Professional Preparation Self-Reflection Presentation

Prior to beginning work on this assignment,

• Read the standards guide from the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) 2010 NAEYC Standards for Initial & Advanced Early Childhood Professional Preparation Programs (Links to an external site.).
• Review the activities you have completed throughout this course to identify artifacts (completed work from your discussions and assignments), which show your growing mastery of the NAEYC competencies.
• Find at least two scholarly, peer-reviewed, or other credible sources of information on teacher competencies.

Lino (2016) argued “teachers need to know the developmental characteristics of children in order to select appropriate materials. . . to address children’s needs, interests and rights, and create provocative learning environments that challenge the children and promote their learning and development” (p. 9). Furthermore, the author emphasizes the importance of understanding the interrelatedness of domains of development. In addition, Akkoyunlu, Menzi Çetin, and Dağhan (2016) promoted the importance of pre-service teachers engaging in reflective thinking experiences to help transfer knowledge gained to the learning environment. Consequently, this final presentation provides you the opportunity to reflect on your learning throughout this course, demonstrate your mastery of professional competencies, analyze how domains of development are interrelated, and discuss how this knowledge will serve you in achieving your professional goals.

Throughout your degree, you have been building a personal electronic portfolio, or ePortfolio. Your ePortfolio will serve as a tool for you to track your professional and academic progress. In the capstone or last class, you will use your ePortfolio to reflect on your development across the program. Once you graduate, it can also be used to demonstrate your skills and competencies to potential employers and the professional community.

This assignment helps you add content to Portfolium, the ePortfolio tool being used by this university. As an Ashford student, you not only will have access to Portfolium during your time at Ashford, but you will retain lifetime unlimited access after leaving the university without fees or capacity limit. You can access your account by selecting “Portfolium” in the left navigation menu in your Canvas classroom, or by using the following link: Ashford University Portfolium (Links to an external site.). In ECE101, you should have already set up your account. If this has not been done, please start at Step 1: Getting Started in Portfolium.

Step 1: Getting Started in Portfolium

Complete the following:

• View the video What Is Portfolium (Links to an external site.).
• Review Join or Login With Your School Credentials (SSO) (Links to an external site.).
• Review the Portfolium help articles on the web page Portfolium (Links to an external site.).
• Review how to set up your homepage and profile at the Profile Section (Links to an external site.).

Step 2: Learning Activity

For this final project, you will create a PowerPoint presentation as evidence of your professional competency. The following steps will help you develop your presentation:

Part 1: Reflect on the key concepts and ideas addressed in each week of this course, and select artifacts (from the discussions and assignments) that you feel best demonstrate your mastery of five NAEYC Professional Preparation Standards outlined below. You will choose two artifacts for each of the following NAEYC Professional Preparation Standards:

• 1a: Knowing and understanding young children’s characteristics and needs, from birth through age 8
• 1b: Knowing and understanding the multiple influences on early development and learning
• 1c: Using developmental knowledge to create healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging learning environments for young children
• Two more of your choice

Part 2: After identifying the artifact and accompanying standard, prepare for your PowerPoint presentation by drafting a detailed explanation of each artifact’s significance by providing evidence of meeting that competency. These explanations should not just provide a description of the artifact, but should address the following: why the artifact was chosen, how it relates to the competency, what you learned from the experience, how the artifact demonstrates the interrelatedness of development domains, and how you might use the knowledge gained in your current or future practice.  

Part 3: Once you have finished your drafting exercise, create a PowerPoint presentation based on the planning steps above. Your presentation must address all of the following prompts in the table:

Identify

• Identify each artifact have you selected (Two per required competency and two of your choosing for a total of 10).
• Match the artifact to a specific NAEYC competency.

Apply

• Explain how this artifact addresses the competency.
• Expand in the notes section on how each artifact selected corresponds to a specific NAEYC competency

Evaluate

• Provide a rationale for how the artifact demonstrates your mastery and proficiency of the competency.
• Determine how this artifact will aide you in fostering student learning.
• Explain how this artifact serves to demonstrate that domains of development are interrelated.
• Provide a justification for how this artifact might influence your current or future teaching and self-learning.
• Elaborate in the notes section on any additional information necessary to explain or show mastery of the competencies

Step 3: Submit to Portfolium and Waypoint

Complete the following:

• Now you are ready to add to your Portfolium. This project should represent you and be appropriate for sharing with colleagues and professionals. Click “Portfolium” in the left navigation menu in the course. This is where your presentation will be uploaded.
• Submit your PowerPoint presentation to your instructor through the Waypoint assignment submission button (make sure that your title slide contains the Portfolium link, and check that your link works before submitting it).

Professional Preparation Self-Reflection Presentation

• Must be a least 10 (two per competency) slides in length (not including title and references slides) and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center’s How to Make a PowerPoint Presentation (Links to an external site.)
• Must include a separate title slide with the following:
  • Title of presentation
  • Student’s name
  • Course name and number
  • Instructor’s name
  • Date submitted
  • Portfolium link
• Must use at least two scholarly, peer-reviewed, or other credible sources to support your presentation. Be sure to cite these in APA format on the reference page, as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center’s APA Style (Links to an external site.) See the Formatting Your References List (Links to an external site.)resource in the Ashford Writing Center for specifications.
  • The Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.) table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a particular assignment.
  • To assist you in completing the research required for this assignment, view this Ashford University Library Quick ‘n’ Dirty (Links to an external site.)tutorial, which introduces the Ashford University Library and the research process and provides some library search tips.
• Must include a separate reference slide that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. See theFormatting Your References List (Links to an external site.) resource in the Ashford Writing Center for specifications.