Portfolio assessment

Submitted by Rochelle Kenyon on Mon, 02/03/2014 - 10:43
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  • 12 Comments

Hi group users,

The use of portfolios in the assessment process is a topic that we haven't discussed.  

Porfolio assessment is a way of measuring progress for those students with disabilities who are not able to participate in traditional assessment even with accommodations. The basic component is evidence of the student's actual work.

Do any of our K-12 or adult education instructors use portfolio assessment with their students?  Please share any information or experience you may have by posting a Comment below this message.

Rochelle Kenyon, SME

 

 

Comments

 

Hi Rochelle and all,

I am working on developing an adult/vocational version of a portfolio as a demonstration of mastery of both soft and Career Technical Education skills tied to standard curriculum requirements. I have started to coordinate a standard post-secondary Baking and Pastry Arts class in which all the students are on the Spectrum. Since none of the students are “passing” a basic skills test, it is more imperative that appropriate demonstration of mastery of the required skills is developed.  At this point in the instruction, approx..three weeks, my guess is that most, if not all, of the students will be going to work. (VR will be very happy)  That is due to a fantastic instructor.  As we know, working on the job and being able to complete traditional curriculum requirements in the same field is often a struggle for our students. I have developed check lists for both soft skills and curriculum requirements. We are using pictures of students completing instructional tasks with the check list to start the portfolios. I noticed that the first post in this discussion was read many times, does anyone in our group have any creative or proven methods for assessment/demonstration of mastery?  

Hi Robin: Kudos to you folks on use of actual implementation of learning e.g. cooking and baking skills to demonstatre mastery! The use of portfolios is a wonderufu way capture that actuat kinesthetic expeience....as an old VR person, I bet they will be delighted withhe job placement of the students...and I'm sure the students will be delighted a swell. Lauri

 Thanks!

VR and local members of the State Agency for Persons with Disabilities (APD) came to a meeting and ate a huge variety of baked goods from the class. Both agencies were full and impressed. The prospects of getting all those people off SSI was thrilling to the APD folks. I appreciate the support. Again, if any of our folks have creative ways they have used to help students to demonstrate mastery or creative ways of demonstrating the mastery obtained in ways other than standardized tests, I would love to hear about it.

Good morning.  I am very interested to know if Adult Education Instructors use portfolios and whether or not they have been successful.  I would like to try a similar idea (service learning project components) and work this type of assessment into a Correctional setting.   Thank you.

Ted 

I have started to ask several resources about demonstrating mastery and appropriate assessments for Perkins funded programs. Demonstration of progress in a classroom setting, on a daily basis is a subjective matter, to some degree. When adding in a student population that expresses themselves differently and has limitation in traditional abilities to communicate, it seems to be a greater challenge. I have separated the demonstration of instructional progress from demonstration of mastery on an assessment for program completion. For our daily progress we are, at this point, (this could change minute by minute) using lesson plans based on activities directly taken out of State curriculum standards, a curriculum used by the district called work related behaviors and chapters from the sanitation and safety certificate curriculum. These activities will be documented with curriculum checklists from each area that has check list as part of the standard instruction and pictures of the students demonstrating both the checklist activities as well as the elements that don’t come with a check list.
that is our start.

Hello Robin,

Distinguishing learning progress portfolios from presentation portfolios makes a lot of sense. The purpose of the progress portfolio is formative assessment. It usually involves the collection and organization of evidence of learning, which is often accompanied by periodic review, reflection, and examination by the student and teacher or tutor. The presentation portfolio, sometimes a refining of the progress portfolio, is designed to show one's best work, one's evidence of mastery. The presentation portfolio, like an artist's portfolio when presenting to potential clients or to professors, is a carefully refined set of best examples of one's work.  Both kinds of portfolios are important parts of an assessment process, but they have different purposes.

I wonder if you -- and others working with students who have disabilities -- have been looking at digital badges as a way to document progress and demonstrate mastery. Despite the "techy" or to some "boyscout-ish" name, the idea of documenting progress in small steps and having it add up to meaningful larger and recognized credentials, has some appeal for adult learners, and may fit will with both progress and presentation portfolios.

David J. Rosen

djrosen123@gmail.com

Hi Robin: I really am intrigued by your clear seperation of  the measurement of instructional porgress and mastery. Can you share your assessment [or components of it] for program completion or some of the curriculum standards on which you have based  demonstraion activities?  I'm thinking that these standards might be what we have developed here in CT and call our Common Core Standards...am I right??? Lauri

 

http://www.fldoe.org/workforce/dwdframe/hum_cluster_frame14.asp

 

Laura, David and all

The above link is the current Florida Department of Education curriculum frame work for Baking and Pastry Arts PSAV. It is not the framework that was used when the students were originally registered and I am getting clarification on which version the class will be using. The State of Florida has recently redone some frameworks to include shorter certificate programing for colleges to offer. It seems as a result, some of the frameworks have been ‘beefed up’. Either way, Laura if you look at the information in the link you may find them similar to your State in its attempt to include common core. The frameworks have significant detail in terms of tasks involved in meeting the standards. There may not be a need to layer in a digital badge system. I really like the badge idea for Community Based Organizations who are the adult and vocational providers in their community and need to provide an organized way of providing services that could build up to either entry level employment or participation in a traditional PSAV certificate program.

Here is how I am structuring the demonstration of learning.

The Work Related Behaviors and the food and safety curriculum are already in use with special pops in the district and are included in terms of the required task in the frameworks. The pics are the demonstration of the functional tasks in the kitchen. I have designed a lesson plan to reflect the coordination of the daily activities in the classroom with the curriculum standards, the Work Related Behaviors,Safety curriculum and pics. There are assessments built into the safety and work related curriculums already and our other district programs use a baking task check list that I will be modifying slightly to use as well. I have tired to use different elements already in use in the system so there will be limited discussion about curriculum and instruction.

The reason the above is separated from program assessment is the funding appears to separate it. The funding requires (I need to get the exact terms)mastery of skills and an assessment to demonstrate that mastery and completion of the course. They are not necessarily the same thing or process. I am checking into how that is handled locally.

I hope that answers some questions.

 

Hi Robin; Thanks so much for the info re your work in Florida and the link to Florida Dept of Ed website.  I think it is probably me, but I did not see the Baking and Pastry Arts listed under the PSAV section...can you direct me [help my poor visual processsing]? Lauri

Hi Robin,

I am so interested in hearing about best practices and the wonderful activities that go on in adult education classrooms for students that have disabilities.  I hope that we hear more about the program you are mentioning.  Please begin a new discussion thread for that.

Thanks,

Rochelle Kenyon, SME