EXAMPLE

4
5

Using a Portfolio in a Middle School

with Students Who Have Literacy Problems:
The Trade that Paid
by
Judith Rosenbloom, Reading Specialist
Lawrence Middle School
Lawrence School District
Long Island, New York

A CHANGE IN PHILOSOPHY

The red-penned composition papers, the requisite ten questions that magically appeared after
every story, and the all-too predictable spelling test on Fridays are some of the teaching tools
that I traded for something quite different. As a reading and English teacher for over twenty
years, I frankly found it difficult to give up the methods that for so long had been a tradi-
tional part of both my training and my own education. Yet, over approximately the last six
years, I began to hear a great deal about a new theory of literacy instruction—something
called “whole language”—that encouraged me to abandon many tried-and-true teaching
techniques of the past.
I witnessed the successful application of this new approach in elementary level classes in
my school district and heard some secondary teachers talk about how whole language theory
could be applied to the secondary grades. I discovered that whole language theory and peda-
gogy made my traditional teaching techniques both unreasonable and obsolete. I had to
make this change, this trade, because I saw the sense in applying whole language concepts to
teach students to take responsibility for their reading and writing. The teacher was no longer
the font of all knowledge; the focus of the classroom took a 180 degree turn and now placed
importance on the students’ thinking strategies. This new, whole language concept required
students to take responsibility for their own literacy.

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74 EXAMPLE 4

When I look back now at the journey that remedial reading instruction has taken from
the skill and drill programs of the 1970s and 1980s to today’s instructional strategies that
employ a whole language approach, I am so impressed by the logic of the change. Formerly,
much of remediation took the form of practicing skills without any meaningful context.
When the skills seemed to be perfected, students were allowed to move on to another skill. I
now realize the joylessness of this instruction that reading teachers felt was the most scientific
means of correcting problems. I wonder how we thought students would ever apply these iso-
lated skills to any real reading or want to immerse themselves in a good book.
Reading instruction is now done through the context of a book that a student is inter-
ested in reading. Students’ responses to reading assignments now focus on reacting to pas-
sages in literature that have meaning for them. During periodic conferences with individual
students, I have them read passages aloud based on a question I pose or one that the stu-
dent may have. From this oral reading, I can assess fluency and determine the kinds of
problems that cause comprehension to suffer. During book discussions, students’ oral
responses also let me see how well they understand what they’re reading. Written responses
in reading logs are another aspect of our program that provide insights into reading and
writing difficulties. Minilessons are based on diagnostic observations of students during our
conferences and during class. Such lessons help unravel the reading tangles that students
experience.

SELF-REFLECTION

I must admit that the turn toward embracing whole language and portfolio assessment cre-
ated concern in me. I knew I had to embark on something new; I had to give up comfort-
able old ways for something better. At first I did a great deal of listening and observing; I
engaged in strong debates with colleagues. Then one weekend I read Nanci Atwell’s book In
the Middle (1987). Atwell brought together ideas that had been the subject of discussion in
school and were also presented in workshops that I attended. She spoke straight to my mind
and my heart, and I became a convert. After Atwell, I read the work of Lucy Calkins (1986)
and Georgia Heard (1989). Intellectual commitment to the theory was vitally important to
my conversion; I had to understand the thinking behind the practices before I could honestly
and sincerely implement new ideas.
In the professional reading, I kept seeing references to the idea that a teacher could only
understand the value of whole language and writing process strategies, if she, herself, had
firsthand experiences with the methods. I played with this idea for a while, and it seemed
quite important. The Native American belief that one must walk in another’s moccasins to
understand his or her life experience has held increasing significance for me. It became clear
that to use new strategies with my students I first needed to experience the process myself.
I began to ask myself questions about how I approached writing. I thought about what
part of my writing is most difficult or most satisfying. I began to see what it feels like to
reflect on my own writing behavior and found this self-questioning to be illuminating and
valuable. Not only did this teach me about my own writing, it also helped me understand
myself as a reader, teacher, and person. Self-knowledge allows us to grow, change, and
mature. What I have learned has shown me how to help my students when they reflect and
then to use the reflection process to move ahead. At this point, it became quite clear that
 USING A PORTFOLIO IN A MIDDLE SCHOOL WITH STUDENTS WHO HAVE LITERACY PROBLEMS 75

using a writing portfolio would be a vehicle that promotes growth. I have also come to
understand that a portfolio cannot be standardized; what is good for one set of students in
one class may not be suitable for another group of students, even if they are in the same grade
and attend the same school. The portfolio is simply a tool that helps meet the needs of stu-
dents, and it must be customized according to individual interests, abilities, and maturity.
Selecting the components of a portfolio is determined by choosing tools that are appropriate
for students to learn and grow.

