Kathleen McInerney
Department of English and Speech, Chicago State University

Course

Methods of Teaching English 6-12

Prerequisites: Admission to the College of Education; ELCF 353 and ED 306 (or concurrent enrollment in ELCF 353 and ED 306), and consent of the department

Methods of teaching English in high school grades 9-12 and middle school grades 6-8. Forty hours of internship required (credit given for ENG 249 or 363, not both).

Description

This module requires students to be critical viewers of teachers' webfolios as scaffolding to designing their own professional webfolios.

Transferability

This activity is clearly germane with any preservice or post-baccalaureate teaching program. The content requirements of the module could also be adapted to other disciplines. A geography major, for example, could include practica and other similar experiences and demonstrations in lieu of the curriculum required here. A webfolio seems particularly suited to the first-year experience course as well. Undecided students would have the opportunity, in creating a webfolio, to reflect upon and select significant academic experiences (in the formal as well as informal life of the college) and begin to focus their interests and successes. This process would facilitate their gathering the tools and information for the declaration of a major as well as to unify their educational experiences thus far, creating sensible cohesion and meaning to the often fragmented experience of college. The webfolio would then also be useful for academic advisors, giving them more of the data needed to assist students in planning their major and career. To create webfolios, a novel genre to most students, novices will need models as well as experience evaluating both content and presentation of electronic portfolios.