MyPortfolio in KU Leuven Language Teacher Education Programme Lies Sercu Kristof Demeyere, Gino Bombeke, Peter Vandamme KU Leuven Toledo development team
MyPortfolio in KU Leuven
Language Teacher
Education Programme
Lies Sercu
Kristof Demeyere, Gino Bombeke,
Peter Vandamme
KU Leuven Toledo development team
Overview
• Context: Language teacher education programme
• History: paper portfolio
• Toward EP: 4 years of developmental work
• MyPortfolio as is
• Advantages and remaining concerns
• Time for questions
CONTEXT
Language Teacher Education programme
• For master students who are familiar with KU Leuven
digital facilities and can work autonomously
• 2 main parts
– 30 ECTS theoretical courses + introduction into teaching
practice
– 30 ECTS school-based practice
• seminar digital competencies
• teaching practice for 2 languages = school internship
• diversity practice
• Teaching staff
– Theoretical part: KU Leuven staff (professors, lecturers, partime
contracted in-service teachers)
– Practical part: KU Leuven staff, contracted in-service teachers,
school mentors
Assessment and evaluation
• Assessment and evaluation of 30 ECTS theory:
– Exams and/or papers and/or permanent evaluation
• Assessment and evaluation of 30 ECTS teaching
practice
– Digital competencies: tasks and permanent evaluation in digital
course environment, as part of EP
– Teaching practice: EP
– Diversity practice: EP
• Assessors and evaluators
– Theoretical part: KU Leuven staff, lecturers, contracted in-
service teachers
– Practical part: KU Leuven staff, lecturers, contracted in-service
teachers: 4 school visits + assessment and evaluation of EP
– + school mentors as assessors
– + students’ self-assessment
10 teacher competencies for
assessment and evaluation
• Responsibility domains ~ learner, school, educational
community, society
– Teacher as a supporter and monitor of learning and
developmental processes
– The teacher as an educator
– The teacher as a subject matter specialist
– The teacher as a designer and organiser of learning
environments
– The teacher as an innovator and action researcher
– The teacher as a partner of parents and other educators
– The teacher as a member of a school team
– The teacher as a partner of external parties
– The teacher as a member of the wider community of educators
– The teacher as a culture participant
10 attitudes for assessment and
evaluation
• Decisiveness
• Relational orientation
• Critical reflection
• Eagerness to learn
• Sense of organisation
• Sense of collaboration
• Sense of responsibility
• Creative orientation
• Flexibility
• Orientation towards a correct and appropriate use of
language and communication
HISTORY: PAPER PORTFOLIO
Paper portfolio
• Students and mentors
– One task after the other - overview?
– Teacher competencies not used as guiding tool – goal-
directedness?
– Old school paper work, photocopies, etc. with important time
lapse between handing in of lesson preparation and mentor
feedback received
– “Administrative” “duties”: rubrics to be completed by students
and mentors
– Reflective documents completed long after actual teaching +
repetitive in content
Paper portfolio
• KU Leuven assessors
– No access to portfolio until late in teaching practice
– Little communication between student, mentor, KU Leuven
evaluator/assessor
– Little sense of permanent support given to trainees
– Teacher competences & attitudes only used to evaluate
practice and portfolio at the end
TOWARD AN EP
Fears and concerns
• All members of staff have to join in, not only the early
adopters
• Digital competences of mentors?
• Scan teaching materials?
• Bugs in the system, internet connections, e-facilities in
schools, …
• Reading on screen is more tiring
• Part-time in-service teacher contracts and student
expectations of instant feedback and support
• Maintenance of the system (yearly clean-up;
assignment of logins, …): who?
• What if teacher education programme changes?
Team and timing
• Development team
– experts in teacher education+ ICT experts + experts in
blackboard/Toledo
– shared ownership
• 5% lecturer
• 4-year development process with smaller and lager
updates, improvements suggested by students,
mentors, KU Leuven assessors
Toward MyPortfolio
• Paper ban? Maintain paper brochure? Maintain Toledo
course next to MyPortfolio?
• Reformulation of tasks: more open-ended formulation
• Instructions for users
• Instructions for specific tasks need to be very explicit
• Calendar with timing of tasks, self-assessment,
feedback, etc.
• Deadlines set or not?
• Who grades when, what and how?
• How to involve school mentors in permanent
assessment?
• Technical improvements
MYPORTFOLIO AS IS
MyPortfolio integrated in Toledo
Student homepage
Task and workflow description
Boxes and attachments
Teacher competencies and attitudes for student self-
assessment, mentor assessment and KU Leuven
assessment and evaluation
ADVANTAGES AND REMAINING
CONCERNS
Advantages
• Student self-leadership, self-management is supported
by MP
• Student understanding of use of portfolio in own future
teaching deepened
• Better sense of direction with more thorough attainment
of teacher competencies and attitudes
• Truly permanent support and assessment
• Richer, more goal-directed feedback and self-reflection
• Improved involvement of school mentors in student
assessment
• Administrative clarity, overview
Concerns
• Oral feedback often more elaborate than is visible in
system; preference for oral feedback over written
feedback
• School digital facilities in classrooms – internet
connection?
• Not ever mentor participates
• School mentors can read KU Leuven assessor
comments and sometimes feel there is too large a cleft
between teaching reality and “theoretical”
recommendations
Thank you for your attention.
Questions?