Reflection Paper

Reflection

The module began with assessing the current teaching approach deployed by

teachers in class. As such, I noted that teachers are using theory for grading the

students instead of evaluating their practical skills. The pre-assessment given at the

inception of this module showed that only 18% of the 26 students in my

manufacturing class scored at the proficiency level while 70% of the students score

at a lower level between 59 percent and Zero. Based on this data, I found it

necessary to assess my students using Portfolio Assessment rubrics. This assessment

has been used before solely focused on the theoretical assumptions taught in class

while neglecting the practical skills. In this regard, the portfolio needs to be

changed to incorporate the practical skills. Thus, the portfolio will be structured to

integrate practical assessment for grading the students’ performance. Besides, the

evaluation approach has to be changed from a system that solely assesses the

student’s knowledge to one that can evaluate the student’s competence and abilities.

The portfolio assessment is a collection of purposeful documents that gives the

outlay on how tasks are completed and competency amongst the learners is

developed. Interest in using portfolio assessment in the class is developed as part of

moving away from the traditional approach used by instructors on grading based on

theory rather than ascertaining the student’s practical skills. In the past, the students

have been assessed through the class-based teaching practice to prove that they

had acquired the skills relayed by the instructor. It is through this that I felt the

teaching approach was not sufficient to enable the learners to grasp the required

competence and skills. To solve the issue of enhancing teaching and learning, I think

it is important for the teachers to practice the assessment through the use of a

portfolio with a different module, practicum. The integration of practicum module for

assessing the students is important as this enables the learner to acquire specific

techniques that are imperative for future success. Additionally, there are some

techniques that can be learned through actual experience. While theoretical

teaching might have been ideal in the past, the students should be assessed based

on their practical skills as it enhances a deeper understanding of concepts through

personal experience.

Notably, when I came in, the students had a problem with articulating what they

know with the actual practical application of concept taught in class to solving

regular daily problems. After this, I sought to create an assessment that would

integrate the practical skills of the learners during the evaluation. Primarily, I noted

that using a portfolio assessment rubric would be effective for grading the class as it

justifies their competence and abilities. To design an effective assessment that is in

line with this goal, I conducted research whereby I came across numerous sources

about the use of portfolio assessment rubric to evaluate student performance. I

began with The Use of Portfolio to Assess Student’s Performance by Osman Birgin

and Adnan Baki. According to Birgin and Baki, (2007), recent educational

developments such as the advent of multiple intelligence theories have heightened

the rapid change in traditional approaches to teaching and assessing. While the

educational developments have been enhanced by societal changes, it is imperative

to acknowledge that the traditional learning approach has been altered.

Outstandingly, theories such as constructivism have facilitated the radical change in

learning approaches, both in teaching and assessments. For instance, the main

objective of the earlier educational approach is enabling the learners to know about

a certain domain. In this instance, learning the basic knowledge was considered

important which is in line with the behaviorist approach. In the traditional

instructional approach, knowledge is abstracted whereby both learning and

teaching are perceived as an individual process. Besides, learning is perceived as

the accumulation of the stimulus-response association. Considerably, both drills and

practice are important aspects of this process. Significantly, the assessment practice

is mainly based on the testing acquisition of basic knowledge. Despite this, this

traditional approach merely promotes memorizing of the rules or algorithms by the

learners rather than conceptual comprehension of discrete components of the

domain. Additionally, the assessments provide less understanding of the student’s

comprehension of high order cognitive skills such as critical thinking, problem

solving and reasoning.

Contrary, the constructivism theory that is based on Piaget’s and Vygotsky presume

that learners should acquire and socially construct their knowledge and

comprehension. Notably, this approach pays more attention to the student’s

problem-solving skills and collaborative learning. As such, the portfolio assessment

rubric offers a wide range of assessment tools for evaluating the student’s practical

skills that are imperative in the learning process. For example, the manufacturing

class students will be required to apply the knowledge gained in solving new

problems. Furthermore, the constructivist epistemology heightens the need for

assessing the student’s individual performance and group performance together to

better their learning experience. Nowadays, social trends have mounted pressure

on the learners who are required to possess more practical and cognitive skills. With

the new trends, educational improvements are focused on strengthening the

learning environment. For this reason, alternative and effective assessment

approaches are required to evaluate the teaching outcomes. Primarily, this was

achieved by modifying the portfolio rubric used to assess the learners. As such, new

standards were used on modifying the portfolio by integrating new approaches such

as multiple pre and post assessment tools for the mathematics and physics

component was built into including oral, written and demonstration formats. To

ensure that the assessment contributes to the student’s learning, they will be focused

on evaluating what the student’s knowledge and what they fall short of. Therefore,

the use of a modified portfolio rubric is imperative as it provides clear information

on the students’ progress to enable the teachers to plan their teaching approaches.

