Artifact 6-8
Artifact 6-8
Artifact 6-8
I chose to include my professional development training for the Dignity for All Students
Act (DASA). DASA was established to provide a school environment free of bullying,
discrimination and harassment. This training was intended to provide us with information on
bullying, discrimination and harassment prevention and intervention. I think that this is an
extremely important artifact to include in my portfolio because these are all serious issues that
educators may encounter in the classroom and in the greater school building. It is important that
educators know what to do when they encounter a situation of bullying or discrimination so that
it is dealt with in a proper fashion. After completing this training, I feel educated and prepared to
deal with bullying, discrimination and harassment at school and understand the early warning
signs of victims and aggressors. Teachers need to be able to create a learning environment that is
Not only does this artifact show that I am knowledgeable about bullying, discrimination
professional development is an important part about being a teacher. Teachers should continually
seek out courses and training so that they may continue to further their knowledge and grow,
enabling them to be the best educator. Continuing professional development ensures that
teachers will continue to be competent and knowledgeable in the education field. It allows
Connection to Standards:
Standard #9: Professional Learning and Ethical Practice: The teacher engages in ongoing
professional learning and uses evidence to continually evaluate his/her practice, particularly the
effects of his/her choices and actions on others (learners, families, other professionals, and the
9 (b) The teacher engages in meaningful and appropriate professional learning experiences
aligned with his/her own needs and the needs of the learners, school, and system.
9 (n) The teacher sees him/herself as a learner, continuously seeking opportunities to draw upon
current education policy and research as sources of analysis and reflection to improve practice.
Standard 2. Clinical Partnerships and Practice: The provider ensures that effective
partnerships and high-quality clinical practice are central to preparation so that candidates
develop the knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions necessary to demonstrate positive
Principle 3. Educators commit to their own learning in order to develop their practice. Educators
recognize that professional knowledge and development are the foundations of their practice.
They know their subject matter, and they understand how students learn. Educators respect the
reciprocal nature of learning between educators and students. They engage in a variety of
promote student learning. They draw on and con tribute to various forms of educational research
Respect: Intrinsic to the ethical standard of respect are trust and fair-mindedness. Members honor
human dignity, emotional wellness and cognitive development. In their professional practice,
they model respect for spiritual and cultural values, social justice, confidentiality, freedom,
The next artifact that I am including is an educational survey that I designed and built to
gather data on the amount of home-school collaboration on children’s literacy education, from
the parent/guardian perspective. It demonstrates my ability to collect data, evaluate and analyze.
The data gathered was both qualitative and quantitative and utilized a Likert scale. The survey
allowed me to get information from parents to adjust my teaching practice accordingly. I was
able to analyze the results and come up with a plan for improvement.
teaching and provide my students with a better learning experience. The home-school connection
is an integral part of the education system, as students require support from both the school and
their families. It is important that meaningful communication happens so that guardians may be
involved in their children’s education. Parental involvement is one of the biggest predictors of
early literacy success and future academic achievement, so it is of utmost importance to include
Connection to Standards:
Standard #1: Learner Development. The teacher understands how learners grow and develop,
recognizing that patterns of learning and development vary individually within and across the
cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and physical areas, and designs and implements
1(e) The teacher understands that each learner’s cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and
physical development influences learning and knows how to make instructional decisions that
Standard 2. Clinical Partnerships and Practice: The provider ensures that effective
partnerships and high-quality clinical practice are central to preparation so that candidates
develop the knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions necessary to demonstrate positive
Principle 3. Educators commit to their own learning in order to develop their practice. Educators
recognize that professional knowledge and development are the foundations of their practice.
They know their subject matter, and they understand how students learn. Educators respect the
reciprocal nature of learning between educators and students. They engage in a variety of
promote student learning. They draw on and con tribute to various forms of educational research
Principle 5: Educators collaborate with parents and community, building trust and respecting
confidentiality. Educators partner with parents and other members of the community to enhance
school programs and to promote student learning. They also recognize how cultural and
linguistic heritage, gender, family and community shape experience and learning. Educators
respect the private nature of the special knowledge they have about students and their families
and use that knowledge only in the students’ best interests. They advocate for fair opportunity for
all children.
The Ontario Ethical Teacher Standards:
Integrity: Honesty, reliability and moral action are embodied in the ethical standard of Integrity.
and responsibilities.
Educational Survey: Home-School Literacy Collaboration
Alicia Cowal
ECI 510: Research in Education
April 20, 2018
Rationale
Target Population
Introduction
We know that children who engage in literacy activities at home have higher literacy
achievement at school. Parents who are involved in the literacy development of their children
can make a huge difference on their academic achievement. Parental involvement is the one of
the biggest predictors of early literacy success and future academic achievement. It is
unfortunate, but many parents remain uninvolved in their children’s literacy development for a
number of reasons. It is imperative that teachers and schools collaborate with parents and
guardians about students’ literacy development and provide them with tools and strategies to
support their children’s literacy development. In conclusion, to increase parental involvement in
their children’s literacy development, there should be effective communication between parents
and teachers.
