The use of portfolio assessment is a valuable tool for teachers to use with young children to better understand how young children develop and learn. An intentional data collection and documentation system becomes a very powerful assessment tool, one that is authentic and based on children's capabilities and strengths. Children, educators,…

The use of electronic portfolios is increasingly becoming popular in teacher education programs. The electronic portfolio allows learners to express their work and take ownership over their own ability to plan and assess and reflect upon their learning during a specific period of time. While many teacher education programs have adopted electronic…

Describes the goals of and participant responses to a six-step Early Childhood Portfolio Assessment Preparation (ECPAP) Model that was implemented in two early childhood education programs to facilitate the use of portfolio student evaluation. Intended as a guide to supervisors who are training teachers in portfolio assessment, as well as early…

Notes that portfolio assessment is a promising approach to measure young children's growth, development, and achievement. Details characteristics of assessment portfolios, methods of gathering information, and tips for portfolio development. Includes examples from preschool children's portfolios. (LBT)

Proposes developing systems that allow parents to contribute items to their preschool child's portfolio. Suggests transition portfolios, parent information sheets, weekly newsletters, requested parent observations, sharing table, and take home packets as activities that parents can choose from during the school year. Stresses need for a variety of…

Programs of professional development for preservice teachers of young children in the United States attempt to align their program goals and candidate performances to The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), Association of Childhood Education International (ACEI), and their particular state standards. In addition they…

Investigated the types, frequency, and utility of assessment techniques used by elementary school teachers. Found that paper and pencil tests were regularly used by third- and fourth-grade teachers, but rarely by teachers in lower grades. Other forms of assessment, such as observation, checklists and portfolios were used less frequently and…

One goal of the teacher's professional portfolio is to describe the full range of abilities and document effective teaching over an extended period of time. In this article we discuss the procedure that teachers can use in developing their own portfolio assessment to help generate data for making decisions about teaching performance. The…

Used an in-depth qualitative study to examine implementation of portfolio assessment by four first-grade teachers. Found that teachers saw three major benefits of portfolios: (1) a means of communicating more effectively with families; (2) a tool to motivate, encourage, and instruct students in the skills of self-assessment; and (3) a mechanism to…

Argues that inclusion of children with disabilities into various preschool settings presents opportunities for early childhood educators to address issues of differences through the use of effective tools and teaching strategies. Suggests that a journal-type portfolio is a tool early-childhood educators can use to enhance the acceptance of…