EDU 4010 Chapter 4 Activity

September 13, 2016

Edward Barringer

ABC Middle School Newsletter

2016 Portfolios R Coming!

We have gotten off to a great start here at ABC Middle School. With your help from home and
the enthusiasm we are creating here at school, this trend should only continue and even get better
throughout the rest of the academic school year. Go Raiders!
This year we are implementing a new Portfolio Assessment Plan for each of our students in all
grades 6 through 8 here at ABC Middle School. We will try to answer all your questions through
the publication of this monthly newsletter; however we are quite certain that many of you will
have questions that we have not fully addressed here in this forum. Please be proactive, if you
have questions or concerns about this assessment plan or anything else to do with your child,
please do not hesitate to contact us at the school. Involved parents, teachers and administration
help create an environment for far greater learning.
What is a portfolio assessment plan?
The short answer is that whether the portfolio is paper and ink or digital or even a combination of
both, it is a place where students may organize information, highlight skills, and represent their
work throughout the academic year.
The long answer has most if not all of the following components:
Providing and organizing information about the nature of students work and achievements
Encourages student management of learning and expectations as well as reflection and thematic
analysis
Involves students themselves in reflecting on their capabilities and making decisions about their
work
Uses the holistic nature of instruction as a base from which to consider attitudes, strategies and
responses

Assists in the planning of instruction to follow

Showcases work mutually selected by the student and teachers
Reveals diverse and special needs of students as well as talents
Incorporates multiliteracies and social technologies that students use outside the classroom
Displays multiple student-produced artifacts over time
Integrates assessment into the daily instruction as a natural, vital part of teaching and learning
Expands both the quality and the quantity of evidence by means of a variety of indicators
Provides an alternative to the standard paper-and-pencil assessment routines

Countless studies have shown that while Portfolios may be challenging to set up and get going,
once they have been established the teachers will have an overall view of the students skills and
growth.
Portfolios will be developed for each academic class your child has this year at ABC Middle
School. Not only will the student be able to self-monitor their own progress, strengths and
weaknesses, problem-solving and work to achieve goals, there is the added benefit of crosscurricular opportunities that encourages integration and vertical alignment throughout the entire
school day.
So what goes into the portfolio?
Basically anything that the teacher and student agree upon that highlights his or her skills and
abilities that will enhance the overall view of the student. In addition, the portfolio, the digital
variety that we will be using, may be used to share information with classmates, a portfolio
program will enrich team collaboration on group projects, it will open communication lines from
classroom to home, teacher to student as well as student to student. Any and all checklists to
keep students on pace, observations, reflections, inventories of work and interviews done with
the student.

We at ABC Middle School hope you see the pressing need for this new tool to help us in
educating your children. We think that Portfolio Assessment is indeed the future and we wish to
be on the cutting edge of that new frontier. We believe as we take these proactive steps towards
the digital future, we can better prepare your child for a better tomorrow.