Student Portfolios: A Learning Tool

Portfolios: Teaching, learning, and assessment at its best! Portfolios are receiving acclamation from research and literary sources as an accurate and meaningful authentic assessment tool. Students become actively engaged in assessment through the portfolio process by reflecting on their own learning to monitor progress and set goals for improvement. Student Portfolios: A Learning Tool is designed to provide teachers from kindergarten to grade 12 with a practical handbook to implement portfolios at the classroom, school, and district-wide levels. It is unique in that it demonstrates how to expand the portfolio process at the elementary, middle school, and junior secondary levels to align with existing graduation portfolio programs. Topics include: - Assessment and the Portfolio Process - Portfolios as an Authentic Assessment Tool - Key Elements of the Portfolio Process - Instructional Strategies and Applications - Expanding the Portfolio Process - Integrating Learning Outcomes, Thinking Skills, and Graduation Portfolio Subjects - Portfolio Language and Framework - Developing Scope and Sequence Charts - Sharing the Portfolio This book serves as a valuable resource to guide teachers from the first activity of introducing portfolios to students, all the way through to the self-reflection and sharing stages. Novice and experienced educators of portfolios will optimize the teaching and learning process with the following user-friendly materials: - planning forms to assist teachers in decisions relating to portfolio implementation - blackline masters for classroom use - instructional strategies to guide lesson planning for each stage of the portfolio process - informative and practical web sites to support teaching and learning - checklists and rubrics to guide student learning and achievement - student and teacher thoughts and insights - student examples of self-reflections and goal setting - photos of students and teachers working on portfolios - parent response samples - references that reflect current research and brain-based learning theories and principles Experience the many learning opportunities and benefits that portfolios offer!