Reflective Paper #1 - Preliminary Entry

Your early reflections may come from a course in mathematics or history or some other communications skills and/or general education course; they may be done for a course in child development or learning theory. When you complete a reflective paper in a course early in your preparation program and the reflective paper has been assessed by your instructor, have the instructor complete the one-page Reflective Paper #1 cover sheet and attach it to the annotated copy of the reflective paper itself. Keep the reflective paper in your portfolio. Follow that same procedure for any reflective paper you believe to be suitable for your portfolio. When you are ready to submit your portfolio for Preliminary Entry, select the reflective paper you believe best represents your level of development at that time and include it in your portfolio as Reflective Paper #1.

 Reflective Paper #2 - Aspiring Professional Transition

At this stage of your passage through your preparation program, you will have had more course work in general education and communication skills, greater involvement in field experiences, some multicultural experience, and more advanced introductory professional education courses.  Again, these courses and experiences should offer you opportunities to reflect on your preparation for teaching and record evidence of your increasing awareness of and performance in courses and other activities of your preparation for meeting the ten Wisconsin Teacher Standards. In your reflective paper, you may discuss things such as exemplars of teaching and the roots of effective teaching, or you may be analyzing your own education for examples of strengths and possible areas where it could have been better. You may also discuss things such as how yore^- general education or subject area can be integrated into your preparation for teaching and assessment in relation to the ten Wisconsin Teacher Standards.  When you complete a reflective paper in a course during this time since your preliminary entry and the reflective paper has been assessed by an instructor, have the instructor complete the one-page Reflective Paper #2 cover sheet and attach it to the annotated copy of the reflective paper itself. Keep the reflective paper in your portfolio. Follow that same procedure for any reflective paper you believe to be suitable for your evolving portfolio. When you are ready to submit you portfolio for Aspiring Professional Transition, select the reflective paper you believe best represents your level of development at that time and include it in your portfolio as Reflective Paper #2.

 Reflective Paper #3 - Emergent Professional Transition

At this stage of your passage through your preparation program, you will have had increasing course work in the content for your teaching area, greater involvement in field experiences, more multicultural experience, and more in-depth professional education courses. Again, these courses and experiences should offer you opportunities to reflect on your preparation for teacher education and record evidence of your increasing awareness of and performance in courses and other activities of your preparation for meeting the ten Wisconsin Teacher Standards. In your reflective paper, you may discuss thins such as how curriculum is structured for teaching and learning, or how research on teaching and learning affects a teacher's role in school, or how diversity issues affect teaching and learning, or ethical and professional dimensions of teaching. In other words, your reflections on your preparation should be maturing in professional terms.  At this stage, you should also be developing comfort and skill is using collaborative involvement from your peers. This reflective paper should be read and critiqued by three of your peers as you develop the reflective paper. Their names should appear on the one-page Reflective Paper #3 cover sheet.  When you complete the reflective paper in a course during this time since your aspiring professional transition and the reflective paper has been assessed by an instructor, have the instructor complete the one-page Reflective Paper #3 cover sheet with the three peers' names included and attach it to the annotated copy of the reflective paper itself.  Keep the reflective paper in your portfolio. Follow that same procedure for any reflective paper you believe to be suitable for your evolving portfolio. When you are ready to submit your portfolio for Emergent Professional Transition, select the reflective paper you believe best represents your level of development at that time and include it in your portfolio as Reflective Paper #3.

 Reflective Paper #4 - Licensure Candidate

This reflective paper will be written during your student teaching experience. It will be a self-assessment of your preparation in relation to the ten Wisconsin Teacher Standards and will include a statement of your anticipated needs for mentoring and continued professional growth as you enter the profession as an initial educator. Details of that assignment will be provided during the student teaching seminar.