Sử dụng portfolio đọc như là một hoạt động học tập và đánh giá để phát triển khả năng tự học cho sinh viên năm nhấ

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES

LÊ THỊ BÍCH LIÊN

USING READING PORTFOLIOS AS AN ASSESSMENT AND
LEARNING ACTIVITY TO DEVELOP LEARNERS’
AUTONOMY OF FRESHMEN IN A COLLEGE IN HANOI
(Sử dụng portfolio đọc như là một hoạt động học tập và đánh
giá để phát triển khả năng tự học cho sinh viên năm nhất tại
một trường cao đẳng ở Hà nội)

M.A. Minor Programme Thesis
Field

: English Teaching Methodology

Code

: 8140231.01

HANOI- 2018


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES

LÊ THỊ BÍCH LIÊN

USING READING PORTFOLIOS AS AN ASSESSMENT AND
LEARNING ACTIVITY TO DEVELOP LEARNERS’
AUTONOMY OF FRESHMEN IN A COLLEGE IN HANOI
(Sử dụng portfolio đọc như là một hoạt động học tập và đánh
giá để phát triển khả năng tự học cho sinh viên năm nhất tại
một trường cao đẳng ở Hà nội)

M.A. Minor Programme Thesis
Field

: English Teaching Methodology

Code

: 8140231.01

Supervisor : Dr. Tran Thanh Nhan

HANOI- 2018


DECLARATION
I hereby certify that the thesis entitled “Using reading portfolios as an
assessment and learning activity to develop learners‟ autonomy of freshmen
in the college in Hanoi” is the result of my own research for the Degree of
Master of Arts at University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam
National University, and that I accept the requirements of the University
relating to the retention and use of Master‟s Graduation Paper deposited in the
library.
In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper

deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and
research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the library
for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper.

Signature

Le Thi Bich Lien
Date:

i


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Tran
Thanh Nhan for her helpful guidance, critical comments, valuable suggestions
and contributions in the preparation and completion of this minor M.A. thesis.
I hereby formally express my debt of gratitude to all staff members of
the Post-Graduate Department for their valuable lectures, which laid the
foundation of this thesis.
I also owe my special thanks to English teaching staff and students at
HaTay Teacher Training College for their kind help and great contribution to
my study.
Last but not least, my heart-felt thanks go to my family and close
friends whose support and encouragement has been especially significant to
the success of my thesis.

ii


ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study is to explore first-year students‟ attitudes
toward the effects of the reading portfolios. The participants of the study are
30 first-year students of Ha Tay Teacher Training College. The data were
gathered through survey questionnaires, their reflections and analysis of the
students‟ reading portfolios. The analysis of the data indicated that the reading
portfolios have improved the students‟ reading skill, learning awareness, as
well as self-study skill when adjustments to create relevant content were made
and the students were provided with adequate support, As for the teacher, the
greatest gains are better teaching results and the learners‟ appreciation.
However, all participants share difficulties created by heavy workload and
limited timeframe. A more focused content and greater space for the learners‟
autonomy were suggested to achieve better teaching and learning results.

iii


TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION .............................................................................................. i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................................ ii
ABSTRACT .................................................................................................... iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................... iv
LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................... viii
LIST OF CHARTS ........................................................................................ ix
PART I: INTRODUCTION ........................................................................... 1
1.1. Rationale of the study ............................................................................. 1
1.2. Objectives of the study............................................................................ 2
1.3. Scope of the study ................................................................................... 2
1.4. Methods of the study ............................................................................... 3
1.5. Design of the thesis ................................................................................. 4
PART II: DEVELOPMENT .......................................................................... 6

CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW...................................................... 6
1.1. Assessment .............................................................................................. 6
1.1.1. Definitions of the concept of assessment .......................................... 6
1.1.2. Functions of assessment.................................................................... 7
1.1.3. Characteristics of self- assessment ................................................... 8
1.2. Learners‟ autonomy ................................................................................ 8
1.2.1. Definition of learners’ autonomy...................................................... 8
1.2.2. The roles of learners’ autonomy ....................................................... 9
1.3. Reading portfolio .................................................................................. 10
1.3.1. Definition of portfolio ..................................................................... 10
1.3.2. Types of portfolio ............................................................................ 11
1.3.3. Characteristics of a portfolio.......................................................... 12
1.3.4. Reading portfolio ............................................................................ 14

iv


1.3.5. Using reading portfolio as an assessment tool to improve learners’
autonomy ................................................................................................... 15
CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY............................................................... 17
2.1. Participants ............................................................................................ 17
2.2. The course ............................................................................................. 17
2.3. Using reading portfolios as assessment tool in the college. ................. 20
2.4. Research Questions ............................................................................... 22
2.5. Data Collection ..................................................................................... 22
2.5.1. Survey questionnaires ..................................................................... 22
2.5.2. Students’ reflections ........................................................................ 23
2.6. Research Procedures ............................................................................. 24
2.7. Data Analysis ........................................................................................ 24
2.7.1. Pre – reading portfolio questionnaire ............................................ 24

2.7.2.Post- reading portfolio questionnaire ............................................. 25
2.7.3. The students’ perception of reading portfolio on learners’
autonomy questionnaire ............................................................................ 25
2.7.4. Students’ reflections ........................................................................ 25
CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS ............................................................... 26
3.1 Data analysis of the students‟ survey questionnaire before the reading
portfolio process. .......................................................................................... 26
3.1.1. Students’ motivation in studying English ....................................... 26
3.1.2. Students’ learning experience......................................................... 28
3.2 Data analysis of the students‟ survey questionnaire after the reading
portfolio process. .......................................................................................... 31
3.2.1. Students’ attitudes towards the reading portfolios ......................... 31
3.2.2. Students’ preferences for tasks requirements on reading portfolios. . 35
3.2.3. Students’ difficulties in the reading portfolios process. ................. 37
3.2.4. Students’ suggestions to improve the reading portfolios contents. 38
v


3.3. Data analysis of students‟ perception of impact of reading portfolio on
learners‟ autonomy questionnaire. ............................................................... 39
3.3.1. The impact of teacher’s immediate feedback ................................. 39
3.3.2. Students’ views on their self- assessment skills. ............................. 40
3.3.3. The role of reading portfolio as a learning and assessment tool. .. 41
3.3.4. The role of reading portfolio assessment in promoting learner
autonomy. .................................................................................................. 42
3.4. Data analysis of students‟ final reflection for reading portfolio project. .. 43
3.4.1 Reading portfolios as a learning tool to improve language ability. 43
3.4.2. Reading portfolio as an assessment to develop learners’ autonomy.....45
3.4.3. Difficulties in reading portfolio process. ........................................ 45
3.4.4. Suggestions in reading portfolio project. ....................................... 46

CHAPTER 4: MAJOR FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONS ..................... 47
4.1. Major findings and discussions............................................................. 47
4.1.2. Students’ attitudes towards the effects of the reading portfolio
activity. ...................................................................................................... 47
4.1.3. Students’ difficulties in implementing the reading portfolios......... 49
4.1.4. Students’ suggestions to improve the self- learning portfolio ........ 49
4.2. Suggestions for applying the reading portfolio .................................... 49
4.2.1. Suggestion for the teachers ............................................................. 49
4.2.2. Suggestions for the students ............................................................ 51
4.3. Summary ............................................................................................ 52
PART III: CONCLUSION ........................................................................... 53
1. Summary of the study ........................................................................... 53
2. Limitations of the study ........................................................................ 54
3. Suggestions for further studies ............................................................. 54
REFERENCES .............................................................................................. 56
APPENDICES .................................................................................................. I
vi


APPENDIX 1. DESIGN OF READING PORTFOLIO ASSESSMENT ......... I
APPENDIX

2.