The authors have highlighted the importance of using an alternative assessment

process to better the teaching and learning of the students in the class. An important

aspect of the use of the portfolio assessment rubric is determining the best criteria

for evaluating the student’s performance. As highlighted, the theoretical approach

deployed by the instructors does not provide an effective reflection about the

student’s comprehension of important concepts in the manufacturing class. With this,

the portfolio assessment will be focusing on the acquisition of practical skills by the

students. This assessment criterion was used to determine the quality of

performance by the student which is easy to understand. Besides, the rubric was

also used to ascertain the quality of the evidence presented in the portfolio relative

to student performance. Significantly, this makes the assessment not only reliable

but also valid.

Similarly, I came across Using portfolio assessment as an innovation to assess

problem-based learning in Hong Kong schools by Sharon Lynne Bryant and Andrew

Anthony Timmins. The author's highlight on how Problem-Solving Learners in Hong

Kong were required to prove that they had grasped the content related to being a

successful teacher. By using the portfolio assessment rubric, the learners were

assessed on how well they understood information through the use of a practical

module. Notably, the lecturer sessions were guided through the use of these

assessments by an agreed set of rubrics. Through this, the portfolio assessment was

used to improve the teaching practice of the students. Besides, the instructors

obtained feedback from the students through which they use to modify their module

content and instruction. Therefore, educational work accomplished through teaching

practical skills is deemed important to improve the learning outcomes of the

students. While the portfolio will be modified by integrating the assessment of

practical skills, it is imperative to take into consideration the student’s feedback. It is

through this that I intend to incorporate feedback from the learners to better modify

the portfolio assessment rubric feature the important aspects highlighted. Therefore,

using feedback to improve teaching and learning is vital as it dictates how to modify

better the portfolio. Additionally, obtaining continues feedback from the students

will enable them to reflect on their studies and review their progress. Primarily, this

is enhanced by the fact that it provides visual and dynamic proofs of the student’s

skills development, success, and weaknesses that need improvement. As such, not

only does the portfolio assessment rubric provide me the opportunity to have a

different perspective in the teaching process, but also enables students to reflect on

their skills and offer feedback for improving the teaching and learning outcomes.

While reading the professional texts, I came across the sociocultural theory that

focusses on key aspects of knowledge and learning that should be situated,

mediated and dependent on practical participation. Often, these learning aspects

are perceived to be of importance in the organizational setting rather than

institutional settings. However, this is not the case as a practical participation of the

students improves both teaching and learning outcomes. The use of portfolio

assessment rubric is important as it will also improve self-assessment skills of the

students. This approach enables them to monitor their learning progress,

understand their strengths and weakness that can be used to better inform the

instructional design adopted by the teachers. By being aware of the learning

progress, the students will be required to provide feedback which will be used to

design the instructions in accordance with their needs.

Therefore, I will modify the portfolio rubric being used for student assessment in my

manufacturing class as continuous feedback is obtained from the students.

Additionally, the sociocultural perspective governs the understanding and practice

of the assessment. This means that the instructors and the students will be well-

informed about the teaching and learning outcomes expected in class. Through this,

the portfolio can be modified by integrating important aspects that are highlighted

both from the feedback or learned through its continuous practice. By modifying the

portfolio, I will facilitate the need to evaluate the practical skills of the learners rather

than merely explaining theoretical perspectives.

In addition to the professional texts that I have read regarding the importance of

portfolio assessment rubric, I intend to observe other teachers and see how I will

learn within their class to integrate physics, math, and marketing into the portfolio

assessment rubric. Often, instructors have different teaching approaches, all of

which improve learning outcomes for the students. Subsequently, it is important to

acknowledge that different subjects are characterized by different instructional

designs. For example, demonstration of formats is imperative in the mathematics

and physics classes. These approaches differ to that of the marketing class. As such,

the portfolio should be comprehensive enough by covering important teaching and

learning approaches that can be effective for the different subjects. Furthermore,

this highlights the need for additional modification of the portfolio to accommodate

the different learning styles for the various subjects. Further insights will be

collected from attending these class sessions as I can garner a physical approach for

the different instruction designs. This escapade will enable me to learn the important

activities for the different classes and most importantly ideas for use in modifying the

portfolio.

The assessment of other teachers and how they teach in their class will enable me to

target the required modifications based on the grade-level expectations for the

students. The in-class observations will form the basis of informing me on

instructional strategies that can be adopted to improve my instructional

methodology. Notably, evidence will be garnered from this assessment to evaluate

the learning outcomes of the different teaching strategies and instruction designs.