ORGANIZATION OF OUR READING PROGRAM

In our middle school, seventh- and eighth-grade students with literacy problems are assigned
to a class called English/Reading, which is team taught by both an English and reading
teacher. Students who have fallen below the 30th percentile on a standardized reading test
administered to all students in our district, as well as students who have been recommended
by the sixth-grade language arts teachers, are scheduled for this special class. Of course, stu-
dents realize that having two teachers in one class is not typical of middle school and ques-
tion this arrangement. We are quite forthcoming and explain that their reading and writing
are not as strong as they might be and that having two teachers doubles the instructional
time; therefore, we can more quickly help them improve. We also stress how fortunate the
students are to have this type of instruction and that when sufficient improvement occurs,
they can move to a regular English class.
I must be forthright in admitting that the team teacher approach makes many stu-
dents uncomfortable. In our school, math is similarly organized to provide remediation,
but other subjects are modified by having smaller numbers of students with just one
teacher. Students always know that regardless of what you call a class, or how you explain
its benefit, there is a difference that separates them from other students, and they hate it!
Adolescents do not want to be different from their peers. Many of these students seem to
resent the teachers that recommended them for these classes or who keep them enrolled
in this form of remediation. We strongly believe that all of our students can improve and
continually try to convey this to them, but it is a constant battle to help students main-
tain a positive attitude.
It’s also important to point out that having two teachers in a class of ten to twelve stu-
dents does make a tremendous difference in the quality of instruction. Every possible teach-
ing arrangement can be used in these classes: one teacher may be providing instruction, and
his or her teammate may be assisting others; each teacher may take an individual group to
work with; or a teacher may take one student for an intense instructional period while the
other teacher facilitates cooperative group instruction. As the needs of the students become
evident, roles and teaching patterns can be flexibly organized.

CHANGING ASSESSMENT PRACTICES

AND USING A PORTFOLIO PROCESS
Assessment techniques that were part of past teaching practices also needed to be changed.
For example, the red marks teachers placed on composition papers were replaced by ques-
76 EXAMPLE 4

tions teachers asked to stimulate students to look more closely at what they had written. As
part of rethinking assessment, it became apparent that a way of helping students monitor
their own progress had to be found. A change in assessing students’ writing had already been
initiated as a result of incorporating writing process strategies into the secondary English cur-
riculum. The writing process—a method by which students judge their own writing with the
help of a teacher and their peers—enabled students to make decisions about their writing
ability. Also, the need to see writing growth over an extended period of time required the use
of a writing portfolio. The students used these portfolios to collect their work so that they
could analyze their writing and show evidence of their development as writers. In addition,
portfolios provided an excellent means for students’ self-assessment and helped them learn
more about their strengths and weaknesses as writers.
At Lawrence Middle School, we continued to move rapidly to revise the English and
reading curricula in the direction of whole language and writing process and in the use of a
portfolio as a tool for assessment. This new portfolio approach became a means by which our
students were better able to look at themselves as learners. It’s important to note that the
change occurred in my school district because the climate was right. Our administrators
believed in a whole language philosophy and thought that the kind of changes it entailed
were best for students. Support was given to the faculty through numerous in-service courses,
the use of consultants in whole language, the creation of pilot programs to introduce this new
style of instruction, as well as the allocation of funds for books and materials to set the pro-
gram in motion. The total commitment of the school administration encouraged staff to
learn and participate.
As a teacher of students with reading difficulties, I had to decide what I thought would
be most helpful for my students to see themselves as writers and readers. The portfolio for-
mat that was recommended for seventh and eighth graders had many inventories and self-
assessments and was designed for reading and writing. I therefore had to carefully select the
aspects of the recommended portfolio that would allow my students to look critically at their
work and yet not overwhelm them. Obviously, self-reflection can be an intimidating process
for a student who has not succeeded with basic literacy skills. This process had to be imple-
mented in a manner that would enhance students’ feelings of self-worth and give them the
motivation to try a new approach to reading and writing improvement. After years of failure,
it is often difficult to engage an adolescent whose self-esteem may be fragile when literacy
weakness is apparent.
Additionally, even though most of my students came from an elementary school pro-
gram that used an effective portfolio procedure, the kinds of strategies for self-reflection that
were presented to the students now in the secondary school were far more probing than those
in elementary school. It was obvious that with increasing maturity, students should be
expected to be more analytic and thoughtful. However, the forms used for the portfolio in
our middle school required a narrative commentary from my students, who clearly did not
write well and did not read outside of class, nor did they enjoy reading and writing. It was
important to get my students to see that a change in the manner in which they would be
involved with reading and writing in middle school would require that they take more
responsibility for their own learning. For example, when I was conferencing with a seventh
grader, I asked him to discuss a writing technique he thought he used well in the essay that
we were reviewing. He replied, “Wow, no one has ever asked me that kind of question before;
let me think about it!”
 USING A PORTFOLIO IN A MIDDLE SCHOOL WITH STUDENTS WHO HAVE LITERACY PROBLEMS 77

