Tip #53 from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents (McKinley & Alder) - Portfolios



Today's tip for parents from two talented teachers comes from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents by Cindy McKinley Alder and Patti Trombly.


#53

Portfolios

 

A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.

~ Henry Brooks Adams

 

There are many different ways teachers can evaluate their students’ achievement. Some schools supplement the standard letter grades (or numbers) on report cards with portfolios. Portfolios are a system of tracking each student’s improvement throughout the year. A portfolio consists of a large folder (one for each student) that is kept in a convenient place within the classroom. Both student and teacher can and should contribute to it.

            Portfolios can be used for all subjects but let’s use Language Arts as an example. Whenever a student writes a piece that she is proud of, she can place that piece in her portfolio. Portfolios are not meant to be collections of perfect work. A child may choose to add a piece because of the interesting plot, the particular attention she paid to spelling, the characters—anything she feels shows her growth as a writer. Teachers also add pieces they feel display the student’s growth.

To get the most out of them, portfolios should be used during parent/teacher conferences or another time when parents, teachers and the child can view the portfolio together. As they all look through the portfolio, they can see firsthand how the child has developed in the subject area. It is easier to see her strengths and areas for growth when looking at a collection of work gathered throughout the semester or year.

Then, together, everyone (including the child) can discuss what she should be proud of, how much she’s improved, and what area she can concentrate on improving next. This method allows students more control over the grades they receive. They are consistently aware of how they are performing, in which areas they are improving, and exactly what grades they will receive.

Portfolios are beneficial for parents, too. When their child comes home with a “C” in Language Arts it really means very little. The letter grade alone can’t help them direct their child in ways to improve. Portfolios, on the other hand, can help parents “see” the reason(s) for the “C” as well as show them the areas of improvement that they can start looking for and working on with their child.

You can make a portfolio for home. It’s tough to know what to do with all the work that comes home all year. Try saving favorite pieces and keeping them in a portfolio throughout the year. It can be a fun project when school gets out to sift through it and save what you both think best shows her progress. Years from now, she will love pulling out her portfolios from years past and seeing what she was like back then.



     Cindy McKinley Alder                                            Patti Trombly

 

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For more excerpts from 365 Teacher Secrets for Parents, click HERE.

          For more posts about books about parenting, click HERE. 



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