Standard 8: Reflection and Continuous Growth

Artifact 1 – Unit Reflections

My artifact is a set of reflections from a growth mindset unit I put together for my student

teaching. The reflections I made on a series of questions helped me analyze components of my

unit to include instructional best practices. My artifact supports Standard 8 which reads, “The

teacher is a reflective practitioner who uses evidence to continually evaluate and adapt practice

to meet the needs of each learner.” These reflections helped me consider how I could “improve

planning and practice” to better student learning and represent myself as a reflective practitioner.

During student teaching, I recognized the importance of constantly evaluating learner

interest and performance to determine what revisions to lessons or to my practice need to be

made. Furthermore, my unit reflections helped me deepen understanding into the why, so what,

and what now of the unit components: Why did I use student funds of knowledge in my

instructional planning and how did this contribute to student growth; How did preassessment

data help inform my unit planning; What worked and did not work in regard to student behavior

and attitude toward learning; What would I do differently next time? Reflecting on such

questions helped me better understand my practice, my role in student learning, and my

responsibility to continually adapt practice to meet learner needs.

In general, I am a self-reflective person and will continue this practice in my teaching

profession. Integrating self-reflection into my practice will help me promote student growth as

well as my own growth as a teacher.