Researching Electronic portFolios:

described as the next big thing in higher education computing. Many colleges and universities have spent the last five years establishing electronic portfolio systems. Yet the implementation of electronic portfolios in K-12 schools has not been as aggressive, perhaps due to the emphasis on the testing mandates of No Child Left Behind. If there is a better understanding of how electronic portfolios can be used for assessment to improve student learning, schools will be more eager to adopt electronic portfolios with the same enthusiasm as their counterparts in higher education. The Role of Portfolios As schools and districts around the country define portfolio initiatives for their students, it is important to recognize a common definition of portfolio. A portfolio is a collection of work that a learner has collected, selected, organized, reflected upon, and presented to show understanding and growth over time. Additionally, a critical component of a portfolio is the combination of a learner's reflection on the individual pieces of work (often called artifacts), as well as an overall reflection on the story that the portfolio tells