This study follows the progress of 11 elementary students who exhibited similar language-arts deficiencies and were treated with traditional and non-traditional language-arts remediation methods. Non-traditional methods were exclusively Discipline-Based Art Education (DBAE) lessons that required students to observe, talk about, and write about art images using a DBAE framework. Portfolios maintained by the students during one complete school year included writings and art production. Writings were marked using a color-coding system developed for the research project and designed to track growth in art cognition. Interviews for affective measure and the Test of Non-Verbal Intelligence, Edition II were administered as pre- and post-tests. Evidence indicated art understanding improved as cognition in language arts improved. Change in attitudes toward art and artists demonstrated a slight positive change. No significant difference was detected in non-verbal intelligence.

This case study seeks to explore three research questions: (1) What science teaching and learning processes, perspectives, and cultures exist within the science classroom of an urban portfolio community high school? (2) In what ways does the portfolio-based approach prepare high school students of color for college level science coursework, laboratory work, and assessment? (3) Are portfolio community high school students of color college ready? Is there a relationship between students’ science and mathematics performance and college readiness? The overarching objectives of the study are to learn, understand, and describe an urban portfolio community high school as it relates to science assessment and college readiness; to understand how the administration, teachers, and alumni perceive the use of portfolios in science learning and assessment; and to understand how alumni view their preparation and readiness for college and college science coursework, laboratory work, and assessments. The theoretical framework of this study encompasses four theories: critical theory, contextual assessment, self-regulated learning, and ethic of care. Because the urban high school studied partnered with a community-based organization (CBO), it identifies as a community school. Therefore, I provide context regarding the concept, culture, and services of community schools. Case study is the research design I used to explore in-depth this urban portfolio community high school, which involved mixed methods for data collection and analysis. In total, six alumni/current college students, five school members (administrators and teachers), and three CBO members (administrators, including myself) participated in the study. In addition to school artefacts and student portfolios collected, classroom and portfolio panel presentation observations and 13 semi-structured interviews were conducted to understand the portfolio-based approach as it pertains to science learning and assessment and college science readiness. Data from the transcripts of two graduating classes were analyzed and the interview transcripts were coded and analyzed as well. Analysis of qualitative data revealed key findings: (1) the school’s Habits of Mind, authentic scientific inquiry, self-regulated learning triggers and strategies, and teacher feedback practices driven by an ethic of care supported students’ science learning and portfolio assessment; and (2) the cyclical and extensive portfolio processes of writing, revision, and submission well prepared alumni for college science laboratory work and coursework, to a certain extent, but not for the traditional assessments administered in college science courses. Analysis of quantitative data revealed that, if based solely on the City University of New York’s Regents score criteria for college readiness, the majority of students from these two graduating classes studied would not have been considered college ready even though all participants, including interviewed alumni, believed the school prepared them for college. The majority of these students, however, were transitioning to college readiness based on their Regents-level science and mathematics coursework. Findings of this study have implications for science assessment, professional development in science, education policy reform, and high school partnerships with CBOs and postsecondary institutions as they pertain to college and college science readiness for students of color in urban portfolio community high schools.

This document is a portfolio about portfolios and a narrative about narratives. It is a meta-portfolio and a meta-narrative. It breaks new ground by providing a conceptual framework that supports assessment processes and phenomena across multiple environments. It is a portfolio, a narrative for learning. The fundamental premises initially established in this study are constantly revisited throughout the document. These premises focus acutely on the value and worth of the portfolio authors as they negotiate their learning and develop their understandings of assessment and reflection. As the study encounters new environment it investigates the parallels between the established methodologies of assessment and equates them with the new situation. Research, literature and practice support these methodologies. Investigations into the constructs of narrative process and phenomenon led to the development of a conceptual framework that was synonymous with portfolio process and phenomenon across pre-service teacher education, primary school education and teacher professional development. Alignment of this framework with the Doctorate of Education portfolio showed a further equivalence. As well as the possibilities of the framework being useful in the development of portfolios in different environments the symbiotic nature of narratives and portfolios has subsequently shown that learning is not only demonstrated by the evidence in the portfolio but that learning occurs in the telling of the story: in the presentation of the portfolio. / Doctor of Education

