completed eP to Discussion Forum -visit peers ePs -celebrate the journey Table 2: Schedule of Procedures

Assessment The assessment of my eP is meant to be a guide for my self-assessment as well as to provide a framework for the audience to use to assess the eP. The following table represents the key areas to consider when evaluating this eP. Purpose

Criteria Not Meeting Expectations

Meeting Expectations

Exceeding Expectations The objective of the eP is clearly identified and supported throughout the eP.

The content and artifacts are relevant to the students learning and are carefully chosen

Represents connections and applications of knowledge

Reflection Criteria Not Meeting

Expectations Meeting Expectations Exceeding Expectations Reflective thought is evident and demonstrates synthesis and analysis of content

Relates application of the knowledge gained in the MET program to current and future teaching practices

Provides analysis of concepts introduced through coursework and links to practical situations

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 12 Design & Layout

Criteria Not Meeting Expectations Meeting Expectations Exceeding Expectations The overall design is aesthetically pleasing and inviting to the viewer

Navigation between pages and artifacts is done easily Hyperlinks and attachments function as intended which allow the viewer to consistently remain with the relevant page, artifact, or external sites

Creative elements serve to enhance understanding of the overall theme of the eP

Design and layout decisions support the metaphor Mechanics

Criteria Not Meeting Expectations Meeting Expectations Exceeding Expectations The eP has no spelling or grammatical errors All sources are cited in APA format Images are cited and acknowledged

Teacher Qualification Services (TQS) Criteria Not Meeting

Expectations Meeting Expectations Exceeding Expectations Demonstrates an understanding of learning theories as they relate to the implementation and use of educational technology in the classroom

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 13 Demonstrates the ability to critically analyze educational technology theory and research

Demonstrates the ability to connect theory and research to practice Table 3: Assessment Criteria

Expected Outcomes / Conclusion As I take the time to wrap up both this proposal and my MET journey, I believe that taking this time to reflect on the overall learning journey to be beneficial. I believe that I as I reflect on each course and artifact, I will be reminded of many lessons that I learned, tools and techniques that I may have forgotten about, and I will see the growth that I have made in the last few years. By documenting this within my eP, I will be able to have an artifact of all the learning for myself and for my future employers. Finally, as I take on the design of this website, I will undoubtedly learn more design and layout skills as I purposefully design this website with a particular metaphor in mind. Overall, the process of reflection continues to remain at the forefront of this experience.

Running Head: EPORTFOLIO PROPOSAL 14 References

Brandes, G. & Boskic, N. (2008). Eportfolios: From description to analysis. International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, Open Access press. Moon, J. (2001). Reflection in higher education learning. LTSN Generic Centre. Retrieved January 26, 2015, from http://www.york.ac.uk/admin/hr/researcher-development/students/resources/pgwt/reflectivepractice.pdf