A

WEEK

PLAN

FOR

READING

PORTFOLIO

CLASSROOM PROCEDURES ..................................................................... III
APPENDIX 3. SAMPLES FOR WEEKLY DESIGNED READING PORTFOLIO
...................................................................................................................................................IX
APPENDIX 4. SUGGESTED QUESTIONS FOR STUDENTS‟ REFLECTIONS . X
APPENDIX 5: PRE-PORTFOLIOS QUESTIONNAIRE QUESTIONNAIRE
FOR STUDENTS BEFORE USING READING PORTFOLIOS ................. XI
APPENDIX 6: POST-PORTFOLIOS QUESTIONNAIRE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR
STUDENTS AFTER USING READING PORTFOLIOS ........................................ XIV
APPENDIX 7: POST-PORTFOLIOS QUESTIONNAIRE

STUDENTS‟

PERCEPTION OF IMPACT OF READING PORTFOLIO ON LEARNERS‟
AUTONOMY.............................................................................................. XVII
APPENDIX 8: STUDENTS‟ REFLECTIONS ............................................ XX

vii


LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: The impact of teacher‟s immediate feedback ................................... 39
Table 2: Students‟ views on their self-assessment skills. ............................... 40
Table 3: The role of reading portfolio as a learning and assessment tool ...... 41
Table 4: The role of reading portfolio in promoting the learners‟ autonomy ....... 42

viii


LIST OF CHARTS
Chart 1. The students‟ motivation in studying English. ................................. 27
Chart 2. The student‟s frequency of reading English ..................................... 28
Chart 3. The students‟ self-studying materials in the reading skill ................ 29
Chart 4. Reasons for difficulty in reading English texts. ................................ 30
Chart 5. The students‟ knowledge of reading portfolios ................................ 30
Chart 6. Students‟ awareness of the importance of reading portfolios ........... 32
Chart 7. Students‟ general assessment of the reading portfolio contents ....... 32
Chart 8.

Students‟ preferences for the benefits of reading portfolios in

learners‟ autonomy .......................................................................................... 33
Chart 9. Students‟ most gained knowledge through reading portfolios ......... 34
Chart 10. Students‟ preferences for task requirements on the reading
portfolios ......................................................................................................... 35
Chart 11. Students' preferences for contents of the reading portfolios. .......... 36
Chart 12. Students‟ difficulties in implementing the reading portfolio ......... 37
Chart 13. Students‟ suggestions to improve the reading portfolio contents ...... 38

ix


PART I: INTRODUCTION
1.1.

Rationale of the study

Not only recently, teacher and learners in advanced education have
complained about serious shortcomings of traditional learning and testing, in
which learning is only conceived as the accumulation of stimulus-response
association. Moreover, most testing systems used in Vietnamese universities
consist of only written tests, and mainly focus on checking students‟
memorization of rules or concrete items of knowledge rather than assessing
their effort, real understanding or ability to apply knowledge in real situations.
Meanwhile, the modern society and the labour market are requiring graduates
to acquire higher-order cognitive skills such as problem solving, critical
thinking, analyzing data, and being able to present facts and opinions orally or
in written form (Dochy,2001; as cited in Birgin & Bakin, 2007). Those are
particular skills that help employees fulfill their increasingly demanding jobs
in a competitive environment. In short, there seems to be a gap between what
the society requires and what the educational system offers.
To bridge the gap mentioned above, it is necessary for university
education to provide learners with realistic knowledge and practical skills.
Furthermore, assessment is required to measure both on–going efforts and
learning outcomes. More importantly, training students to be active and
independent learners should be the ultimate educational aim. In order to do so,
the only way is letting students take responsibility for their own learning,
design their own learning plan, seek out additional learning materials, assess
their own progress, and cooperate with others in learning. In this regard,
portfolio is claimed to be a teaching and learning tool that creates such
activeness and autonomy in learners.

1

In the world, various kinds of portfolio have been used since early of
1990s in teaching foreign languages and have shown promising results. In
Vietnam, portfolio has gradually become a favourable teaching tool at many
universities as it combines both instruction and assessment. Moreover,
portfolio focuses on various language and learning skill not just concrete
language items. However, this tool has been mainly applied to English major
students as it requires much time, effort and higher- order cognitive skills.
For the above-mentioned reasons, the researcher would like to carry
out the following research: “Using reading portfolios as an assessment
and learning activity to develop learners’ autonomy of freshmen in a
college in Hanoi”.
1.2.

