I have identified a range of artifacts that demonstrate my competency in the ability to engage in professional development.
Competency Artifacts
- Artifact 1 for Competency 5 Engage in Professional Development_enrollment in Purdue’s Master of Science in Education in Learning Design and Technology
- Artifact 2 for Competency 5 Engage in Professional Development_EDCI 67200 Advanced Practices in Learning Systems Design
- Artifact 3 for Competency 5 Engage in Professional Development_56000 Educational Technology for Teaching and Learning
- Artifact 4 for Competency 5 Engage in Professional Development_High Performance Learning Journey® “Champion” Badge from Promote International®
This narrative explains various artifacts that support the primary characteristic of engaging in professional development, which is demonstrating the disposition for life-long learning and continuous professional development.
Artifact 1: My enrollment in Purdue’s Master of Science in Education in Learning Design and Technology.
I spent my first few years teaching contemplating what it was that I would study for a graduate degree. After attending professional development workshops in the field of education and pursuing topics of interest, I gave a range of possible masters some serious consideration. Certain experiences led me to study instructional design and technology. My initial experiences with instructional design outside of my classroom sparked my curiosity. Some of these experiences were: playing a role in organizational change, developing units of study based on education standards, continued to research programs, modifying units based on learners’ needs, and implementing labs that provided opportunities for colleagues to learn from one another. In my work, I found myself beginning to analyze the administrators’ approaches, asking myself why things worked and why they did not. I gained further experience in differentiating instruction based on data collection and designing programs to fit individuals’ needs. I worked on multiple teams to introduce and train other teachers in needs assessments and instructional approaches to improve programs and their outcomes. Through these experiences, I started to recognize my strengths as an influencer and a strategic thinker and knew I had to learn more.
Artifact 2: My reflection on developing expertise for EDCI: 67200 Advanced Practices in Learning Systems Design.
The course, Advanced Practices in Learning Systems Design took a case-based approach to design instructional solutions to authentic problems. The reflection is an analysis using the article, “Instructional Design Expertise: How Will We Know IT When We See It?” by Peggy A. Ertmer and Donald A. Stepich (2005) in which I reflect on my four case analyses from “The ID Case Book: Case Studies in Instructional Design” (4th ed.). For each case study, I analyzed the problem, presented possible solutions, and gave a recommendation.
One reason the reflection qualifies as an artifact for professional development is that I had to identify what areas of Ertmer & Stepich expert design thinking (2005) I did well and what areas I need to improve and why I need to learn these thinking skills. Another reason this reflection qualifies as evidence of continuous life-long learning is that at the end, I identified the following areas as areas I need to continue to learn:
- Expert design thinking skills
- A deeper understanding of each ADDIE phase
- Rapid-prototyping and using an iterative approach to design.
Artifact 3: My completion of Purdue’s technology badges in 56000 Educational Technology for Teaching and Learning
Another evidence of my ongoing learning is my participation in completing badges that deepened my understanding of digital tools by creating micro projects using the tools.
I have so far completed the following badges:
- Evernote – research and note-taking software
- Creately – mapping software
- Popplet – mapping software
- iMovie – video production software
- Audacity – audio production software
- PowerPoint – presentation software
- WordPress – website development software
- Adobe Captivate – eLearning Software
- TouchMath – math application
Artifact 4: High Performance Learning Journey® “Champion” Badge from Promote International®
I participated in the Brinkerhoff Certification for High Performance Learning Journeys® and completed my “Champion” badge. I will continue this certification at a later date to pursue my “Architect” badge. I chose to participate in this course to have a deeper understanding of human performance improvement methodologies that pertain to instructional design (Brinkerhoff Certification – for High Performance Learning Journeys®).
I will continue to engage in on-going professional learning. My goal is for it to be intentional and focused so that it is useful for my practice. Similarly to how I would approach a project by beginning with a needs analysis, I want to understand what my needs are and be objective about filling their gaps.
References:
Brinkerhoff Certification – for High Performance Learning Journeys®. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://promoteint.com/brinkerhoff-certification-for-high-performance-learning-journeys/
Ertmer, P. A., Quinn, J. A., & Glazewski, K. D. (2014). The ID Case Book: Case studies in instructional design (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Ertmer, P. A., & Stepich, D. A. (2005). Instructional design expertise: How will we know it when we see it. Educational Technology, 45(6), 38-43.
Allison Brinkerhoff 