Portfolio Assessment

What is a portfolio?
Teacher and student work together to collect various examples of students reading and
writing
The pieces chosen illustrates the students abilities
How are portfolios useful?
1. The teacher can assess student growth
a. With each student completing a portfolio, the teacher is able to assess their
teaching
2. Promotes self-assessment
a. Motivates the students to evaluate their own growth
3. Motivates student to improve as they see their development. Portfolios provide real
growth as a student can compare their writing from the beginning of the year to the end
of the year
What is assessed?
How students perceive their literacy abilities and their general progress
Portfolios specific to units assesses where the student is and what they need to do
What can be learned?
How the student has progressed and developed over time
What might be done next to assist in the moving the student to the next level of
development
What can be included in a portfolio?
Students journals, learning Knowledge of sounds, letters, Records of an experiment
logs sight words performed
Writing samples Notes from oral interviews Tapes, pictures from projects
Placement tests, Running Daily observations from
List of favorite books
records teacher of student
*Materials should be chosen by the students. It empowers the student in allowing them to take
charge of their own learning and self-evaluation. Students are more involved with the
assignments
Students should receive explicit information on what features make an artifact excellent,
fair and poor
With this criteria and examples, the student is able to evaluate themselves fairly
Why is this good for English Learners?
Portfolios are appropriate for all readers and writers
Students are assisted in identifying their best works, recognition of what they are capable
of