I am presently working on the development of content concerning the use of electronic portfolios. Cindy will be working with College of Education faculty next year to assist them in making the transition from a “paper” portfolio review process to the use of LiveText (a commercial on-line portfolio system). A year or so from now local experiences and my literature review will likely result in a new section for the “Integrating technology …” text.
An issue that has always interested me is how “groups” of individuals focus on a topic and develop a special vocubulary to communicate within the group about this topic. Across groups this specialized vocabulary may obscure what really are commonalities. I have noticied that “teacher education types” are very fond of the word “reflection.” As in, “this assignment seemed to require a lot of good reflection” or “where is evidence of your reflection.” This word appears very frequently in discussions of the value of portfolios. I pulled two “ed psych” texts off my shelf and did not find the work “reflection” included in the subject index of either one. I would guess we might use terms like improve metacognition or self-regulation or in some cases “identify personal experiences that may relate to this concept”. I would guess that counselors or clinical psychologists also have some term to describe the “thinking” that clients do as part of the therapy process.
If you are interested in this topic and are searching for resources, I would recommend web sites maintained by:
1) Dr. Helen Barrett
2) American Association For Higher Education
I also recommend edited book “With portfolio in hand” from Teachers College Press (1998) for some very useful articles. Try the even handed analysis by Lee Shulman (I tend to value analyses that clearly outline both the positives and negatives). While a strong proponent, Shulman raises a list of concerns that make great sense to me. “Trivialization” is an example. Shulman contends that once we commit to a specific type of assessment we then allow this form of assessment to move us along a path of least resistance. I interpret this to mean that portfolios will be likely to contain certain types of artifacts and learners will be asked certain predictable types of questions about these artifacts. Such products and answers will not necessarily address the issues that should be addressed. Shulman mentions MC tests as an example of trivialization. I happen to still feel there is some hope for MC questions, but I do agree that MC items tend to be a great example of the path of least resistance. I think fact questions are easy to ask and worse easy to defend (students have a hard time claiming that the right answser is not THE RIGHT ANSWER). Questions that address capabilities other than recall (see Bloom taxonomy) are much more difficult to construct and more open to complaint. I guess I have strayed of topic again.
Anyway, I am always looking for good resources and would welcome suggestions to extend this list.
