Project II-16: Quality and impact of portfolio assessment procedures

Aims and context

This project is aimed at evaluating the quality of portfolio assessment and the impact of this assessment on the development of competence among pre-service teachers. Portfolio assessment is a longitudinal process in which various methods are used to gather information about performance in real life settings, practical knowledge and attitude. A portfolio contains a mixture of - often qualitative - materials that is collected over time and comes from various contexts, written reflections and learning plans. To help assessors interpret this information, a methodology for qualitative research is necessary. Such a methodology can build on the work of Guba and Lincoln in which the concept of ‘trustworthiness’ takes centre stage. Applying this methodology to assessment means that trust must be built between assessors and pre-service teachers, with assessors being aware of pre-service teachers’ concerns through extensive involvement in their learning processes (‘prolonged engagement’, ‘persistent observation’). Assessors should discuss hypotheses with a peer and search for counterexamples (‘peer debriefing’, ‘negative case analysis’). Interpretations should be tested, accounting for all available evidence (‘progressive subjectivity’), and be ‘member checked’ with the pre-service teachers. Interpretations should also be documented and conclusions should be supported by the original data (‘dependability’, ‘confirmability’). Finally, information about assessment conditions should be available (‘thick description’).

Method

In the project, we explore the extent to which assessors’ routines, while being engaged with the formative and summative assessment of pre-service teachers’ competence, relate to the framework that Guba and Lincoln provide. We also investigate the impact of this assessment on the development of competence among pre-service teachers.