The e Portfolio is the future. The days of folders, binders, buckets, and baskets have given way to the portability, creativity, individuality, and universality of the e- Portfolio. As a veteran teacher, people will tell you that I am a paper lover. I read the majority of my science fiction, biographies, and other literature from a book- I need to feel the paper in my hands and listen to the rustle of the pages as I turn them. Until three years ago, I would have been one of those people who walked into an interview with a hard copy of my resume. Although, I will admit that a former colleague of mine scored kudos at a recent job fair for having her resume hard copy because the representatives for the various companies could not connect to the network they were supposed to be using.  I remember the days of folders and binders in high school and college, especially when the final grade was based on the reflection of the entire semester's work- especially in my creative writing, set design, costume and make- up design and play directing, classes.  My public speaking classes in college required video- taped submissions on VHS which the professor would collect and return the next class.  There were a few instances where the machine ate the tape, and work had to be redone with hours notice, though. 

I always believed that my journey to my own web site or e Portfolio would take years.  I was wrong.  Although I had teacher websites in the past through my various districts, I was never fully satisfied with what became of them.  Even though I am still learning about them, I believe I am off to a pretty solid start with this e Portfolio.  I have received commendations and recommendations about it, and am endeavoring to improve with each stage of my ADL journey.  There are basics I need to learn, and processes I need to master, but I feel this is something I will be proud of in the end.  I will admit I did not start off well. This is the third iteration of an e portfolio on my third site.  Wix was too confusing as was Wordpress. I am becoming more comfortable with Webador and enjoying the adventure.  My advice to others is not to copy someone else's format or look.  Find your own and make it authentic- make it you.  I am still frustrated with certain processes like embedding work into posts and not knowing the nitty gritty of it all.  Like the page title says, "It's the journey, not the destination YET!

As I started in this program, I really did not know what to expect.  The initial readings that were assigned truly opened my eyes to the direction things were going to take in the program.  As I progress in the program, I see Dweck's Growth Mindset as a driving force for what I need to do to become a better learner.  I believed I only needed to keep up with the professional journal to stay up to date, but that was erroneous.  I needed to look at my development as an educator by embracing the ideas of COVA +CSLE.  As I am given choice in this program, thus I have to grow to learn to give my students choice as well if I expect them to become the learners of tomorrow.  The idea of failing forward was not new to me, but I had never put it into practice.  The idea of looking at the positives that exist inside a failure and using them to improve is a concept I need to embrace and practice.

As my final compilation post for EDLD 5305, the information presented below is my plan for continuing toward my goal of the Blended Learning classroom.

Others are constantly helping us to learn.  We consume from and contribute to the learning of others throughout our lives.

As I look back on the course guidelines, I am reminded just how far I have come thus far.  As one of the first steps into my journey for a Master's degree, this program has already become so much more than that.  It is not the journey toward a degree, but a journey toward a philosophy of growth through choice, ownership, and voice.  Freedom to express myself has become the focus of my activities in the course. The collaboration that I have had with the other members of my cohort has been amazing.  I never thought that I could have created this ePortfolio almost entirely on my own.  I say almost entirely because my classmates have had a great deal of observation and input into this. It has been the creation of this ePortfolio that will allow me to better communicate my my colleagues and others.  This ePortfolio is also an example of the Growth Mindset because I did not expect to be able to do this to the extent I have.  I understand that there are improvements to be made, and I look forward to making them with the help of my Learning Networks in the Future.

As I look back on the course guidelines, I am reminded just how far I have come thus far.  As one of the first steps into my journey for a Master's degree, this program has already become so much more than that.  It is not the journey toward a degree, but a journey toward a philosophy of growth through choice, ownership, and voice.  Freedom to express myself has become the focus of my activities in the course. The collaboration that I have had with the other members of my cohort has been amazing.  The information provided and the coursework required long hours to complete, but I feel that I am a better learner for it.  This course have been an amazing start to my journey in Applied Digital Learning.

The Growth Mindset

Learning is a lifelong process that many people fail to cultivate.  Whether it be politics, finances, medicine, or any other field, people need to continue to keep current on the issues that affect them.  We live in an age of instant information and disinformation.  If we only look at one, we may fail to see that what we take in is corrupted and leads us to other bad information. 

