My e-portfolio is a collection of work that I have created over the last six semesters in the Instructional Technology masters program at the University of South Florida. Each artifact demonstrates my knowledge and understanding of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology (AECT) five standards. The AECT standards were created in July 2012 to promote the definition of the field published in 2008. “Educational technology is the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using, and managing appropriate technological processes and resources.” ("https://www.aect.org/index.php", 2018).

 

The five AECT standards are as follows:

1. Content Knowledge

2. Content Pedagogy

3. Learning Environments

4. Professional Knowledge and Skills

5. Research

 

I have carefully hand selected each artifact to match precisely with each of the five AECT standards. It was a difficult task, narrowing down my many highly involved projects, to just fifteen of the most remarkable assignments. As a previous teacher, I found it effortless to create learning courses that supported teachers in the classroom. With my husband serving our country in the United States Coast Guard, I was attracted to the concept of creating military trainings as well. My e-portfolio is a blend of the two passions I hold dear to my heart, family and teaching others. Under each artifact I have included a title, a brief description about the development process and the skills I learned, the course name I completed the assignment in, and the semester I took the course. 

 

In addition to showcasing my artifacts along with the AECT standards, my portfolio also demonstrates my academic goals I set for myself. My personal expectations in the Instructional Technology program at the University of South Florida was to achieve a better understanding of the learning and development field. When I decided to go to graduate school, I knew there were going to be challenges but every sacrifice was worth the end result. Graduate school is more than just gaining academic knowledge. I have acquired a proficiency in research and collectively working with colleagues to achieve academic design strategies. As a more mature adult than I was in undergraduate school, I accomplished a new reason for studying. I had developed a thirst for a more in-depth understanding as to why things are done the way they are. Although their were fears that I had, I pushed myself beyond those boundaries to accomplish a lifetime goal of receiving a masters of education degree.