Student Centred Portfolios

By Stephanie Vucko

Former teacher
LEARN - Portfolio and Inclusion

Portfolios have become a passion of mine, an inseparable part of my thoughts, questions, feelings and research. They are in every breath I speak in the classroom, in hallway discussions with colleagues, in emails I receive, and a focal point of much of the classroom dialogue I exchange with my wonderful middle school students. The process, the belief and the passion continue to grow, feeding success into my every experience as a teacher and consultant. Portfolios are the only way I could figure out how to organize my classroom, be it grade 2, 6 or middle school. So many learners, so many preferred learning styles, so many diverse interests, so many needs....

All of what I have learned about portfolios has been through the inspiration of my students, dialogue with my colleagues, support from the parents of students and administrators of schools where I have worked. A portfolio classroom is a place where students are the focal point of learning. It is a place where we set goals, negotiate the curriculum, conference, ask questions of ourselves and others, always aim to develop as learners and where we take a collaborative approach to ensuring that each member of our learning community achieves success.

What has evolved over the last few years is a portfolio process. Not a recipe, that must be followed to a tee, more like a map that allows for many detours and changes in plans when needed. This process follows certain steps each term, always building on and adding to what the student already knows. The process we follow is: collection, selection, reflection, evaluation and celebration. The idea for this process originated from a group of teachers in the Eastern Townships and has now grown and changed based upon student, parent and teacher feedback.

Portfolios are not the only way that teaching, learning and evaluating can be organized. However, be they digital or paper, I have yet to find another approach that meets student needs, focuses learning, makes school meaningful, involves parents, allows teachers to develop with their students and leads to independent, life-long learning, as well as a portfolio classroom can.

Visit Portfolio Process for more information and a growing bank of tools and resources.

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