Positions and interactions

Regarding the evaluation of positions and interactions using portfolios, we insist on the idea that in the same class there will be no two identical portfolios, although the students have been taught by the same instructors and shared the same work, activities and processes and that, in short, the individual nature of the portfolio is one of the characteristic features that can also be evaluated. In a group/class or course there are as many positions and dispositions towards study, knowledge, interaction and the profession as there are students, but they are not all at the same level or have the same value in terms of learning. At the same time, according to Sunstein and L ovell (2000), different versions of the same project can be included in a portfolio as evidence of the process. We can also evaluate the way in which the student interacts with the materials (projects, activities, sources, bibliographical references, cases, problems), especially if this interaction is produced critically or contextually. Finally, we can evaluate if the learning is related as an individ ual or collective action in the portfolio. That is, as a process that, although singular, develops from sharing space, time and knowledge.

The representation of other opinions that have played a role in our learning and the importance of this through dialogues, reflections, repositioning, debates and critiques is one of the aspects that must be evaluated in the portfolio. As Colén et al. (2006) maintai n, we believe that the evaluation of students is a collaborative process in which it is not only the student who participates but also classmates and the educational professional, because if construction of learning requires interaction, the evaluation and management of the progress and the obstacles can also be interactive.

In this sense, knowledge is as important as skills and dispositions towards le arning (Johnson et al., 2006) in students who are studying and preparing for a profession. In dialogic pedagogy, using the portfolio the student integrates evidence from his learning that come from different sources and, in short, besides detecting

Aesthetic values

• Visual and aesthetic consistency with the theme of the portfolio

• Production of a narrative based on the poetic, reflective, dialogic and critical strategies of production and knowledge exchange

• Demonstrate empathy and reconstruct the changes in learning from your own emotional and biographi-cal journey through the course

misunderstanding, the most important aspect would have to be the evaluation of the interactions that the student has created between these samples, the links between previous knowledge and the knowledge being acquired, between what is learned and how it is learned. The portfolio makes the representation of learning which is the product of diverse interactions possible, where the bilateral teacher/student relationship is blurred in order to begin to think of the classroom as a space for building shared learning, where there are multiple exchanges between similarities and differences. During the learning process multiple intelligences may be developed (Gardner, 1995) and the portfolio enables the approximation and interpretation of learning and development from the articulation of different languages. In addition, at all times emotional disposition intervenes in the construction of learning, generating the desire to learn or the need to resolve a cognitive conflict.

It is very important to pay attention to how, where and why one learns best… It is also important to be aware of our own emotions that arise during learning situations. Claxton (1999) indicates that “there is a strong need to understand the place of emotions in learning, and to develop the ability to contain, manage and tolerate them. This is one of the core ingredients of ‘emotional intelligence’ […]”

Today, self-assessment and self-management of knowledge are fundamental features that must be present in metacognition. The teacher makes reference to the learner’s personal thoughts in terms of knowledge and skills, to his affective state in relation to his knowledge, skills, motivations and characteristics. The latter, self-management, refers to reflection on the thinking behind the action that helps the individual to organise problem solving aspects (Klenowski, 2004).

Along the same lines, Klenowski explains that there are four necessary cognitive processes that must be internalised in order to develop learning aimed at problem solving, and here at the GI-CAES we believe that this is also influenced by one’s emotional and social identity: a) the identification and definition of problems; b) the mental representation of the problem; c) planning the action; and d) the evaluation of what is known from performance. In this way, the rubrics we build, in addition to being precise, will have to regulate the process, so that teachers can adjust the teaching and so that the student can self-regulate (Colén et al., 2006).

In table 5.10 we have an example of ranking evaluation criteria, from connections and objectives achieved by the student in relation to the activity planned, that serves as a reference to the person who is learning. This table of rubrics can also operate as a guide for the student that can anticipate from what criteria his work will be evaluated; in short, it enhances self-evaluation and self-regulation.

When we evaluate positions and interactions, the students tell us the following (opinions of students from the Cultural Participative Promotion and Expression course, 2006-2007 academic year):

“Producing a portfolio has helped me reflect on the content of the subject and on how it connects to my life, and later I understood what the application of all this is on my work and daily life. Choosing has been the most important aspect for me and has hel-ped me to identify with others, something that is difficult for me.”

Incomplete Complete Very Complete

Primary Education degree from the Faculty of Education at the UAB, 2007-2008 academic year, Teaching Social Sciences I

(Prof. Neus González)

“We have to be alert to all those stimuli offered by society, friends, culture…; more notes, annotations, thoughts for reflection, everything that I am discovering and get-ting to know, a portfolio has to be open and able to be worked on day by day. It should also include an exchange with classmates and personal evaluations, which is somet-hing else that I need to learn; particular cases and exchanges with others.”