Home-school Literacy Collaboration
Directions: The purpose of this questionnaire is to assess the amount of collaboration between
teachers and parents/guardians regarding students’ literacy education. Your confidentiality is
important and your responses to these questions are completely anonymous. It is important that
you answer these questions as truthfully and sincerely as possible. Please circle the number
below that describes how much you agree with each question. Be sure to only circle one answer
per question. Thank you for your participation!
1 2 3 4 5
2. The teacher communicates with parents about literacy strategies used in the classroom.
1 2 3 4 5
3. The teacher regularly sends home literacy activities for me to work on with my child.
1 2 3 4 5
4. The teacher regularly requires at-home reading that involves the parent as part of a homework routine.
1 2 3 4 5
5. The teacher provides information about how best to support my child’s literacy education.
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
11. My child’s teacher has asked me about the uniqueness of my child and their literacy needs.
1 2 3 4 5
12. In what ways do you think your school’s literacy program could be improved?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
13. What forms of communication does your child’s teacher engage you in to discuss your child’s literacy
development?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
14. Do you feel that effective communication is taking place regarding your child’s literacy development? Why or
why not?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
15. What can be done to facilitate a greater quality of communication between teachers and parents regarding your
child’s literacy development?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Thank you kindly for taking the time out of your day to complete this questionnaire. Your
participation in this survey has been greatly appreciated. This survey will be used to help
improve collaboration between teachers and parents in students’ literacy development.
Survey Results
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 3 1 5 1 4
The teacher communicates with parents about literacy strategies used in the classroom.
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 5 2 1 2 2
The teacher regularly sends home literacy activities for me to work on with my child.
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 2 2 5 1 4
The teacher regularly requires at-home reading that involves the parent as part of a homework routine.
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 3 0 5 2 4
The teacher provides information about how best to support my child’s literacy education.
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 6 1 2 1 2
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 3 1 4 2 4
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 3 2 5 0 3
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 5 1 2 2 2
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 3 1 5 1 4
My child’s teacher has asked me about the uniqueness of my child and their literacy needs.
Rating 1 2 3 4 5 Median
Strongly Disagree Undecided Agree Strongly
Disagree Agree
Results 0 3 2 5 0 3
In what ways do you think your school’s literacy program could be improved?
- Allow more time with reading helpers.
- More trips to the library, better inform parents on level of child’s reading ability
- Send more info home to parents weekly
- Nothing I am happy with it
- More parental involvement – I learned through another parent about a learning support program
- More tutor support and communication home
- I like the idea of a literacy event
- When assessments are done (BAS or levelled literacy) I would like to be updated to know if progress is
being made
- Would love more progress reports
What forms of communication does your child’s teacher engage you in to discuss your child’s literacy
development?
- Newsletters, teacher-parent conferences
- Text messages, e-mail, newsletters
- Remind APP, newsletter, agenda, phone calls
- Report cards and books sent home
- Phone, e-mail, agenda
- E-mail, phone, interviews
- Newsletters, agenda, interviews
- Agenda, phone calls
- Phone, e-mail, interview
- Phone and interviews
Do you feel that effective communication is taking place regarding your child’s literacy development? Why or
why not?
- Yes,
- Yes I am happy with the progress my child is making
- No, aside from knowing what reading level my child is at, I never hear anything else.
- No
- Yes I get periodic updates on my child’s performance in all subjects
- Yes, I get e-mails and phone calls if one of our children is having problems
- No, we only talk to our child’s teacher if there is a problem
- Yes
- I do, however, because neither of my kids are struggling, strategies to support them are not offered. I would
appreciate strategies being communicated with me.
- No, I only get a phone call if there is a problem – would like more progress reports
What can be done to facilitate a greater quality of communication between teachers and parents regarding your
child’s literacy development?
- More face-to-face meetings or regular newsletters home
- More parent-teacher meetings, inform parent the exact struggles and strengths of the child
- Nothing
- Night devoted to literacy strategies to help us learn how to help our children
- Weekly communication – text message or e-mail
- Literacy events that involve parents
- Monthly communication instead of communication taking place only when there is an issue
- Monthly communication
Summary of Results
The results of these surveys do not paint a very good picture of effective collaboration
between home and school with regards to literacy. When analyzing the quantitative data, it is
evident that the majority of parents surveyed did not feel that their child’s teacher provides them
with information on how best to support their child’s literacy education. This is extremely
disheartening, given that we know how important parental involvement in their children’s
literacy achievement is. The majority of parents also did not feel that their child’s teacher
informed them on literacy strategies used in the classroom. The median response for this
question was a 2. This is really alarming when looking at these surveys to shed light on the
home-school collaboration going on. Teachers need to be collaborating with parents to ensure
that parents know effective strategies to help their children with literacy progress.
