This article focuses on the experiences of Grade 12 students using a language portfolio based on the principles and guidelines of the European Language Portfolio (ELP) in their second language classes in a large urban high school. As part of a larger action-research project, focus group interviews were conducted to gather data related to…

This study assessed the differences in educational aspirations and educational anticipations between four groups (AVID, GEAR UP, AVID/GEAR UP, and Control) of high school seniors who participated in a previous study as 10th graders (Watt, Huerta, & Lozano, 2007). It also measured whether any change in aspirations and anticipations occurred…

Despite emphasis and progress in developing collaborative inquiry in computer-supported collaborative learning research, little attention has been given to examining how collective learning can be assessed in computer-supported collaborative learning classrooms, and how students can have agency in assessing their own collaborative process. We…

Some time ago, the author collected data for a study on students' experiences of preparation for assessment of their art portfolios at the high school level in Canada, England, and The Netherlands. Participants with whom the author had conversations in Canada described varied by mostly rewarding experiences. However, one student's description of…

From more rigorous courses during the twelfth grade to individual projects and internships, school districts across the country are taking a variety of steps for the purpose of keeping seniors engaged in learning during their senior year of high school. At the same time, they are also warning students about the possibility that students who have…

Discusses three of the authors' experiences as high school seniors serving as peer tutors and assessors for eighth graders' science portfolios in a science class that integrated a series of year-long writing activities using portfolios into an eighth-grade conceptual science class. (SR)

This booklet answers parents' questions about the following: Kentucky's Writing Portfolio program, the process which leads to effective writing, and the parent's role in the development of children's writing skills. The first section discusses the stages of the writing process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing) and how…

What does a student achieve and learn by the time he or she graduates from high school? How are various schools educating and evaluating students in their final year of school? Interdisciplinary senior courses at Phillips Exeter Academy encourage students to exercise their analytical, interpretative, and decision-making skills; to define their own…

This booklet answers parents' questions about the following: Kentucky's Writing Portfolio program, the process which leads to effective writing, and the parent's role in the development of children's writing skills. The first section discusses the stages of the writing process (prewriting, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing) and how…

Assessment is a cornerstone of the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990 (KERA), and development of appropriate assessments for grades 4, 8, and 12 has been a major focus of KERA implementation. This paper explores the development of performance events, portfolio assessments, and open-ended questions, with an emphasis on open-ended questions and…

In order to examine trends in educational reform in Kentucky, two studies of student portfolio evaluations as perceived by Kentucky teachers were described and compared. Under the Kentucky Educational Reform Act, student portfolios can serve as a basis for official evaluation of school performance. The first study, conducted in the fall and spring…