Descriptive

Artifact 1 shows a letter from the parent of an ESL student who requested extra help for her daughter in ELA and social studies. The student had fallen behind in her work. My mentor teacher forwarded the letter to me and asked me to contact the parent, which I did, to set up after-school tutoring sessions. This is normal for ESL learners at Carver because there are no official ESL classes. Students cannot be pulled out of their regular classes to get tutoring or work on other subject areas. Therefore, staying after school for one or two hours has been common throughout the semester. I have provided after-school tutoring to many of the ELLs at Carver. I have helped them with their science, math, and social studies assignments. Tutoring takes place after school. My mentor teacher got permission from parents in advance to drive students home and feed them packaged snacks and packaged drinks during tutoring sessions. The principal approved this at the start of the school year. 

The thought of communicating with families was not something I anticipated before I was a PGMT student. I can understand why this connection is essential. I spoke with the parents of five ELLs throughout the semester via cell calls, texts, and in-person. These communications did not always result in the desired outcome. Still, in every case, this parental connection helped foster trust with the EL students and made parents feel included in their child’s school experience. This gave them confidence or a sense of empowerment over their child’s progress and standing in school to a certain extent. 

Artifact 2 shows evidence of collaboration and collegiality with the ELA PLC. The members of the PLC and I collaboratively designed this lesson, and I delivered it for my second evaluation cycle. My mentor teacher’s observations were not required. Still, she observed the lesson anyway and provided feedback doing her part to maintain a high level of collaboration and collegiality within the PLC. The members of the PLC and I referred to my mentor teacher’s feedback to make adjustments for the next co-designed lesson. One area identified as needing improvement was technology in delivering formative assessments. I was asked to create a Kahoot, Peardeck, or Nearpod-based assessment for the next lesson instead of simply drawing up a printed exit ticket.

Artifact 3 reflects the expansive range of my commitment to collaboration and collegiality. During my fall placement, per the approval of my mentor teacher, I participated in an international online conference hosted by the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Hidalgo in Mexico.

As a language teacher, I have collaborated with my teaching partners at UAEH since 2014 to bring domestic language students together with EFL learning peers to cultivate authentic immersion opportunities with native speakers for both groups. The benefit for language learners is clear. Could ELLs benefit from international virtual exchanges if neither group has native skills to offer their partner? Could U.S. ESL students benefit from a virtual connection with peer learners in their home country to learn content areas bilingually? This pedagogical structure could provide the framework for a mutually beneficial instructional partnership. This is precisely the pedagogical scenario my partners at UAEH and other schools abroad are currently exploring. The same virtual exchange structures and contexts used to cultivate immersion and practice for language learners could have immense pedagogical value for ELLs. And we discussed those possibilities during the presentation. 

Analytic

I selected this evidence because it demonstrates the range of my commitment to collaboration and collegiality with my PLC, other faculty members at my placement site, parents of ELLs, and other stakeholders in the school community. The communications with the ELL student’s mother, as shown in Artifact 1, demonstrate a commitment to fostering student development and growth. The parent sent a letter to the ELL instructor, my mentor teacher, about getting extra help for her child, who was falling behind. My mentor teacher forwarded the letter to me and asked me to help. I reached out to the parent, as the text messages show. I sent her a list of the missing assignments and made myself available to help. Artifact two reflects a positive working relationship with my mentor teacher. Her eagerness to observe and write feedback, even though it was not required for Cycle 2, shows that collaboration and collegiality were strong in my spring placement.

My mentor teacher’s recommendations were discussed at the next PLC meeting, and we cohesively planned strategies for improving the lessons for evaluation cycles 3 and 4. The flow of collaboration and collegiality across the complex relationships in my clinical experiences shows that I am amply prepared to engage in leadership roles that connect school community members to foster student development and growth.

Reflective

Collaboration and collegiality are one of my strengths as a teacher. I enjoyed interacting with my ELL’s parents on student progress, tutoring opportunities, classroom behavior, and general well-being. One parent asked me to help him understand the requirements and steps for his son to play on the school soccer team. I assembled a packet with the required forms and explained the process to him. I enjoyed doing it, and I felt good about helping the students and their families with something that will lead to the child being more integrated with their school community. I would like to see myself grow and contribute to bridging the gaps in the school community between ELLs and their families and the rest of the community of stakeholders.