Most parents did agree that their teacher sends home literacy activities and books to read
with parents/guardians as part of a regular home-work routine. Most agreed that they are aware
of how often their children’s literacy level is assessed. However, the majority of parents sampled
did not feel that their child’s teacher effectively communicated information regarding their
child’s literacy progress. The median response for this question was a 2, showing that the
majority of parents disagreed with the statement that their child’s teacher effectively
children’s progress, not just when their child’s literacy level is being assessed.
When analyzing the qualitative data, derived from the open-ended questions, progress
reports is a major theme that kept coming up. It seems as though parents are happy to know
when their child’s literacy level is being assessed, however, many of those sampled would like
majority of respondents spoke of the same forms of communication (e-mail, newsletters, phone
calls and interviews). The majority of parents surveyed expressed their desire for more frequent
communication, either weekly or monthly. These parents clearly feel as though not enough
communication is taking place. A few even expressed their desire for my parent involvement.
When asked what could be done to facilitate a greater communication between parents
and teachers, a few parents wrote about a night devoted to literacy activities and strategies for
parents. When analyzing the quantitative data, most of the parents surveyed disagreed with the
statement that their child’s school regularly holds a literacy event that involves parents. It would
seem that the majority of respondents’ children do not attend a school where a literacy event for
parents is held.
While this survey only sampled a small portion of the population, it clearly demonstrates
that improvements are needed to facilitate greater collaboration and communication between
schools, teachers and parents with regards to literacy. There must be more frequent
communication to encourage greater collaboration between schools, teachers and parents with
Firstly, greater communication is needed. Most parents agreed that their teacher does
report on their children’s literacy assessment and send books home for parents to read with their
children. However, most parents sampled spoke about the need for more frequent
communication and progress reports. A few parents said that because their children aren’t
struggling, they do not get any additional support from the teacher in terms of their children’s
literacy education, but they felt that they could benefit from literacy strategies.
Teachers need to make sure that they are communicating and collaborating with parents
more often on the topic of literacy education. Clearly, the current structure of communication is
not enough. There needs to be more inclusion of parents/guardians and a chance for them to
conversations. The majority of respondents spoke about the same methods of communication,
including phone calls, agendas, and newsletters. It would be easy for a teacher to reach out via
one of these forms of communication once a month to collaborate with parents. In order for
parents to make a difference, they need to be informed of the most effective ways to support their
child.
The data shows that the majority of respondents’ schools do not hold a literacy event that
involves parents/guardians. One way to ensure that parents and guardians are being included in
their children’s literacy education would be to plan a literacy night once a month and invite
parents to come in and learn about new literacy strategies and ways to support their children’s
literacy education. We know that parents who are involved in their children’s literacy education
can make a great deal of difference. We need to see a partnership form between teachers and
(ASD). A Pecha Kucha is a presentation that consists of 20 slides of mainly images with 20
seconds of audio per slide. This presentation addresses issues that students with ASD may face
and provides suggestions to implement in the classroom with respect to students with ASD. It is
important for teachers to be aware of disabilities that may be present within the classroom and
how to identify a disability so that they may provide the student with adequate support. It is also
important for teachers to be aware of the stigmas that may arise when a student has a disability as
they may have devastating consequences. This artifact demonstrates my ability to recognize
students with disabilities and come up with strategies to assist. It is important to accommodate
Connection to Standards:
Standard #1: Learner Development. The teacher understands how learners grow and develop,
recognizing that patterns of learning and development vary individually within and across the
cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and physical areas, and designs and implements
1(e) The teacher understands that each learner’s cognitive, linguistic, social, emotional, and
physical development influences learning and knows how to make instructional decisions that
Standard #2: Learning Differences. The teacher uses understanding of individual differences and
diverse cultures and communities to ensure inclusive learning environments that enable each
Standard 2. Clinical Partnerships and Practice: The provider ensures that effective
partnerships and high-quality clinical practice are central to preparation so that candidates
develop the knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions necessary to demonstrate positive
Principle 1: Educators nurture the intellectual, physical, emotional, social, and civic potential of
each student. Educators promote growth in all students through the integration of intellectual,
physical, emotional, social and civic learning. They respect the inherent dignity and worth of
each individual. Educators help students to value their own identify, learn more about their
cultural heritage, and practice social and civic responsibilities. They help students to reflect on
their own learning and connect it to their life experience. They engage students in activities that
encourage diverse approaches and solutions to issues, while providing a range of ways for
students to demonstrate their abilities and learning. They foster the development of students who
Respect: Intrinsic to the ethical standard of respect are trust and fair-mindedness. Members honor
human dignity, emotional wellness and cognitive development. In their professional practice,
they model respect for spiritual and cultural values, social justice, confidentiality, freedom,
Council For Exceptional Children (ECE) Ethical Principles and Practice Standards:
2.Maintaining a high level of professional competence and integrity and exercising professional
An enormous amount of hard work, time and dedication went into the creation of each of
these artifacts. It is my hope that they have showcased my preparedness and knowledge to fulfill
the role of professional teacher. Each artifact was selected to provide the reader with a well-
instructional and assessment abilities, as well as my community building and technology related
abilities evident through my Weebly Website. Each artifact has been linked to theories and
professional standards.