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CTE - Reflective Teaching

This guide provides resources and best practices for fauclty engaged in reflective teaching. These include resources on creating a teaching portfolio and teaching philosophy.

A teaching portfolio is an integral component of a professional educator’s dossier. In addition to providing career-spanning evidence of teaching effectiveness, a teaching portfolio should be used to highlight a commitment to reflective teaching and ongoing professional development.  

 

When creating your teaching portfolio:

  • Create a carefully curated portfolio 
  • Invest time in the structure and layout of your portfolio 
  • Designate a location for saving portfolio elements (cloud storage, an analog file) 
  • Update your portfolio at least once per year
  • Update your CV at the time that you update your portfolio 

 

Elements of a Teaching Portfolio 

The following elements are standard for a teaching portfolio:

Creating Digital Portfolios

Faculty members are highly encouraged to create digital teaching portfolios because they are

 

Flexible. Digital portfolios are easy to update since the structure for them is decided at the beginning of the process. They allow faculty members to quickly change and add elements as they progress in their teaching without having to change formatting, page numbers, and the like. Digitizing your portfolio also gives you the flexibility to add multimedia elements (such as video) to allow you to showcase not only your face-to-face abilities, but your online, hybrid, and blended as well.

 

Customizable. Unlike analogy portfolios, digital portfolios are fully customizable. You can choose the format and layout of your portfolio that reflects your teaching style. This will also encourage readers to review your portfolio and look for specific elements in a more holistic, non-linear way. 

 

Accessible. Digital portfolios are easy to share, which will make it easier for peers to review and assess your portfolios during reviews, rank, and promotion considerations. If you are seeking an award or certificate, digital portfolios will be easy to share with the committee and mentor. Finally, these portfolios allow you to publicize your best teaching practices with the entire higher education community, which means you can help to improve the teaching and learning of students beyond our institution. 

 
To create a digital portfolio you can use
 
  • One Note through your Office 365 account
  • Portfolios in our LMS (Blackboard)
  • Website-creating platforms such as Wordpress or Wix.

 

Consult the CTE or your mentor about which choice is right for your needs.

 

Additional Resources 

Statement of Teaching Philosophy, CTE@CPC

Compiling a Teaching Portfolio: An Introduction, Inside Higher Ed  

Developing an Effective Teaching Portfolio, The Chronicle of Higher Education 

Teaching Portfolios, Vanderbilt University’s Center for Teaching