Objectives of the study

This study aims at investigating the implementation of reading portfolio
and examining its effects on developing learners‟ autonomy of English-major
freshmen in a college in Hanoi. It is hoped to build up a feasible portfolio
model and offer suggestions for teaching and learning English language.
Specifically, answers to the following research questions are sought:
1. What are the effects of reading portfolio on improving learners‟
autonomy?
2. What problems may emerge in the implementation process?
3. What are possible adjustments to tailor the common reading portfolio
design and make it more suitable to English major freshmen?
1.3.

Scope of the study

Portfolio, especially reading portfolio, can be used for various reasonsassessing learners‟ performance, teaching concrete language item, or assisting

learners in improving their autonomy. Within the scope of this study, reading
portfolio is manipulated mainly as teaching and assessment tool to help
2


students build up and enhance their awareness of developing learners‟
autonomy in university education.
As mentioned above, it has become common to apply reading
portfolios to students of English major freshmen. Consequently, the study
selects a class of 30 English-major freshmen in Ha Tay teacher training
college as the tentative subjects to examine the effectiveness of applying
reading portfolio as a learning and assessment tool to develop the learners‟
autonomy. They can be altered to match specific teaching and learning
conditions. Selection of those adjustments is decided according to
pedagogical theories of specialists and teaching experience of the writer of
this thesis.
1.4.

Methods of the study

The study is carried out in form of an action research, conducted by the
writer herself as a practitioner in EFL teaching and concurrent with the
teaching and learning process. Both quantitative and qualitative data are
collected in order to get a full view of the effects that the designed reading
portfolio brings to learners‟ autonomy.
To collect desired data, two research instruments are made use of,
namely survey questionnaire and portfolio analysis. As for the first
instrument, there are three questionnaires- the pre-portfolio questionnaire and
two its post- portfolio versions. They were conducted to gather information to
answer three research questions. In addition, teacher‟s notes and informal

talks between learners and the teacher- mostly occurring during break time –
are used to obtain detailed information about students‟ feedback and
suggestions. However, these data, merely students‟ opinions in students‟
reflections; thus, are quite subjective. Accordingly, to improve the validity of

3


research results, submitted reading portfolios are analyzed from a pedagogical
standpoint to reveal their effectiveness on developing learners‟ autonomy.
1.5.

Design of the thesis

The study consists of three parts:
Part I: Introduction
This part introduces the objectives, scope, and organization of the study
Part II: Development
This is the main part of the study. It is divided into four chapters.
Chapter 1: Literature Review
Theoretical background relevant to the topic and critical survey of
related articles, books and other resources are presented.
Chapter 2: Methodology
This chapter presents the detailed procedure of the study: the ESP
course, population selection, and methodology for data collection and data
analysis
Chapter 3: Data analysis
This chapter deals with the findings drawn out from the analysis of the
data. The information gained through the three questionnaires, students‟
reflections as well as the students‟ reading portfolios.

Chapter 4: Major findings and suggestions for using reading portfolios
This chapter shows some major findings which lead to some
suggestions for using reading portfolios.
Part III: Conclusion
This chapter summarizes the main points discussed in the paper and
some limitations of the study. Besides, implication for English teacher and
recommendations for further research are presented.

4


LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND CHARTS
TABLES
Table 1: The impact of teacher‟s immediate feedback
Table 2: Students‟ views on their self-assessment skills.
Table 3: The role of reading portfolio as a learning and assessment
Table 4: The role of reading portfolio in promoting the learners‟
autonomy
CHARTS
Chart 1. The students‟ motivation in studying English.
Chart 2. The student‟s frequency of reading English
Chart 3. The students‟ self-studying materials in the reading skill
Chart 4. Reasons for difficulty in reading English texts.
Chart 5. The students‟ knowledge of reading portfolios
Chart 6. Students‟ awareness of the importance of reading portfolios
Chart 7. Students‟ general assessment of the reading portfolio contents
Chart 8. Students‟ preferences for the benefits of reading portfolios in
learners‟ autonomy
Chart 9. Students‟ most gained knowledge through reading portfolios
Chart 10. Students‟ preferences for task requirements on the reading

portfolios
Chart 11. Students' preferences for contents of the reading portfolios.
Chart 12. Students‟ difficulties in implementing the reading portfolio
Chart 13.