When the portfolio format was initially presented at the beginning of the school year, we
started looking through papers students had been collecting in folders. We also reviewed the
kinds of questions they would be expected to answer about their own work. At some point,
all of the students realized that this was quite different from prior experience. Most apparent
was the fact that the questions were addressed to the students themselves as learners and
thinkers and that they would be required to provide written responses. Also, the students
began to see that the responsibility for creating the portfolio was theirs, not mine, and this
was emphasized to ensure that all were aware of the change in roles.

HOW THE PORTFOLIO SYSTEM IS USED

In our district, we use two portfolio formats—a yellow working portfolio and a blue portfo-
lio in which the best examples of writing and self-assessment are stored. Students enjoy per-
sonalizing their yellow folders with designs, words, or illustrations. The blue portfolio is
decorated with a template of a shield on which the students write their names, a word to
describe themselves, and a picture that they’ve chosen as symbolic. We encourage this because
it contributes to a student’s personal identification with the portfolio process and also
enhances its stature.
The blue portfolio came to be called the “blue-ribbon” portfolio, because it is used to
measure the best works of the students at the end of the school year. Students put what they
consider to be their best work into the blue portfolio approximately every ten weeks, which
corresponds to our marking periods. Also included are the students’ self-assessments, which
explain why they chose particular pieces of writing and how their writing demonstrates the
attainment of their individual goals.
The reading component of the portfolio involves a similar process. Students list the sto-
ries, poems, and novels that they read over the ten-week period. They are expected to
describe how specific pieces they’ve read have helped them work toward or meet the reading
goals that they’ve chosen for themselves with the help of the teacher.
The portfolio process evaluates the student’s work in the course and is averaged into the
final grade. In place of a traditional final exam, in June the student and the teacher hold a
portfolio conference, during which aspects of the portfolio are discussed and analyzed. Early
on, students are given information about how their portfolios will be evaluated and are
guided in preparing for the important and final portfolio conference. My students surprised
me by excelling in the oral portfolio conference. They took the conference very seriously; and
after I modeled a sample conference with the class, the students approached this evaluation
well prepared. Many students with reading and writing disabilities are orally adept, and this
mode of evaluation gave them a real chance to succeed. Obviously, poor reading and writing
skills should not be seen as indicating low intelligence or an inability to use higher level
thinking skills. The portfolio process reinforced the concept that my students have many
strengths that too often are overlooked in conventional assessment. A number of students dis-
played a marvelous sense of humor in their choice of portfolio entries. Figure 4–1 contains
one student’s letter to his parents and displays an ironic sense of humor.
At the end of the school year, the portfolio is sent home with the student. Therefore, the
blue-ribbon portfolio—a selection of the students’ best work in both reading and writing—
is considered of great personal importance.
78 EXAMPLE 4