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The e Portfolio is the future. The days of folders, binders, buckets, and baskets have given way to the portability, creativity, individuality, and universality of the e- Portfolio. As a veteran teacher, people will tell you that I am a paper lover. I read the majority of my science fiction, biographies, and other literature from a book- I need to feel the paper in my hands and listen to the rustle of the pages as I turn them. Until three years ago, I would have been one of those people who walked into an interview with a hard copy of my resume. Although, I will admit that a former colleague of mine scored kudos at a recent job fair for having her resume hard copy because the representatives for the various companies could not connect to the network they were supposed to be using.  I remember the days of folders and binders in high school and college, especially when the final grade was based on the reflection of the entire semester's work- especially in my creative writing, set design, costume and make- up design and play directing, classes.  My public speaking classes in college required video- taped submissions on VHS which the professor would collect and return the next class.  There were a few instances where the machine ate the tape, and work had to be redone with hours notice, though. 

I always believed that my journey to my own web site or e Portfolio would take years.  I was wrong.  Although I had teacher websites in the past through my various districts, I was never fully satisfied with what became of them.  Even though I am still learning about them, I believe I am off to a pretty solid start with this e Portfolio.  I have received commendations and recommendations about it, and am endeavoring to improve with each stage of my ADL journey.  There are basics I need to learn, and processes I need to master, but I feel this is something I will be proud of in the end.  I will admit I did not start off well. This is the third iteration of an e portfolio on my third site.  Wix was too confusing as was Wordpress. I am becoming more comfortable with Webador and enjoying the adventure.  My advice to others is not to copy someone else's format or look.  Find your own and make it authentic- make it you.  I am still frustrated with certain processes like embedding work into posts and not knowing the nitty gritty of it all.  Like the page title says, "It's the journey, not the destination YET!

As I started in this program, I really did not know what to expect.  The initial readings that were assigned truly opened my eyes to the direction things were going to take in the program.  As I progress in the program, I see Dweck's Growth Mindset as a driving force for what I need to do to become a better learner.  I believed I only needed to keep up with the professional journal to stay up to date, but that was erroneous.  I needed to look at my development as an educator by embracing the ideas of COVA +CSLE.  As I am given choice in this program, thus I have to grow to learn to give my students choice as well if I expect them to become the learners of tomorrow.  The idea of failing forward was not new to me, but I had never put it into practice.  The idea of looking at the positives that exist inside a failure and using them to improve is a concept I need to embrace and practice.

As my final compilation post for EDLD 5305, the information presented below is my plan for continuing toward my goal of the Blended Learning classroom.

Others are constantly helping us to learn.  We consume from and contribute to the learning of others throughout our lives.

As I look back on the course guidelines, I am reminded just how far I have come thus far.  As one of the first steps into my journey for a Master's degree, this program has already become so much more than that.  It is not the journey toward a degree, but a journey toward a philosophy of growth through choice, ownership, and voice.  Freedom to express myself has become the focus of my activities in the course. The collaboration that I have had with the other members of my cohort has been amazing.  I never thought that I could have created this ePortfolio almost entirely on my own.  I say almost entirely because my classmates have had a great deal of observation and input into this. It has been the creation of this ePortfolio that will allow me to better communicate my my colleagues and others.  This ePortfolio is also an example of the Growth Mindset because I did not expect to be able to do this to the extent I have.  I understand that there are improvements to be made, and I look forward to making them with the help of my Learning Networks in the Future.

As I look back on the course guidelines, I am reminded just how far I have come thus far.  As one of the first steps into my journey for a Master's degree, this program has already become so much more than that.  It is not the journey toward a degree, but a journey toward a philosophy of growth through choice, ownership, and voice.  Freedom to express myself has become the focus of my activities in the course. The collaboration that I have had with the other members of my cohort has been amazing.  The information provided and the coursework required long hours to complete, but I feel that I am a better learner for it.  This course have been an amazing start to my journey in Applied Digital Learning.

The Growth Mindset

Learning is a lifelong process that many people fail to cultivate.  Whether it be politics, finances, medicine, or any other field, people need to continue to keep current on the issues that affect them.  We live in an age of instant information and disinformation.  If we only look at one, we may fail to see that what we take in is corrupted and leads us to other bad information. 

Click here to add text.