Beyond a Rubric: Building a Meaningful Reflective Portfolio
The grand finale of my graduate program was crafting a reflective portfolio that showcased our mastery of the program learning outcomes (PLOs). This website started as that portfolio—a collection of my work and insights—but I knew I didn’t want it to end there. I wanted it to grow with me, evolving into something bigger. By continuing to build and refine it, I hope it reflects not just what I’ve learned but how I apply it in meaningful ways.
When I first saw the list of PLOs, my initial reaction was pure disbelief. “There is no way I learned all of that!” The sheer scope of it felt very daunting at first. But our facilitator did an excellent job creating opportunities for us to think about each PLO, making it more manageable - and even more enlightening for me. My brain said “start writing your thoughts on the PLOs and then find a relevant work product.” Instead our facilitator flipped the script, encouraging us to pick our work product and then reflect on how it demonstrated our understanding. Looking back, I see how this was a more streamlined process, less needing to do rewrites and more focusing on refining our writings.
Another highlight of the reflective portfolio class was seeing the variety of work my classmates choose to represent their knowledge. Each person’s perspective and interpretation of the PLOs were unique, proving there was no single “right” way to engage with the outcomes. This process didn’t just highlight the breadth of our learning, it also spotlighted the creative and personal journeys we had through the program.
As someone who took the scenic route to complete the program (thanks to the birth of my darling daughter and yet another move across the country), I got to look back 3 years earlier to some of the work I’d done and see how much I’d grown. At first, I panicked thinking “will I even remember what I did in the beginning?” But to my pleasant surprise, it was like riding a bike. As I reviewed my work, all the lessons learned and insights came flooding back. It’s a testament to how well-designed the program is, connecting content from one class to another class.
I’m not going to dive into the nitty-gritty of each PLO in this post (I'm going to save those thoughts for future chapters in Overdue Thoughts), but below you’ll find a quick overview for each one, complete with links to my reflections and work. I also wanted to highlight the variety and depth of the program’s outcomes. When I first started my research into MLIS programs, I assumed it was going to be a mix of technical classes and leadership/management courses. But Syracuse University delivers much more, a truly well-rounded education that prepared me for all aspects of librarianship. No wonder it’s ranked as one of the top programs in the U.S!
Here are the program learning outcomes along with the conclusion I wrote for my Masters degree.
PLO #1 - Advance information equity and justice.
PLO #2 - Understand, engage, and serve users and their communities.
PLO #3 - Design and innovate to create equitable, just, and engaging information artifacts, including services, systems, spaces, resources, and technologies.
PLO #4 - Lead and manage people and projects in an equitable, just, and culturally competent manner.
PLO #5 - Demonstrate information literacy and technological agility.
I’ve got to give a massive shoutout to Ali, this website wouldn’t exist without her incredible guidance and creative genius at AliPav. She took my scattered ideas and turned them into something better than I could have imagined. I mean, I’m still obsessing over my bulletin board homepage (yep, that was all Ali’s brilliance!) She brought my vision to life in the most amazing way, and I couldn’t be more grateful.