The data from this assessment will be used to identify areas of success and parts that

need improvement before modifying the portfolio. If students do not master

mathematical equations, for instance, such as algebra, this will highlight the need for

a better instructional approach for the given subject. As such, the classroom

assessment of other teachers will provide necessary feedback that can be used in

modifying the portfolio to better integrate effective teaching approaches. The results

from the assessments will dictate on whether I will be required to change my

teaching strategies. As highlighted earlier, I noted that most students had a problem

in articulating what they knew with an actual practical application of the concept to

daily real-life problems. Notably, a similar outcome can be garnered from these

assessments which will highlight the need to alter the instructional strategies and

incorporate a more practical approach. Assessing their practical skills will be used

to reinforce the concepts learned in class. For instance, the instructional design for

the math class will be required to integrate the SMART board technology and

require the students to work in groups to enrich their learning process. It is through

this that their practical skills can be ascertained.

Observing how other teachers teach in their class for the different subjects will be

important as this will form the basis of identifying students struggling with the

instructional approach. Notably, while instructional approaches can be favorable to

some students, particularly the quick learners, some learners struggle as they often

require additional reinforcement or need other forms of engagement to improve

their learning outcomes. This highlights that there are two groups of learners in the

class. With this, the observation will form a basis for identifying individualistic needs

of the learners and areas of improvement for the instructional designs. As such, the

observation demonstrated the teaching activities that are effective and those that

require improvement. Such information cannot be collected without practical

observation thereby highlighting the importance of this activity. The primary

objective of the observation process is to probe how better the students can apply

the learned concepts in real-world settings. Thus, the information garnered from the

observation was used to form the basis for differentiating the portfolio rubric lesson

materials, lesson approaches and assessment of the students, all of which will be

integrated into the portfolio assessment rubric. I attribute that student growth and

improved performance outcomes are enhanced by continuous data collection to

determine the effectiveness of the teaching approaches which will be integral when

modifying the portfolio.

The assessment will fully capture how I and my students operate in the learning

environment. The daily interactions afforded by the teachers to the students

demonstrated their comprehension of the learning materials and practical skills

garnered. This information will be used to improve both the teaching and learning of

the students by modifying the portfolio. The world is a natural part of the classrooms

which differs from the formal examinations. With this, it can be acknowledged that

the acquisition of practical skills is vital for use in the real world setting. The

assessment information of both the teachers and the students will provide

conclusions on the desirable modifications of the portfolio. Therefore, I intend to

conduct these activities to improve the overall academic of the students by bringing

the teaching and learning outcomes to a higher level. As at the reporting period that

will end in April, there has been a dramatic improvement the assessment report of

my students at least the post rubric report had shown an improvement of about 15%

bringing the number of students that scored on the proficiency level to 29% and still

counting.

As I reflect on the information garnered during this module, I drew several

conclusions on the usefulness of the portfolio assessment rubric to improve student

performance. First, my understanding of their use is that it enables the learner to

acquire specific techniques that are imperative for future success. Additionally,

there are some techniques that can be learned through actual experience. I noted

that using a portfolio assessment rubric would be effective for grading the class as it

justifies their competence and abilities. The different professional texts have

highlighted the importance of this approach based on theoretical backgrounds such

as the social construct theory. Moreover, a modified portfolio will guide the lessons

enabling the instructor to identify areas that need improvement. Furthermore, the

student’s self-assessment skills will be enhanced in that they can identify their

learning progress, strengths and weaknesses. From this, the provided feedback will

be used to justify the appropriate modifications to be enacted on the portfolio.

Besides, the rubric will be used to ascertain the quality of the evidence presented in

the portfolio.

Secondly, the physic class observation on other teachers will form the basis of

informing me instructional strategies that can be adopted to improve my

instructional methodology. The data from this assessment showed that my student’s

grade improved by 18% more after taken the post rubric assessment and this data

will be used to identify areas of success and parts that need improvement before

modifying the portfolio. This will be enhanced further by reading the textbook on

portfolio assessment and classroom differentiation for different students to address

their needs. As such, these activities are meant to raise the student’s performance to

a higher level by improving both the teaching and learning outcomes and my

teaching and learning process was drastically improved doing this process.

Regular reflection about the portfolio assessment of the students will enable me to

garner insight on high order cognitive skills such as creative thinking and problem-

solving which are imperative in the real world setting learning and teaching

situations. I also realized the use of the portfolio assessment rubric had guided my

instruction design is important as it can be aligned with the learning objectives and

created in a manner that the students can demonstrate ways through which they

learn the best. No longer will I consider the traditional instructional approach as an

effective teaching and learning methodology as it solely focuses on formal

examinations and mastery of content. As such, continuous reflection is important as it

enables me to identify the current educational developments and the focus of new

theoretical perspectives. Therefore, the portfolio will be modified by adopting

effective instructional strategies such as integration of practicum module and

feedback from learners to improve their learning outcomes.