Students‟ suggestions to improve the reading portfolio

contents

5


PART II: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE
As the study is centered on the effectiveness of using reading portfolio
as assessment and learning tool to develop learners‟ autonomy of English
major freshmen, three key terms are clearly defined, namely assessment,
learners‟ autonomy and reading portfolio. This chapter is entirely distributed
to review relating theories and practical studies so that these terms are
understood precisely and applied successfully to major English learners.
1.1.

Assessment

1.1.1. Definitions of the concept of assessment
A number of specialized books, journals, seminal articles, conference
papers, currently defended theses and dissertations were scrutinized in an
attempt to find a comprehensive definition of the concept of assessment. These
references and other day- to- day classroom practices exhibit a number of
functions, forms, tools and techniques available to the teacher, as well as

numerous terms, phrases, concepts and descriptions of assessment. To demystify
these concepts and other pertinent concepts and issues previously mentioned in
this section, a brief overview of these concepts is presented below.
To begin with, terms like evaluation, measurement and testing have
been closely associated with and related to assessment. They are even
sometimes used interchangeably as means used to gather information on
student learning. According to Mundrake (2000), “Assessment, testing, and
evaluation are terms used to describe the outcomes of the educational
process” (p.45). Mundrake (2000) further notes “Assessment is the term
currently used to describe all aspects of evaluation and testing” (p.45).

6


According to Bachman (2004), “The term “assessment” is commonly
used with a variety of different meanings. Indeed, the term has come to be
used so widely in many different ways in the field of language testing and
educational measurement that there seems to be no consensus on what
precisely it means” (p.6). Brown (2004) defined assessment as “any act of
interpreting information about student performance, collected through any of
a multitude of a means or practices” (p.304).
Furthermore, a number of other terms are frequently used more or less
synonymously to refer to assessment. Assessment is operationally defined as
a part of the educational process where instructors appraise students
achievements by collecting, measuring, analyzing, synthesizing and
interpreting relevant information about a particular object of interest in their
performance under controlled

conditions in relation to the curricula

objectives set for their level.
1.1.2. Functions of assessment
Kratochvilova (2011) defines 4 main and basic functions of assessment
● Informative
● Corrective
● Motivational
● Developmental
Kolar and Sikulova (2009) have however added several other functions
● Motivational
● Informative
● Regulative
● Formative
● Prognostic
● Differential
7


1.1.3. Characteristics of self- assessment
Good self- assessment should be characterized by four attributes. It
should be authentical, factual, should be higher informational value and
should be motivational for pupils, however, it should be also mistake –
oriented at the same time.
1.2.

Learners’ autonomy

1.2.1. Definition of learners’ autonomy
The concept of learner autonomy emphasizes the role of the learner
rather than the role of the teacher. It focuses on the process rather than the
product and encourages learners to develop their own purposes for learning

and to see learning as a lifelong process (Jacobs and Farrell, 2001). Teachers
are expected to create environment where learners learn in their own way and
hold responsible for their own learning through decision making about their
own learning. This idea first came into language teaching in the late 1960s
and the early autonomous language learning projects were carried within the
council of Europe‟s Modern Languages Project in the 1970s.
Holec 1(1981: 3) defined learner autonomy as the “ability to take
charge of
one‟s own learning. This ability is not inborn but must be acquired
either by „natural‟ means or (as most often happens) by formal learning. To
take charge of one‟s learning is to have the responsibility for all the decisions
concerning all aspects of learning such as determining object, defining the
contents, the progression, selecting method and techniques to be used,
monitoring the procedure of acquisition, and evaluating what has been
acquired.
It is not a simple way to see autonomous learners as the students who
have
8