This document is a portfolio about portfolios and a narrative about narratives. It is a meta-portfolio and a meta-narrative. It breaks new ground by providing a conceptual framework that supports assessment processes and phenomena across multiple environments. It is a portfolio, a narrative for learning. The fundamental premises initially established in this study are constantly revisited throughout the document. These premises focus acutely on the value and worth of the portfolio authors as they negotiate their learning and develop their understandings of assessment and reflection. As the study encounters new environment it investigates the parallels between the established methodologies of assessment and equates them with the new situation. Research, literature and practice support these methodologies. Investigations into the constructs of narrative process and phenomenon led to the development of a conceptual framework that was synonymous with portfolio process and phenomenon across pre-service teacher education, primary school education and teacher professional development. Alignment of this framework with the Doctorate of Education portfolio showed a further equivalence. As well as the possibilities of the framework being useful in the development of portfolios in different environments the symbiotic nature of narratives and portfolios has subsequently shown that learning is not only demonstrated by the evidence in the portfolio but that learning occurs in the telling of the story: in the presentation of the portfolio. / Doctor of Education

The Quebec Education Program (QEP) provides educators with detailed descriptions of competencies of learning achievement. However, current approaches used by educators to instruct and assess their students do not target the relevant QEP competencies. The goal of this thesis is to document efforts of one teacher to implement digital portfolios in her grade one and two classroom in order to instruct and assess her students according to the relevant QEP competencies. The study documents the kinds of technology and skills that are needed to implement digital portfolios in order to instruct and to assess and communicate student learning to their parents. Interviews with all participants were used to document the process from multiple perspectives. Overall, digital portfolios were found to be a very useful for instructing and assessing student and communicating with parents.

The research on implementation of portfolio assessment as part of continuous assessment (CASS), came about as I noticed the enormous challenges faced by educators as a result of implementation of the new curriculum, the National Curriculum Statement (NCS). As an educator, I have been curious to form an understanding of other educators' level of knowledge of the NCS policy as well as the extent of its implementation at school. During the research process, I have focused on portfolio assessment in order to understand the level of other educators' understanding of this form of assessment of learners, as well as the educators' shortcomings in the implementation of portfolio assessment in the classroom. The main findings of the research indicate a lack of understanding of the assessment policy amongst the educators. This tends to demotivate educators on policy implementation. This is more so as some of the educators interviewed indicated that they are not able to interact with the assessment policy document when planning. Some of the recommendations include the involvement of the department of education to help develop educators at school level. This could be done by employing learning area specialists with the intention to assist in the development of educators at school. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

This study examined the effect of web-based portfolio assessment strategies on the attitudes and self-perceived growth in music learning of non-music elementary general classroom educators in a basics of music course. The study is based upon research and literature in regards to constructivism, alternative assessment strategies including portfolio assessment, and computer technology.The study employed both quantitative and qualitative research. The study was quasi-experimental and utilized a pretest and posttest survey and a final discussion interview between the student and the researcher. Students participating were enrolled in the Basic Music for Elementary Classroom Teachers course during the Spring 2002 academic semester. There total number of students involved in the study was 88 (n=88). Two classes served as the control group (n=41) and two classes served as the treatment groups (n=47). Students in the control group were evaluated through traditional methods including paper-pencil exams. Students in the treatment group were assessed through alternative assessment strategies including rubrics, reflective thinking, peer review, and the construction of a web-based portfolio. Students in both groups participated in the four main projects of the semester and completed the pre-post survey, Music in My Life.Quantitative data analysis was calculated using SPSS. Information obtained through the data collection from the pre-post survey was analyzed and interpreted with the ANCOVA test at an alpha level of .05. Qualitative data was collected from the individual discussion sessions. These interviews were transcribed and coded.Quantitative analysis found significant differences in two of the questions on the pre-post survey in regards to music as a subject. No significant difference was found regarding the attitudes about music growth between the groups from the pre-post survey. However, qualitative data collected illustrated that students in the treatment groups were better able to use music vocabulary, discuss connections between the projects while viewing the semester as a whole, and discussing their growth over the period of an academic semester. These students were also able to discuss the web-based portfolio in terms of the website showing their growth over the academic semester. / School of Music

Thesis (Ed. D.) -- University of Western Sydney, Nepean, 1999. / Bibliography : leaves 196-203.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 2004. / Title from title page screen, viewed Jan. 11, 2005. Dissertation Committee: Maureen E. Angell (chair), Barbara M. Fulk, Mary O'Brian, Kenneth H. Strand, Emily H. Watts. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 132-142) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--University of Washington, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 170-177).