Poster presented at the 2015 AAEEBL conference

1. Central
Ques�ons
&
Goals
Assuming that a sense of self-agency is central to
student engagement, what are the opportunities for
involving students in researching, identifying, and
setting their own goals for competency development?
What can educators do to support the development of
self-directed professional learning capabilities?
The assignment described in this case study is
designed to help students personalize program and
concentration competencies: prioritize, add to, and
customize the goals that our program has identified for
their professional development.
The
Learning
Context
In 2012 the Northeastern University’s Master of
Education faculty identified program- and
concentration-level competencies and introduced an
ePortfolio requirement to help students reflect on their
developing capabilities. It is our contention that work
surrounding competencies should:
Engage students in inquiry and visionary thinking;
Create opportunities for generative self-critique;
Be interpreted, applied, and connected; and
Promote dialogue on possibilities for the future self.
The PCM assignment is transformative (Elmendorf,
2015) because it helps students increase knowledge
about their domain, the world, and themselves as they:
1. Research and evaluate developments in their field,
2. Identify competencies that are/will be in demand,
3. Self-assess to set goals and identify customized
strategies for personal development.
The PCM is embedded in How People Learn, the
eLearning and Instructional Design (eLID) Master’s
gateway course, and an elective in Higher Education
Administration. eLID students revisit their PCMs in
the course Connecting Theory and Practice at the
midpoint of their studies and again in the Capstone.
Sample
Student
Reflec�ons
and
Professional
Outcomes Assignment
Excerpt
Gail
Ma�hews-­‐DeNatale,
Ph.D.
Assistant
Teaching
Professor
Graduate
School
of
Educa�on
Northeastern
University
Laurie
Poklop,
Ed.D.
Center
for
Advancing
Teaching
&
Learning
Through
Research
Northeastern
University
Carolyn Harris Named Director of Academic Advising
for the College of Architecture and Urban Studies
Virginia Tech News
Blacksburg, Va., Dec. 2, 2014
Carolyn Harris has been named
Director of Academic Advising
at the College of Architecture &
Urban Studies at Virginia Tech.
In her new position, Harris will
provide academic advising
support to more than 1,600
undergraduate students in the
college's four schools and
assist in identifying goals and objectives for student
success. She will also provide leadership and support for the
college's other academic advisors and faculty advisors.
“As director of academic advising, Carolyn will play a
crucially important role in our college. She will be part of
our leadership team, not only in student advising, but also in
recruitment, retention, and enrollment management as well
as faculty affairs and administration,” said Jack Davis.
N
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10�
�
�
M.Ed.
Competencies
Ra�ng
Systems Thinker
Perceives self as an educator participating within a larger system of education
Demonstrates strategic awareness
Looks for patterns and makes connections
Sees how parts relate to the whole, implications of change for organizations
Communicator
Proficient as a writer and as a presenter
Capacity to work within groups to listen well, speak well, and co-author
Ability to collaborate in a range of modalities (face-to-face and online)
Facile with technologies relevant to communication, such as social media
Creative Problem Solver
Situational awareness and leadership in identifying and defining challenges
Thinks creatively to generate ideas and be open to alternatives
Develops and implements plans for addressing problems and effecting change
Is resilient in less-than-optimal circumstances
Culturally Responsive
Perceives the professional self as functioning within a global context of
education
Aware of the dynamics of race, class, gender, and other cultural factors within
community dynamics and intercultural communication
Interest in, and capacity to perceive, multiple perspectives
Self-aware of cultural perspective and privilege
Capacity to serve as an agent of social justice
Additional Competencies
What additional competencies will you need to pursue your professional vision?
This signature assignment is designed to help you envision the skills
and competencies you need to develop as you progress toward your
desired professional expertise. One of the capacities that experts
possess is the ability to evaluate and direct their own continuing
learning, otherwise known as the capacity for metacognition and self-
directed learning. These capacities, too, can be developed through
deliberate practice, and this assignment is designed to provide you
with such practice.
Week 3
Research: Within the Class Competencies Wiki, pool your background
research findings:
Identify and analyze “dream job” advertisements to discern the
skills, abilities, and attributes that are important to your future.
Research articles, white papers, blog posts to anticipate challenges
and opportunities on the horizon in your field. These developments
foreshadow competencies that will be in increasing demand. You
have an opportunity to shape the future of your profession, and this
visionary thinking helps you identify attributes to cultivate.
Weeks 4-5
Reconcile: Within your individual Program ePortfolio, compare
findings from the wiki exercise with competencies the Master of
Education faculty have identified as important for your development.
Personalize: Consider the present and possible future state of your
profession (or the profession to which you aspire), then expand your
list of competencies to include those you identified as important
during your background research.
Self-Assess: Rate your current level of expertise for each competency.
Look for patterns of strength and developmental need. Write a
companion narrative, grounding your assertions in evidence (e.g.,
work samples and specific stories of prior experience).
Strategize: Based on your self-assessment, identify and consider
specific opportunities for focusing and customizing your workplace-
based, formal, and informal learning. These materials (rating, self-
assessment, and strategy) are your PCM, which you will keep in your
ePortfolio for periodic updates and ongoing reference.
As a first generation student, my dream job
is to help those who want an education to
get one. There are a lot of avenues that
could fulfill that dream but I found my
niche in educational technology and
instructional design …
What I did not expect to find in my
research of the field was a focus on project
management. If I want to develop
pedagogically sound online and mobile
learning objects, then I will most certainly
be working with a team, which means that I
will need project management skills.
Home
|
Professional
Profile
|
Goals
|
My
Program
|
Learning
Outcomes
Amberlynn Grove
How surprised I am at my honesty
when revealing my areas of
weakness. Many times we tend not
to want to explore our weak spots
because it creates vulnerability.
My low self-scores on competencies
associated with Professional
Expertise reveals my need for formal
education in this specialty … I
believe exposing these areas now is
the only way to turn them into
strengths later.
Home|
Professional
Profile
|
Goals
|
My
Program
|
Learning
Outcomes
|
Connec�ons
Melanie Brooks
Addi�onal
Competencies
Ra�ng
What additional competencies will you need to pursue your professional vision?
Carolyn
applied
for
a
“Dream
Job”
she
iden�fied
during
the
background
research
phase
of
the
assignment.
The
PCM
helped
her
iden�fy
and
speak
to
her
strengths.
She
was
selected
for
the
posi�on
before
the
course
ended.