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Years ago, I was a part of an organization that did several personality inventories as a means to develop cohesiveness among the team. I found each one of them fascinating; I eat up that kind of stuff. We looked at Strengths Finder, Myers-Briggs, the Enneagram, DISC, and a few others over the course of several years. Again, this was all done as team-building exercises as well as a way to develop organizational leadership. One of the common themes that frequently revealed itself about my innate gifting was that I am naturally skilled at taking something that already exists and find ways to make the overall product, experience, or organization better. In other words, I do not excel in starting or creating something from the ground up (well, I do not excel YET - thank you, Dr. Dweck). I glean from others, especially those who have gone before. I soak in their wisdom and seek to learn everything I can as I analyze what has made their progress as successful as it has been.
My experience with crafting an ePortfolio is no different. Early, early on, I found examples of digital portfolios and began poking around on all various types and exploring different styles. In all honesty, it is such a humbling experience discovering exactly how brilliant people are in the ways they organize and communicate. When I began to create my digital portfolio, I had a general idea of what personal spin I would place on it, but have spent a lot of time mulling over the organizational piece.
While I could list a dozen Lamar graduate portfolios, my go-to influencer is Mrs. Hahn and her Blogspot, Mrs. Hahn Daydreams. My major takeaway from Mrs. Hahn’s work is how she frequently links to older posts within her blog posts. That might sound confusing, but just spend a little time on her blog and you will experience how she combines excellent writing with the smart use of technological navigation to pull you further into her resources. I found it so easy to move from project to post to resource in a very fluid, user-friendly experience. I do not think I have replicated this well, but Mrs. Hahn is indirectly serving as a great mentor.
Check out this ePortfolio: Mrs. Hahn’s Daydreams
Another component to her ePortfolio that appeals to me is that it feels like a resource that I can use in a practical way. I have found material there that will benefit me more than in Lamar’s EDLD program. This is something that I am looking to incorporate into my digital portfolio; I want to exercise the full extent of COVA and begin using this platform to showcase and share my educational resources. I want to incorporate lesson samples, templates I’ve created, teacher reflections, and more. Two other pieces of work that I have gleaned from are not former Lamar students, but other educators that have built fantastic portfolios.
I am using these for ideas before I tweak and adjust to fit my own personal style of delivery and, of course, content. My hope and purpose are to use my ePortfolio as a way to contribute to the educational community, specifically with the Professional Learning Networks to which I already belong.
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