Skip to main content

Student Portfolios

The student portfolio, a collection of student work representing a selection of performance, is an idea that has been around for a long time, but not many of use have implemented the portfolio into our class work. We frequently require students to write papers and stuff them into a notebook, create posters, and so on, but the portfolio lingers as an unfulfilled potential. That’s a shame, since the portfolio provides ownership of accomplishments to the student and provides documentation that can be useful for college admission and job interviews. Perhaps the problem has been the level of planning and work involved on the part of teachers, administrators, and policy makers.

The US Department of Education, back in 1993, said:

Research shows that students at all levels see assessment as something that is done to them on their classwork by someone else. Beyond "percent correct," assigned letter grades, and grammatical or arithmetic errors, many students have little knowledge of what is involved in evaluating their classwork. Portfolios can provide structure for involving students in developing and understanding criteria for good efforts, in coming to see the criteria as their own, and in applying the criteria to their own and other students' work.

Because we have adopted the Google G-Suite tools, building a student portfolio can be far simpler than in the past. In 2016, Google updated Sites to be easier use, more consistent in appearance, and better integrated with other Google services. We can have our student s create portofollios that can (initially) be view only with our domain, making it a much safer environment. I have asked my students to begin a portfolio by making a home page with a bit of biographical information, a description of their educational experiences and interests, and their plans for the future. Then I asked them to create other pages for each subject area and activity they participate in. As an example, I created my own site describing the Computer Science class. In addition to the requirement that your are using a device on our campus, it seems that your have to be using the Chrome browser to view Google Sites.


Student E-Portfolios, BVSD Google for Educators

Google Sites as a Tool for Student Portfolios, Flipped Education

Student Portfolios as an Assessment Tool, Education World, Emma McDonald, 2011

Every Student Should Have a Digital Portfolio, GettingSmart, Tom Vander Ark, 2015

Portfolio rubrics, guides, assessments, and other tools, Teacher Vision, subscription based but free downloads

ePortfolio Examples, electronicporfolios.org, Dr. Helen Barret

Student Portfolios using Google Sites, Jeffrey Bradbury, 2016