An Article Review of ‘Zhang, S (2009).

Has Portfolio Assessment Become Common

Practice in EFL Classrooms? Empirical Studies from China. English Language

Teaching, Vol 2(2), 98-118’

This article discusses mainly about the use portfolio assessment in China. The author

provides an extensive review of literature that answers many questions on the implementation

of portfolio in Chinese context and also provides the results of the empirical study done by

the author in relation to the use of portfolio in EFL classroom in China.

The author highlights the main issue in the article at the beginning of the paper by

saying that there are very few empirical studies on how portfolio assessment has been used

by teachers and learners in EFL classrooms in Chinese context. Based on the author’s

reading, the author feels that so far, portfolio assessment has been discussed theoretically

without reference to any particular context.

The author wants to find out what are the consequences of using portfolio assessment

and the reactions and impact portfolio assessment has on learners and teacher as much as

assessment is concerned in Chinese context.

Going in deeper to portfolio assessment, the author, in the literature review, has given

a clear definition on what is meant by portfolio, what can be included in the portfolio, what

criteria are needed for portfolio assessment and portfolios are used with students and young

learners. This information given by the author is important to the issue being discussed. The

author relates all this information to portfolio assessment in China and finds out that portfolio

assessment in China is still in its ‘infancy’. Here, it means that, in China, portfolio assessment
is still very much new and their education system is similar to Malaysia because

examinations are an integral part of the education.

After giving a good review of the literature and some great discussions based on the

findings, the author concludes that factors such as the over use of tests in the society and in

schools, teachers’ lack of portfolio assessment skills, no adequate background training and

administrative support relevant to portfolio assessment, the limitations of portfolio

assessment itself, some practical problems in Chinese classrooms as well as the strong

influence of the traditional Chinese culture of learning on the teacher and the student are

among the reasons that might have hindered the progress of portfolio assessment in the

Chinese context. These reasons are evident in the discussion given by the author in the

article.

Based on the conclusions made by the author, I can safely say that there are some

implications that are stated in the article. The author has reasoned out that a good portfolio

projects do not happen without considerable effort on the part of teachers, students, English

inspectors, parents, school administrators, and policymakers. The author added that if they

did not make any efforts, the educational revolution might break down and the tide would

turn back to the traditional way of learning and teaching. The author worries this that might

happen if Portfolio Assessment is not given enough consideration in schools.

The main concept that is being used in this article is the use of portfolio assessment as

opposed to traditional assessment in Chinese education context. The author hopes that

portfolio assessment will bring about changes in Chinese educational development.

 The author believes that as an advocate of portfolio assessment, the author needs to

discover the problems and find solutions about the possibilities of using portfolio assessment

in the Chinese context. The author says that as a tutor, it is the author’s responsibility to make

the students under the author’s tutelage understand the requirements of the National English

Curriculum and as well persuade them to use portfolio assessment with their young learners

when they go out to teach later on.

Besides that, the author also feels that with the Chinese population on the decrease,

class size will surely become smaller. Therefore, there will be a strong possibility for

portfolio assessment to be widely conducted in China. Subsequently, the author believes that

it is worth noting that the Chinese society is changing rapidly and teachers’ culture of

teaching and students’ culture of learning will probably change accordingly.

The author made an assumption that when classroom teachers are willing to use

portfolio assessment, really understand portfolio assessment procedures and have the

assessment skills then only can portfolio assessment become a successful form of assessment.

This assumption is based on the empirical study that the author has carried out.

I feel that this issue of portfolio assessment is very important in the context of this

study. This is because the author has highlighted that the newly-revised Compulsory

Education Law issued recently by the Chinese government has restated that from September

1st, 2006 when the new term begins, no schools of compulsory education can be graded into

key ones or ordinary ones; all schools will be allotted the same share of the educational

budget, permitted to enrol the same students, equipped with the same qualified teachers;
frequent tests for young learners are forbidden and students’ test scores can’t be ranked and

compared with each other and assessment forms should be non-threatening and positive.

I believe that portfolio assessment in specific and alternative assessment in general

may help to cater for the needs of the newly-revised Compulsory Education Law by the

Chinese government. The reasons for this matter has been clearly stated by the author in the

literature review whereby the author quotes from Hamp-Lyons (1996) that portfolios are ‘a

tool for thoughtful classroom assessment’

The only potential problem that I could see in the author’s reasoning is that the author

did not include the variations of other alternative assessment which can be equally suitable

for the Chinese educational development. Ewing (1998) has listed that alternative

assessments include constructed response items, essays, writing samples, oral discourse,

exhibitions, experiments, and portfolios. The author could have included this part of

alternative assessment in validating the author’s assertions on the use of portfolio assessment.

The author has only focused on portfolio as the alternative assessment. This restriction may

lead to

In addition to that, I feel that parents’ point of view is ignored in this matter. The

author said that the participants in this study are only school teachers, students and English

teaching advisors. I feel that the author should have welcomed parents’ view with respect to

the use of portfolio assessment in school assessment procedures. The author may have

received feedback and the data may have helped in the author’s reasoning over this matter.
 In conclusion, I feel that this is a very good article which discusses the idea of

implementing portfolio assessment as opposed to traditional assessment. This article has

given me an insight on how important alternative assessment is and how much traditional

assessment opens up for room for more improvement in the assessment system, particularly

in China and generally to the body of knowledge. Besides, I learned that alternative

assessment can also be applied in my own teaching because I can see its relevance there. This

is mainly assessment does not necessarily be examinations and tests. This is a whole new idea

that the teachers, students, parents, school administrators and policymakers/stakeholders in

Malaysia have to understand. Only then, I believe, alternative assessment will accepted by

everyone as a reform to the present assessment.

References:

Sheila C. Ewing (1998). Alternative Assessment: Popularity, Pitfalls and Potential.

Assessment Update – Progress, Trends and Practices in Higher Education, Vol 10(1),

1-12.

Zhang, S (2009). Has Portfolio Assessment Become Common Practice in EFL Classrooms?

Empirical Studies from China. English Language Teaching, Vol 2(2), 98-118