20/01/2011
What Is a Portfolio?
A portfolio is the purposeful collection of a boy’s work that exhibits his efforts, progress, and achievements in a certain subject or within specific areas of a subject. The collection varies per subject but generally includes the following:
- The candidate’s participation in selecting the best samples
- Evidence of a boy’s ability and achievement in a range of activities and tasks
- Preliminary Examinations (compulsory)
- A compulsory number of formal tests or tasks completed under “controlled conditions”
- Clear indication of assessment criteria
- Clear evidence of moderation at school and cluster level
In this new era of performance assessment related to the monitoring of boys' mastery of a core curriculum, portfolios can enhance the assessment process by revealing the full range of a boy’s skills and understandings; and can reflect the process, change and growth over a period of time. The portfolio encourages pupil and teacher reflection; and provides for a degree of continuity in education from one year to the next.
Impact of Portfolios
Parents and boys need to be fully aware that marks awarded to the portfolio are accumulated over the course of the academic year and make up a substantial percentage of the promotion mark used at the end of the year. At Grade 12 level, this is usually up to 25% of the candidate’s final mark. In the two languages – oral assessment and the portfolio make up 50% of the final mark.
It is wise, therefore, that boy’s ensure that each portfolio item receives adequate attention and that the work submitted is the best that they are capable. The days when boys could rely on the final exams as a “safety net” are a thing of the past. Continuous Assessment and Portfolio requirements dictate that boys work to the best of their ability from day one and that such efforts are sustained throughout the year.
Plagiarism
The greater percentage of work done for the portfolio is done under controlled conditions in the classroom situation. However, there are opportunities for work to be completed at home. In such instances, it is absolutely imperative that both boys and parents guard against plagiarism and the infringement of copyright. Where external sources are consulted, these must be conscientiously, clearly and correctly acknowledged. Candidates must familiarize themselves with acceptable methods of acknowledging works used and cited.
In cases where a candidate attempts to pass off plagiarized work as his own, he will be subjected to the official procedures for “Irregularities” suggested by the Independent Examinations Board. If necessary, additional, internal disciplinary procedures may be instituted against the candidate.
It must be understood that should such dishonesty be identified during the process of external moderation, it may result in an irregularity and the allocation of zero for the portfolio component of a candidate’s final mark. This will not only reflect negatively upon the individual concerned but upon the College as well.
Submission of Work
Candidates will receive ample forewarning of:
- What tasks are required for submission, and
- When these tasks are due.
Candidates are to ensure that they submit the required task/s on the appropriate date/s. Work not submitted timeously could leaded to irregularities and the allocation of a zero mark for the particular item. A pupil who continually defaults on submission across a range of subjects will be subjected to disciplinary procedures which may result to temporary suspension until all required work is submitted.
Should a pupil be desperately ill, an official doctor’s certificate is required for such absence. Work missed due to absence will be caught up at the teacher’s convenience after official school hours.
Storage of Portfolios
Candidates’ portfolios will be stored by the relevant subject teachers. It is, however, the candidate’s sole responsibility to ensure that the portfolio is regularly updated and all necessary work filed.
Parents who wish to view their child’s portfolio must make an appointment with the relevant subject teacher to do so.
Please refer to Appendix B of the IEB Manual for SBA Assessment