Portfolio development

A portfolio is a purposeful collection of work, selected to achieve a specific goal that exhibits the students’ efforts, progress and achievements. Portfolios are based upon the principles of collecting, selecting, and reflecting upon their own work. 
A portfolio is not a plain record of the work the student did in the past, so do not merely collect documents in their portfolio. A portfolio should also be unique and tell a students’ story, not a standardised specification. 
There is a variety of portfolios ranging from learning logs to extended collections of achievement evidence. The "evidence" can include curriculum materials or reports, photographs of students at work, feedback from colleagues or employers etc.

It is an important mechanism for documenting a students' educational progress through the curriculum.
The student and teachers collaborate on selections for the portfolio, which may contain;

·         assessment by the teacher

·         examples of the student ‘s work

·         information about any extracurricular achievements or other activities undertaken by the student

·         self-assessment by the student

It is intended that the contents of the Portfolio will assist parents and their children to reflect on efforts, experiences, progress and achievements in a meaningful and purposeful manner. It is anticipated that parents will use the information to encourage their children to set positive goals and work towards them throughout the year.

The value of the Portfolio is greatly enhanced when parents:

·         read it together with their child

·         ask questions

·         give feedback

·         praise genuine effort and achievement

·         assist in goal setting when improvement is needed

·         read to their (kindergarten) child any comments from the teacher

·         write comments or questions as appropriate

·         sign the sheet provided to show the teacher that they have seen it

I designed several ideas to enrich the portfolio with personal students' statements.



See:
'Dalton, doe het eens anders' page 193 - 214
Arko Uitgeverij, Nieuwegein, 2009