Portfolios and Evaluations

I.          Portfolios

a.       What is a portfolio?

                                    i.      Representative sample of student’s work

                                    ii.      Collected over the period of a school year

                                    iii.      Shows progression in math & language arts

                                    iv.      Can include drawings, lists of books read, projects & field trips

                                    v.      Keep it short

b.      When should you begin to compile the contents?

                                    i.      One day per month to sort papers & pick out the good stuff

                                    ii.      Keep in a separate folder to avoid end-of-year rush

c.       How do you submit one to the school board?

                                    i.      Check with portfolio evaluator at beginning of year

                                    ii.      Hand deliver or mail in to School Board office

d.      Why use a portfolio?

                                    i.      Child does not test well, or scores don’t reflect knowledge or skills

                                    ii.      Fundamental objection to testing

e.       More information

                                    i.      Using Portfolios to Assess Student Performance from Far West Laboratories, 730 Harrison Street, San Francisco, CA 94107 ($4.00)

                                    ii.      Student Portfolios and Teacher Logs: Blueprint for a Revolution in Assessment from National Center for the Study of Writing, 55134 Tolman Hall, Graduate School of Education, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720 ($3.50 – request Report #TR-65)

II.         Evaluations

a.       What is an evaluation?

                                    i.      An independent assessment that shows the child is achieving at an adequate level educational growth.

                                    ii.      Performed by a certified teacher, tutor or other educational service facility such as Sylvan Learning Center.

b.      Why use an evaluation?

                                    i.      Least time-consuming

                                    ii.      Child does not test well, or scores don’t reflect knowledge or skills

                                    iii.      Fundamental objection to testing

c.       How do you find an evaluator?

                                    i.      Call the school board office and ask for names of teachers willing to do evaluations.

                                    ii.      Call local Christian or private schools and ask the same.

                                    iii.      Ask a friend who is a teacher!