The use of portfolios is a rather recent innovation in teaching the language arts. A characteristic of the portfolio process is that students are led to notice their own progress through the work included in the portfolio. Many educators welcome the portfolio process because they recognize that standardized tests do not tell enough about what…

Writing assignments involving newspaper portfolios or analyzing the content of a film (animated or live action) are interesting because they help students become involved with course content and improve students' critical thinking. A study examined writing assignments of these types from 21 students taking two sections of a course on child…

This paper describes the intentions of educators and policymakers who implemented a new assessment strategy in Kentucky in 1991, along with its associated shortcomings and one notable success. The principle behind the assessment system was that rather than having an on-demand assessment that would inefficiently replicate the information that was…

Educators at the New City School in St. Louis, Missouri, employ a schoolwide approach to multiple intelligences. The school changed its practices in three primary directions: curriculum development, student assessment, and communication with parents. Learning centers, living museums, videotaped portfolios, and standardized exam results attest to…

For the past few years, the Annenberg Institute for School Reform and the Coalition of Essential Schools have been investigating the digital portfolio--a software program that creates a multimedia collection of student work and aligns it with performance standards. Of five critical elements, school culture is the most crucial for making the…

Argues that, if portfolios are to be used effectively for formative purposes, they must be more than receptacles of work: they must invite students to be centrally involved in their own learning. Discusses what should be assessed, when it should be assessed, what kinds of information formative portfolios should provide, and who should be "doing"…

Used portfolio and teacher change literatures as frames for analyzing four teachers' use of classroom portfolios over a three-year period. Found marked shifts in (1) portfolio document; (2) ability to document literacy learning; (3) students' involvement with the portfolio; and (4) use of portfolios to drive instruction for individual children.…

Discusses problems with scoring reliability of the Vermont Education Department's writing portfolio test, particularly the difficulties teachers face in agreeing upon scoring criteria. (PA)

Teachers are receiving mixed messages about assessment. Encouraged to use alternative assessment practices, they are expected to express a student's progress in a single letter grade. Interviews with eight urban middle school teachers participating in the QUASAR (Quantitative Understanding: Amplifying Student Achievement and Reasoning) Project…

Provides an account of the instruction of university-level introductory physics courses using a framework characterized by curiosity-driven inquiry in science and science teaching. Describes the role of the instructor as providing students with the incentive to learn science through their pursuit of personally meaningful questions. Contains 25…

In a mandatory 4-week program, medical students assessed and managed the care of frail elderly with acute medical problems and disabilities. Web-based lectures with pre/posttests and electronic portfolio assessment were included. The experience was intended to promote reflection, interactive learning, and feedback. (Contains 24 references.) (SK)

Conducted an ex post facto study to test for differences in the quality of university student writing as reflected in years 1 and 2 and again in years 3 and 4. Findings from 30 undergraduate portfolios show no significant differences between early and late samples and no significant relationship between grade point average and writing quality.…

Addresses the traditional understanding of reliability as it pertains to writing portfolio assessments. Offers a list of practical actions that can be taken to increase assessment reliability, including explicit definitions of what a portfolio holds, rater training, rater burnout, and consistent rating procedures. (Contains 26 references.) (NB)

Electronic portfolios allow teachers to authentically assess student performance. Examines the creation and use of electronic portfolios and describes three electronic portfolios based on HyperCard that can be used in physical education classes to monitor student health fitness, sport skills, and other performance standards, and allow students to…

Describes the development and implementation of a professional development program extending through the school year to help teachers prepare for the state's upcoming portfolio mandate. Describes a powerful collaborative model of professional development that recognizes the value inherent in the shared learning that occurs when divergent…