I am going to mention some ideas and statements
taken from the article ‘Teachers and Students’ Perceptions regarding Portfolio Assessment
in an EFL context’, which I found relevant and useful for us to have a general
idea about the uses of portfolios in a real classroom. After that, I am going
to summarize briefly what the research was about.
- Portfolios have started to control the assessment system in schools.
- The usage of portfolios simultaneously with the standardized tests in the schools, enhance motivation, engender individualized and collaborative learning and inculcates a sense of responsibility and that it lets new ideas germinate in language learner’s mind.
- Portfolios are defined as a purposeful collection of examples of learning collected over a period of time.
- Portfolios promote autonomy of learners.
- Portfolios present teachers a fragmentary picture of the process that students have been going through.
The article ‘Teachers and Students’ Perceptions
regarding Portfolio Assessment in an EFL
context’ studied the underlying notion
of portfolio held in the school, setting, sampling, data collection,
instruments and data analysis in detail. Also, the research presents the content
of portfolios and how the portfolios system is conducted at the preparatory school.
It focuses on teachers and students’ opinions about pros and cons of
portfolios.
Results:
- Time urgency: Portfolio is held every week in addition to the exams conducted once every two weeks.
- . The objectivity of scoring system: While assessing portfolio presentation, teachers have the opportunity to grade 4 skills (listening, grammar, vocabulary and writing).
- Seminars: Teachers need training seminars and conferences about the usages of portfolios.
- The carrying of bulky materials: Teachers expressed that carrying or storing the bulky materials was a trouble to them.
- The teachers’ role in determining the content of portfolio: Portfolio content should be selected cooperatively and fastidiously.
Conclusions:
- Portfolio assessment be performed effectively and even be a component of the passing grade.
- It should not be forgotten that when students are under time urgency, the system’s reliability is deemed highly dubious by teachers and learners.
- Portfolio should be performed, because it is an influential assessment.
Portfolios help to encourage feelings of independence and autonomy in many ways of thinking. This is because students have the necessity to focus on their collective work, think about it, how it will be presented, and what the work says about themselves. I consider this helps students to become more critical thinkers and helps them to develop their writing skills.
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