Task 15 -- Communicative approach

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Date Posted: 20:47:00 08/13/03 Wed
Author: Ronaldo G.M. Rosa
Subject: Task 15

FIFTEENTH CLASS August 11th to 15 th

Testing

YOUR TASK IS:

How can we use portfolios to evaluate our students' progress?

TASK 15 - Portfolios

Portfolios are defined as "collections of student work representing a selection of performance (...) A portfolio may be a folder containing a student's best pieces and the student's evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the pieces. It may also contain one or more works-in-progress that illustrate the creation of a product, such as an essay, evolving through various stages of conception, drafting, and revision". (1)

The content in portfolios is built from class assignments and corresponds to the local classroom curriculum.

About portfolio's contents, as Hancock observes "depending on the purpose, one is likely to find any of these items: samples of creative work; tests; quizzes; homework; projects and assignments; audiotapes of oral work; student diary entries; log of work on a particular assignment; self-assessments; comments from peers; and comments from teachers." (2)

The age/grade level of students may determine how portfolios are developed and used. Administrative contexts can also influence the structure and use of portfolios. For example, portfolios can be used to involve parents in their children's education programs and to report individual student progress. Portfolios may also be used to compare achievement across classrooms or schools.

Portfolios can be useful not only for the teacher to evaluate the learners' work but also for themselves to observe their own development.

By collecting and reviewing his/her own work, the use of portfolios may provide to the student an effective opportunity for him/her to take a second look and think about how s/he could improve future work.

"All portfolios--across these diverse curricular settings, student populations, and administrative contexts--involve students in their own education so that they take charge of their personal collection of work, reflect on what makes some work better, and use this information to make improvements in future work." (1)

"Portfolio assessment is an ongoing process involving the student and teacher in selecting samples of student work for inclusion in a collection, the main purpose of which is to show the student's progress. The use of this procedure is increasing in the language field, particularly with respect to the writing skill. It makes intuitive sense to involve students in decisions about which pieces of their work to assess and to assure that feedback is provided. Both teacher and peer reviews are important. Perhaps the greatest overall benefit of using portfolio assessment is that the students are taught by example to become independent thinkers, and the development of their autonomy as learners is facilitated". (2)

The use of portfolios can combine the learner's self evaluation and teacher's feedback and may work as a rich tool in the process of teaching and learning.

Bibliography and references

(1) David Sweet. "Student Portfolios: Classroom Uses". From Education Research CONSUMER GUIDE Number 8 - November 1993
http://www.ed.gov/pubs/OR/ConsumerGuides/classuse.html

(2) Charles R. Hancock. "Language Study: What and Why?". July 1994.
http://www.cal.org/ericcll/digest/hancoc01.html

(3) California Foreign Language Project. "Development and Implementation of Student Portfolios in Foreign Language Programs". 1997.

Ronaldo G.M. Rosa
August 2003

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Replies:

Re: Task 15 -- Vera Menezes, 15:23:52 08/15/03 Fri