Now That Your Students Have Created Web-Based Digital Portfolios, How Do You Evaluate Them?

With the recent influx of new teaching and learning technologies, schools are implementing digital portfolios. The program at lona College developed a four-point rubric to evaluate web-based digital portfolios. A web-based portfolio, as used in this article, is a digital portfolio that incorporates web-based materials into teaching and learning. The three main elements evaluated were form (design and aesthetics), function and usability (ease of use), and components (presence and communication of the required samples). This rubric has allowed an objective, systematic, and reliable evaluation of the portfolios by the college supervisors. ********** Student created portfolios are commonly used in teacher 'preparation programs to demonstrate teaching skills and expertise. As test scores alone lack the comprehensive scope needed for effective assessment and evaluation, portfolios can be implemented to interpret/make decisions regarding learning of teaching competencies (Cole & Ryan, 1998). With the recent influx of new teaching and learning technologies, schools are implementing digital portfolios. A web-based portfolio, as used in this article, is a digital portfolio that incorporates web-based materials into teaching and learning. This purposeful collection of work, captured by electronic means, is an exhibit of individual efforts, progress, and achievements in one or more areas (Wiedmer, 1998) that combines aspects of traditional and electronic or digital portfolios. The program at College has begun to implement web-based digital portfolios with student teachers. Since clarity about the end product is the starting point for any excellent teacher preparation program (Campbell, Melenyzer, Nettles, & Wyman, 2000), it was necessary to develop a systematic plan for evaluating these portfolios. For this purpose, we created rubrics, which are scoring guides with sets of criteria that describe levels of performance or understanding. They are formulated to assist in clarifying, communicating, and assessing teacher expectations (Custer, 1995; Burch, 1997), and can be powerful tools for teaching and assessment (Goodrich, 1997). The matter of evaluating portfolios is a critical one. Several issues were considered before the process of designing the rubrics began (adapted from Barrett, 1995): * purpose and the focus of the portfolio ("why" and for "whom"--who is the audience and for what purpose is it being created?); * nature of outcomes expected ("what"--the institution's expectations of what will the student be able to do?); * nature of evidence ("how" will the expected outcomes be shown-- which sample documents and products are to be included?); and * time span ("when"--expected over what period?). One needs to specify the components of the portfolio that will be evaluated as well as decide what constitutes an acceptable level of proficiency. The incorporation of web materials into the portfolio adds another dimension to be evaluated. USING RUBRICS FOR EVALUATION The creation and use of rubrics can ease the burden of portfolio evaluation. In any given rubric, key elements, traits, or dimensions to be evaluated are listed. Criteria discriminate among different levels related to the understanding of content, proficiency of a skill or process, and/or quality of a product or performance (Marzanno, Pickering, & McTighe, 1993). Rubrics place a value on the information that is gathered using assessment tools such as projects, products, and performances. The challenge is in designing a rubric that specifies the criteria needed but is flexible enough to allow differences in styles without stifling creativity (Burch, 1997). In the rubrics, a set of expectations are provided for students, describing what will be assessed and the standards used in the assessment, enabling students to become more thoughtful judges of their own work (Goodrich, 1997). …