FIGURE 4–1 Letter from a student to his parent introducing his final portfolio

IMPLEMENTING THE PORTFOLIO PROCESS

WITH STUDENTS WHO HAVE LITERACY PROBLEMS
As a reading teacher, I find it is important to assess what my students think about their read-
ing and writing experiences at the beginning of the school year. Their answers provide
insights that might have taken more time to discover if I had waited to gather the informa-
USING A PORTFOLIO IN A MIDDLE SCHOOL WITH STUDENTS WHO HAVE LITERACY PROBLEMS 79

FIGURE 4–2 Preliminary reading inventory with one student’s responses

tion through student responses during class discussions or through their writing pieces. We
use several reading inventories for the portfolio, distributed approximately every ten weeks.
We also use writing inventories, but I introduce them somewhat later in the school year.
I usually begin my portfolio work with a preliminary reading inventory, which consists
of three self-reflective questions. If there are too many questions, the students don’t think
thoroughly about each answer, and the value of the inventory is lost to both the teacher and
the student. Figure 4–2 contains the questions I use for the preliminary reading inventory
and one student’s answers.
I have found that speaking to my remedial students informally or during a conference
about their responses to these inventories helps to begin to establish a bond between us.
Obviously, discussion about students’ difficulties with reading and writing rarely would be
volunteered in front of other students. Also, many of my students have had a history of fail-
ure and frustration with literacy, so their defenses are often well developed. Students need to
know that I am available to listen to them and truly care about how they feel. They are aware
that they are not fluent readers and are especially sensitive to how they will be treated. They
have to learn to trust and have confidence in a new learning process. The inventory questions
act as a catalyst to valuable dialogue with students that does not present itself under tradi-
tional whole class teaching. With reinforcement and practice, students become quite self-
reflective. Figure 4–3 contains one student’s self-reflections.
80 EXAMPLE 4

FIGURE 4–3 A student’s self-reflections about reading and writing

Getting students with literacy problems to see themselves as a valued part of a class is an
instructional challenge. One part of our portfolio called “Literature Discussion” facilitates
this by getting students to evaluate their class participation and write about at least one
important contribution that they have made. This particular segment encourages students
and helps them understand that what they say is noted and respected. It also reinforces the
idea that both the class and the teacher value the sharing of ideas. Another question asks that
they reflect on another student’s contribution to the class. This supports the idea that what
USING A PORTFOLIO IN A MIDDLE SCHOOL WITH STUDENTS WHO HAVE LITERACY PROBLEMS 81

others say is also worthwhile and needs to be remembered. When the answers are discussed
in front of the class, everyone benefits from each others’ thoughts and involvement. Hope-
fully, this encourages even reticent teens to contribute to class discussions.
My experience with this aspect of the portfolio has been most positive. After a good class
discussion, I distribute the question sheet, and the students are given time to relax, reflect,
and evaluate what has happened. They seem to be very pleased to record an important con-
tribution they made. Conversely, they are sometimes upset by the realization that they had
little to contribute to a discussion. On occasion, students record a comment that they say
they were thinking about, but that was mentioned by another class member. Insecurity and
negative evaluations in previous school years no doubt create barriers to their class participa-
tion; however, this portfolio sheet and the ensuing discussions often create a thoughtful and
productive exchange of ideas. I value this form of learning.
The accomplishment of the reading goals sheet in the portfolio is perhaps the most dif-
ficult to measure. The very nature of silent reading makes it possible for only the students to
truly know if their goals are honest and relevant and to what extent reading is a part of their
lives. Students with reading difficulties often don’t realize that reading requires a variety of
strategies that can be learned and improved upon. It is also a challenge to convince students
that reading can be an enjoyable and important part of their lives. For example, even students
who do not value reading frequently turn to the newspaper for information that’s relevant to
them. Getting students to recognize that newspaper readership is an important part of adult
literacy is an attainable goal. Goal setting can identify long-standing reading problems and
assist students in confronting difficulties and dealing with them in a supportive environment.
I have found that explaining exactly what I mean by a “goal for reading” is an important
step to take before students attempt to set goals for themselves. Providing examples of attain-
ing goals in sports is something that many students can relate to. Often, however, they have
difficulty applying goal setting to reading, so I usually talk about a personal reading goal that
I have set for myself. I tell my students that I love to read mysteries and that one of my goals
is not to read the ending of a mystery before I reach the conclusion. Through discussion of
my personal goals, I have found students more willing to talk about themselves without feel-
ing singled out or uncomfortable. Talking about reading goals seems to be a particularly sen-
sitive area and one that needs to be handled with discretion, because it means confronting
something that has been both an embarrassment and a frustration for the student. Figure 4–4
contains Gladys’ mid-year reflections on her reading goals. Gladys clearly takes goal setting
quite seriously.
Insights obtained through goal setting also have instructional implications. For example,
many of my poor readers often set the goal of reading without stopping because of problems
with a difficult concept or an unknown word. When I see this goal, I try to direct students
to books written at their independent reading level that will not present problems. I also try
to couple the idea of reading easier books with the attempt to commit a block of time, per-
haps fifteen minutes every night, to sustained reading. Often, remedial students want to
increase their reading speed, but they don’t realize that time spent each evening in reading
will help fulfill this goal.
Getting my students to think about goal setting and reading improvement is challeng-
ing. It is hard to get students to think about their daily literacy behavior, and it’s even harder
to get those who are not successful in school to start reflecting on goals and personal progress.
Once students are willing to engage in this kind of thinking and self-reflection, a major
FIGURE 4–4 Gladys’ mid-year self-reflections on her reading goals

