Portfolios
I earnestly believe that portfolios are fantastic tools to engage students in
reflective practices. One of the most rewarding assignments I have
completed in college is the creation of a portfolio at the end of my student
teaching experience. Not only are portfolios sources of pride and tools
to use in interviews, portfolios provide evidence for growth as a learner.
In class this year, I would like to give students the opportunity to design and
create portfolios in which students can display exemplary work--work that will
show evidence of learning and growth over the course of the year.
Although more information will be provided to students at the beginning of the
school year, I've listed two links for portfolio information:
General
Information on Portfolios
An example of a Science
Portfolio Assignment
An example of a portfolio assignment I use with
students during the Ecology unit:
Gifted Ecology Portfolio
Portfolios are tools used to display a person’s best work and to demonstrate knowledge in a certain area. For the Ecology unit, you will demonstrate your mastery of topics we study by selecting pieces of your best work throughout the unit to include in your portfolio.
Your portfolio will count as your test grade for the unit (50 points in your tests/quizzes category). It is imperative that you complete and keep up will all work for the unit. The portfolio will be due on Tuesday, September 14 at the beginning of class.
Your portfolio will need to be in a folder (3 brad folders will work), and must include a cover page, table of contents, and the grading rubric.
Your portfolio will be broken down into four sections:
For Section I, you must include 3-5 sentences about why you think the item you include meets fits in the area.
Section I: Activities (For each of the five areas listed below, choose one
item from your classwork, homework, or labs that best reflects the area. I have listed a few examples of activities I think might fit.)
§ Creativity (lichen ad, alternative fuel assignment, debate ideas)
§ Computer Skills (biome chart, graphs done on computer, alternative fuel assignment)
§ Graphing Skills (population graphs, water resource lab graph)
§ Ecological Awareness (can use just about anything here)
§ Critical Thinking Skills (responses to Lorax video, analyzing
population data, how much land to produce your food
questions)
Section II: Assessment (must contain all 3 items)
§
Benchmark
quiz
§
Ecology
quiz
§
Review
sheet
Section III: Reflections
§ For the reflection, choose one activity or lab done in class from Section I. Write a paragraph to explain why your product demonstrates your mastery of the information. What did you enjoy about each lab or activity? What things would you change to make the lab or activity more useful?
In order, your portfolio should include the following:
Cover page
Table of Contents
Sections I—III
Grading rubric