More about portfolios

Portfolio assessments are not some new idea to education in the 21st century, they have been around for a little while now.  Students as young as first grade are collecting their best work and reviewing their assorted artifacts from a variety of subjects with their teacher through a focused discussion of  their growth over time.

Portfolios can be digital with multimedia pieces that showcase progress, or they can be a collection of pages in a folder or box. Reflection is a key element of the portfolio review process, allowing students the opportunity think about their thinking (metacognition) and learning. 

“Kids forget what they didn’t know when they learn something new.”

Self evaluation helps students think about what they do to become good learners and what evidences there are of their learning present in the collection of artifacts. Through this process, students become stronger and more motivated learners. They are able to point to concrete evidence of that learning, or conversely , they can point to their weaknesses and areas where remediation is necessary.  

For parents: tests do not provide global information of their child's knowledge, only a snapshot of how their child is measured against a standard. Portfolios provide a broad view of their child's knowledge and growth (or trouble areas/weakness).

The entire process takes time to collect, reflect, and discuss.  Guidance must be provided by the teacher in which artifacts are appropriate for the collection, how to reflect, and points to bring to a discussion/review.

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In the mid 90s, I was at a high school in El Paso, TX chosen to participate in a field study for developing  a new teacher evaluation tool.  Portfolios were a large part of that new Professional Development Appraisal System (PDAS). WE were encouraged to photograph, videotape, and collect lessons that were student-centered and successful.  "Student-Centered and Learner-Centered" was part of a paradigm shift in the educational atmosphere where teachers were moving from the "sage on the stage" to the "guide on the side," so we wanted to showcase just how were were achieving this goal.  

We went through the painstaking process of learning what to collect, how to reflect, and the review. Some teachers went crazy with their portfolios that looked like mulitmedia  scrapbook masterpieces, while others put their Xerox copies of lesson plans in a folder. There was not a standard at the time for how the teacher portfolio should appear, so there was a range of what those early portfolios looked like. 

I must say that the process was tremendously beneficial for me as an educator. My own paradigm did shift. Had I not gone through that experience, I would not understand the full impact and benefits of portfolios as an assessment tool.

As it turned out, portfolios did not become a part of the Texas appraisal system for teachers, but it is a part of the National Board Certification that many states require for their educators or offer for monetary incentives.

Basic Steps for National Board Certification:

National Board Certification consists of two parts:

1. Teaching Portfolio
   Teachers typically videotape their teaching, gather student learning products, and analyze their teaching practices.
2. Assessment.
   Teachers answer questions that relate to content specific to their fields. The assessments focus on breadth of content knowledge.

Teachers must earn 275 points as determined by the National Board. National Board Certification is issued for a period of 10 years and can then be renewed.