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USING A PORTFOLIO IN A MIDDLE SCHOOL WITH STUDENTS WHO HAVE LITERACY PROBLEMS 83

breakthrough has taken place. By the time students with reading disabilities reach their teen
years, they have often built a wall around themselves and seem to resist attempts to improve.
A wonderful form of motivation occurs when students realize that growth and improvement
have truly taken place. However, it’s been easier to document my students’ success with writ-
ing than with reading. My colleagues have shared the same observations. Writing is a tangi-
ble and measurable activity. Review of the writing portion of a student’s portfolio documents
changes in quantity and quality of written expression. Reading growth is more elusive and
difficult to measure and needs a longer time frame. Certainly, having students compare their
daily commitment to reading and share the many positive experiences they have by reading
enjoyable and stimulating material contributes to self-growth.
Surprisingly, setting writing goals seems to be a much less sensitive task and can be done
in a group setting. My students are aware that even students who succeed in school have diffi-
culty writing. Therefore, they are much more open to sharing concerns about their writing. It’s
surprising how many students reveal that their spelling is terrible without having the embar-
rassment that they feel when discussing reading problems. The Writing Goals sheet drives the
writing component of the portfolio. The sheet is divided into students’ strengths and weak-
nesses as they perceive them. The sheet provides an opportunity to pinpoint goals based on stu-
dents’ analysis of their writing. Figure 4–5 contains the writing goals specified by Anthony
early in the school year.
Teaching students to set appropriate writing goals is critical to improvement. Often,
goals are too general, for example, “I want to make my writing good,” or “I want to make
my writing longer.” Some of my students also focus more on handwriting or spelling as key
ingredients to good writing and ignore more complex issues. Taking the time to discuss the

