Po rtfolio: A C urr entl y-I ss ued

Altern ativ e A ss essm ent i n E FL

Widiatmoko
E. : mok o_ geong @y ahoo.c om .my

Present ed on the Ac ademic Seminar

Ce nt er fo r Lang ua ges T ea cher Train ing a nd D evel op ment
Jakart a
Janua ry 2 006

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 Po rtf olio : A Cu rren tly-Is su ed
Al te rnati ve As sess men t i n E FL
► In troduct ion
► Tradi tio nal ver su s Alt ern ati ve Ass essme nt in EFL
► Al ter nat iv e Asse ssmen t in CLT Pa rad ig m
► Key Ch ar acteri st ics of Po rt foli o in EFL Ass essme nt
► Rea so ns for Usi ng Portfolio in EFL Assess men t
► Typ es of Po rtfolio in EFL Asse ssme nt
► Ph ases of Po rtfolio De ve lo pmen t
► The Ad va nta ge s of Portf oli o Asse ssmen t for EFL Stud
► Sta ge s in Impl eme nti ng Portfolio Asse ssmen t of EFL
► Eva lu at ing Portf oli o

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 Introd uct ion
a. Emergent interest in the application of
assessment procedures that are radically
different from traditional forms of assessment.
b. Focusing on students in all dimensions. The
students are evaluated on what they integrate
and produce rather than on what they are able
to recall and reproduce.
c. García and Pearson (1994) by Macías (2002:
339): its main goal is to gather evidence about
how students are approaching, processing, and
completing real life tasks in a particular domain.
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 Introduction Cont’d
Alternative assessment provides alternatives in that it:
b. does not intrude on regular classroom activities,
c. reflects the curriculum that is actually implemented in the
classroom,
d. provides information on the strengths and weaknesses of
individual student,
e. provides multiple indices used to gauge student progress,
and
f. is more multiculturally sensitive and free of norm, linguistic,
and cultural biases found in traditional testing.

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 Introduction Cont’d
This assessment includes the use of:
b. checklist of student behaviors or products,
c. journals,
d. reading logs,
e. videos of role-plays,
f. audiotapes of discussions,
g. self-evaluation questionnaires,
h. work samples, and
i. teacher observations or anecdotal records
(Macías, 2002: 340).

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 Introduction Cont’d
Portfolio is:
b. A purposeful collection of student’s work that exhibits the
student’s efforts, progress and achievements in one or more
areas.
c. A living, growing collection of a student’s work.
d. An example of authentic assessment (Abd Hafiz, 2005)
e. Collections of student work representing a selection of
performance.
f. A folder containing a student's best pieces and the student's
evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the pieces.
Containing one or more works-in-progress that illustrate the
creation of a product (an essay, evolving through various stages
of conception, drafting, and revision) (Sweet, 1993).

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 Tradi tio nal versu s Al tern ative
Ass ess ment i n E FL
Traditional assessment:
 In assessing writing, the teacher is the only reader and that the teacher’s role
is for reading through errors and editing the paper for grammatical and
mechanical mistakes (Peñaflorida, 2002: 345);
 Validity, reliability, and objectivity are commonly used and not relevant to
qualitative data of student’s works (Macías, 2002: 340);
 Snapshot of student’s achievement that single-occasion tests provide (Gómez,
1999: 4);
 Consisting primarily of multiple choice and matching items (Lynch, 2005: 2);
 Criticized as inappropriate, invalid measures of students' academic
competencies (O'Malley and Pierce, 1996; Michael, 1993) by Lynch (idem);
 Performance on discrete point items does not resemble the way students use
language in the real world, the students produce negative wash-back
(Thrasher, 2000: 2-3);
 Instruments include multiple-choice, true-false, and fill-in-the-blank items and
focus on accuracy, grammar, and lower-order thinking (Goodman, Goodman,
and Hood, 1989; Stiggins, 1997; Wiggins, 1998 by Jacobs & Farrell, 2003: 16-
17).

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 Traditional Cont’d
Alternative assessment:
b. Assessment and evaluation are not the sole responsibility of the
teacher. In writing classes, teachers need to make their students
realize their paper is their own property (Peñaflorida, 2002: 345);
c. An instrument is deemed to be trustworthy if: credibility (i.e., truth-
value) and audibility (i.e., consistency). In reliability, triangulation is
ensured (Macías, 2002: 340-341);
d. Multiple drafts of student work showing improvements are included
(Gómez, 1999: 4);
e. Students are assessed for a variety of purposes (Lynch, 2005: 2);
f. Instruments including fluency, social appropriacy, and accuracy,
attempt to more closely mirror real-life conditions and involve thinking
skills (Jacobs & Farrell, 2003: 16-17).

