Students' Voices Regarding Writing Portfolios

Students´ Voices Regarding Writing Portfolios Portfolio assessment is becoming a more common type of assessment in writing programs since no other assessment approach promotes reforms in the teacher’s role, student learning and the assessment process as effectively as portfolios (Brown & Hudson, 1998). Students’ opinions regarding writing portfolios have received a lot of attention in second language classrooms as a portfolio of student work can allow students to develop ownership of their learning and can encourage self-analysis as they reflect on their work (Wortham, 1998; Trotman, 2004; Grabe & Kaplan, 1996; Genesee & Upshur, 1996). The aim of the current small-scale teacher research was to investigate the beliefs of the 21 elementary level students regarding the writing portfolios used in a state university in central Turkey. The open ended questionnaire included questions on issues such as the implementation of portfolio assessment, the Writing Symposium 2018 31 assigned value of portfolios in the overall grades of students, and the effects of portfolio assessment on students’ writing abilities and performance. The data was color coded and analyzed using theme analysis in qualitative research. The findings indicate the importance of reflective practice for language learners on the use of writing portfolios to be better cater the needs of the students in writing classes