FIGURE 4–5 Anthony’s writing

goals
84 EXAMPLE 4

components of what constitutes good writing allows students to set meaningful goals. The
following illustrates how I begin to teach what qualities constitute good writing.
I start by helping students see that writing can be divided into at least three categories:
the craft of writing, the creative aspects of writing, and finally, the mechanics. We talk about
what each of these categories means to the students. Then students discuss possible goals that
would fit into each category. We also discuss that, for writing to have real power, the craft
and the creative aspects require considerable time. Students come to understand that it is eas-
ier to use a spellcheck on a computer or a peer conference to find mechanical errors than it
is to translate craftsmanship and creativity into specific attributes of writing. Minilessons help
move goals from generally less important aspects of writing to those that can result in signif-
icant writing improvement. This is not to criticize the students’ concerns about writing
mechanics. Students are often the products of many years of writing instruction where writ-
ing evaluation focused on locating mechanical errors. More complex criteria such as organi-
zation, elaboration, and language usage may not have been well understood or were not
discussed, because they seemed too complicated for this population. Traditional approaches
to writing improvement always stressed mechanics such as grammar, spelling, capitalization,
and punctuation.
A typical “craft” lesson that I do at the beginning of the school year focuses on writing
leads. I found that this is both fun for the students and easily learned and used. I present
examples of good leads from pieces of literature that we have read in class to demonstrate that
professional writers have taken the time to skillfully lead the reader into a story. Students do
seem to learn that techniques used by professional writers can apply to their own writing as
well. After a lesson on story beginnings, students often include writing a strong lead as a goal
for themselves.
Individual conferences provide the teacher and the student with time to evaluate writing
and discuss goals in a systematic and organized manner. During conference time, students’
writing is jointly reviewed. The teacher can focus on questions that have been noted before
and that have been recorded on self-adhesive notes affixed to student papers. The teacher’s
questions may help set new goals or examine earlier goals. Comments obtained from sharing
their writing with peers are reinforced during the conference.
Individual conferences are very important for remedial students. The conference allows
them to work one-on-one with the teacher and speak privately about basic problems. It allows
the teacher to talk positively about the students’ work and indicates that their efforts are val-
ued. Spending time in this intimate and personal setting sends a clear message that questions
or specific problems can be addressed privately. Highly personalized instruction and dialogue
cannot be overemphasized for the adolescent who needs affirmation from the teacher.
After every major writing assignment, I allocate time for students to reflect on their writ-
ing experience. It’s important to focus on specific strategies and knowledge. This results in a
self-reflective process paper, which becomes part of the completed writing assignment. The
quality of students’ thinking is demonstrated in the process papers and contributes to
improvement in their writing. When I see this self-awareness develop in students, in spite of
the fact that reading and writing still present challenges, I realize the value of my instruction.
Figure 4–6 shows a process paper done by one student in which she acknowledges how her
writing has changed and how reading can impact writing.
It would be naive to think that the portfolio process eliminates the emotional difficulties
that remedial students encounter with daily literacy activities and class assignments. Progress
FIGURE 4–6 Process paper about writing

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86 EXAMPLE 4

FIGURE 4–6, continued

is noted and affirmed, but significant improvement does take time and commitment. It must
be noted that these students have personal lives that are often filled with “typical” adolescent
adjustment issues as well as additional personal and economic hardships. Both clearly impact
on a student’s ability to commit to a task, sustain that focus, complete a project, and then
analyze the product. Illustrative of this was one student whose writing “style” was to write in
a stream of conscious manner without much thought about the writing task. I understood
that her significant personal problems may have resulted in her need to write profusely and
have her issues heard. Obviously, the writing that resulted was unfocused. Together, we
worked hard on learning to select from her writing what was relevant to the topic. I knew
that her understanding of relevancy had developed when she confided in her final reflection
that she fought with herself not to put in other pieces of the story that she knew were good
but weren’t really about the topic. She promised to personally tell me at a later date what I
had missed by not reading the omitted portions of her story. I think she had gotten the point!
FIGURE 4–7 Final essay on reading and writing

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88 EXAMPLE 4

FIGURE 4–7, (continued)

CONCLUSIONS

The trade that I made of old tools for new ones has proven to be a good one. The portfolio,
the newest tool, is working well and shows the students’ ability to be both selective and
thoughtful in creating a portfolio collection. This process documents students’ newly
acquired strategies and their personal achievements. It empowers them as learners, as can be
seen in Figure 4–7, which provides excerpts from one student’s end-of-year final essay. It’s
quite evident that he has become reflective and is aware of his literacy skills, the relationship
between reading and writing, and finally, the personal commitment to improve literacy.
There is no doubt that there will be further refinements of our portfolio, but these
changes will reflect a learning process with many positive experiences along the way. I look
forward to taking the next steps together with my students to help them attain higher levels
of growth and understanding.

REFERENCES
Atwell, N. (1987). In the middle. Portsmouth, NH: Heine- Heard, G. (1989). For the good of the earth and the sun.
mann. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Calkins, L. (1986). The art of teaching writing.
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.