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Al te rnati ve As sess men t i n C LT
Para di gm
Key components :
b. from teacher-centered instruction to student-centered or learning-centered
instruction;
c. from product-oriented instruction to process-oriented instruction;
d. the social nature of learning rather than on students as separate,
decontextualized individuals;
e. diversity among students and viewing these differences as resources to be
recognized, catered to and appreciated (known as the study of individual
differences);
f. internal views to classroom rather than valuing the views from outside to
study classrooms, investigate and evaluate what goes on there (qualitative
research, which highlights the subjective and affective, the participants'
insider views, and the uniqueness of each context);
g. connecting the school with the world beyond as promoting holistic
learning;
h. students understand the purpose of learning and develop their own
purposes;
i. a whole-to-part orientation instead of a part-to-whole approach;
j. meaning rather than drills and other forms of rote learning; and
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k. learning as a lifelong process rather than something done to prepare for an
exam.
Key C har ac ter is tic s of Po rtf olio
in EFL A ss essm ent
George (1995):
b. Continuous and ongoing, providing both formative (i.e.,
ongoing) and summative (i.e., culminating) opportunities
for monitoring students' progress toward achieving
essential outcomes.
c. Multidimensional, i.e., reflecting a wide variety of artifacts
and processes reflecting various aspects of students'
learning processes.
d. For collaborative reflection, including ways for students to
reflect about their own thinking processes and
metacognitive introspection as they monitor their own
comprehension, reflect on their approaches to problem-
solving and decision-making, and observe their
understanding of subjects and skills.
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 Key Con t’d
Major research on portfolios reinforces:
b. reflects student outcomes identified in curriculum
c. focuses on students' performance-based learning experiences as well
as their acquisition of key knowledge, skills, and attitudes
d. contains samples of work that stretch over an entire marking period
e. contains works that represent a variety of different assessment tools
f. contains a variety of work samples and evaluations of that work by the
student, peers, and teachers, even parents' reactions
g. a form of assessment that students do together with their teachers
h. not just a collection of student work, but a selection
i. provides samples of the student’s work over time.
j. criteria for selecting and assessing contents are clear to the teacher
and the students
k. entries demonstrate learning and growth in all language
domains/skills, or focus on a specific skill

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 Reas on s f or Usi ng Po rtf olio in
EFL A ssess men t
Paulson, Paulson, and Meyer, 1991:
b. encouraging self-directed learning,
c. enlarging the view of what is learned,
d. fostering learning about learning,
e. demonstrating progress toward identified outcomes,
f. creating an intersection for instruction and assessment,
g. providing a way to value themselves as students,
h. offering opportunities for peer-supported growth.

Kemp and Toperoff add:

k. matching assessment to teaching,
l. having clear goals at the beginning of instruction,
m. giving a profile of student abilities,
n. enabling students to show quality work,
o. demonstrating a wide range of skills,
p. showing efforts to improve and develop,
q. as a tool for assessing various skill,
r. developing awareness of learning, and
s. catering to individuals in the heterogeneous class.
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 Types o f Po rtfo lio in EFL
Ass ess ment
Most often cited in the literature:
b. Documentation Portfolio/working portfolio. It involves a collection of
work over time showing growth and improvement reflecting students'
learning of identified outcomes. And it includes the best and weakest
of student work.
c. Process Portfolio. This approach documents all facets or phases of the
learning process. Additionally, the process portfolio emphasizes
students' reflection on their learning process, including the use of
reflective journals, logs, and related forms of metacognitive
processing.
d. Showcase Portfolio. This is best used for summative evaluation of
students' mastery of curriculum outcomes. It includes students' best
work, determined through a combination of student and EFL teacher
selection. Only completed work is included. This is compatible with
audio-visual artifact development (photographs, videotapes, and
electronic records). This also includes written analysis and reflections
by the student upon the decision-making process to determine which
works are included.
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Ph ases of Po rtf olio Develo pm en t
Sweet, 1993:
b. Organization and planning. This entails decision-making on the part of
students and teachers. Exploring essential questions at the beginning
of the process, students understand the purpose of the portfolio and
its status as a means of monitoring and evaluating their progress.
c. Collection. This involves the collection of meaningful artifacts and
products reflecting students' educational experiences and goals. The
selection and collection of artifacts and products are based upon a
variety of factors that include: particular subject matter; a learning
process; or special projects, themes, and/or units.
d. Reflection. There are evidence of students' reflections on the learning
process. These reflections take the form of learning logs, reflective
journals, and other forms of reflections upon their experiences, the
thinking processes they use, and the habits of mind they employ at
given points in time and across time periods.

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 The A dv an ta ges of Po rtf oli o
As sess men t for EFL S tud ents
Gómez (2000):
b. Inclusion of EFL students. All students are included in a portfolio system.
c. Increased school accountability for all students. Assessment information is
often collected to ensure that the educational system addresses the needs of all
students.
d. A shared vision of student goals and learning. By developing a portfolio system
that includes students, EFL teachers, administrators, and parents, EFL students
shape a vision of what students should know and be able to do as a result of
their course work.
e. Authentic picture of learning. Designed to measure nearly any observable skill
or process or content-area knowledge needed.
f. Improved teaching and student learning. Using portfolio assessment not only
provides improved information about student achievement but also makes a
positive impact on teaching and student learning.
g. Reflection of assessment reform. Advocates of assessment reform call for new
measures that provide a better understanding of EFL students’ achievement.

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 Stag es i n Im pl em enti ng
Po rtfolio As sess men t of EFL
a. Identifying teaching goals to assess through the
portfolio
b. Introducing the idea of portfolios to the class
c. Specifying portfolio content
d. Giving clear and detailed guidelines for portfolio
presentation
e. Notifying other interested parties
f. Doing with preparation period
g. Assessing the portfolios and giving feedback
h. Holding student-teacher conferences
i. Doing follow-up
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 Ev alu atin g Po rt folio
According to Paulson, Paulson and Meyer (1991):
b. Thoughtfulness (including evidence of students' monitoring
of their own comprehension, reflection, and productive
habits of mind),
c. Growth and development in relationship to curriculum
expectancies and indicators,
d. Understanding and application of processes,
e. Completeness, correctness, and appropriateness of
products and processes presented in the portfolio,
f. Diversity of entries (e.g., use of multiple formats to
demonstrate achievement of designated performance
standards).
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