responsibility for their own learning since many aspects should be
taken into account of autonomous learning for instance it is a capacity or
behavior, it is characterized by learners responsibility or learner control.
There are some variations on the definition of learner autonomy. For
instance
autonomy is the „capacity‟ (Little, 1991), and the „ability‟ or „skill
(Holec, 1981)‟.
Benson (2001: 49) argues that „Little‟s definition is complementary to
Holec‟s‟, it makes explicit the cognitive processes underlying effective selfmanagement of learning. Benson (2001: 47) prefers to use the term „control‟
over learning, because such a construct allows for easier investigation than

„charge‟ or „responsibility‟. Others define autonomy in terms of what it entails
or implies, „self-regulation‟ (Schunk & Zimmerman, 1998; Wenden, 2001) or
„self-direction‟ (Candy, 1991; White, 1999). In language teaching and
learning, Little (2007) gave three basic pedagogical principles that
characterized autonomous learners (a.) Learner involvement – engaging
learners to share responsibility for the learning process (the affective and the
metacognitive dimensions); (b.) Learner reflection – helping learners to think
critically when they plan, monitor and evaluate their learning (the
metacognitive dimensions); (c.) Appropriate target language use – using the
target language as the principal medium of language learning (the
communicative and the metacognitive dimensions).
1.2.2. The roles of learners’ autonomy
The autonomy of learners is considered as an important factor in
making progress in learning. According to Bonnet & Cuypers (2003, 2006),
the learner‟s own thinking has to be respected in educational context.

9


Specially, Jiao (2005: 28) gives four substantial reasons in support of learner
autonomy for English learning:
(i)

It enhances the learner‟s motivation and leads to more effective

learning;
(ii)

It provides learners with more opportunities for English

communication in a non-native environment;
(iii)

It caters to the individual needs of learners at all levels; and

(iv)

It has a lasting influence.

Thanasoulas (2000) points out that: “If learners labor under the
misconception that learning is successful only within the context of the “
traditional classroom”, where the teacher directs, instructs, and manages the
learning activity, and students must follow in the teacher‟s footsteps, they are
likely to be impervious or resistant to learner-centered strategies aiming at
autonomy, and success is likely to be undermined” (Thanasoulas,2000:9).
Strongly believing in the importance of learners‟ autonomy in learning,
Austin (2006) emphasizes:,
“There is no magic solution and encouraging learner autonomy takes time and a lot
of patience on the part of the teacher as well as the learner. In some cases it seems almost
impossible to achieve and can leave both parties confused and frustrated. However, as
professionals it is our duty to remember that no matter how tempting it is to revert to spoon
course in a manner that gives our learners every opportunity of developing their
independence to the greatest extent possible.” (p.186 )

1.3.

Reading portfolio

1.3.1. Definition of portfolio
The earliest definition may belong to Paulson, Paulson and Meyer

(1991, p.60). According to these authors,
“A portfolio is a purposeful collection of student work that exhibits the student‟s
effort, progress, and achievements in one or more areas. The collection must include

10


student participation in selecting contents, the criteria for selection, the criteria for judging
merit, and evidence of student self- reflection.”

Simon and Forgette – Giroux (2000, p.36) define as “portfolio is a
cumulative and ongoing collection of entries that are selected and commented
on by the student, the teacher and/ or peers, to assess the student’s progress
in the development of a competency.”
In the article “The Use of Portfolio to Assess Student‟s Performance”,
Birgin and Baki (2007) provide various definitions of portfolio. Through their
summary, it is revealed that many authors such as Arter and Spanel, 1991;
Collins, 1992; De Fina, 1992 agree with Paulson, Paulson and Meyer when
defining portfolio as collection of learners‟ work with specific purpose(s)
through which their learning effort can be revealed. However, differing
viewpoints do exist. Grace (1992) views portfolio as a means to understand
students‟ learning process as a whole. Sharing the same standpoint, Winsor
and Ellefson (1995) add that portfolio provides information about not only
the learning process but also what learners can produce with language.
Those definitions not only clarify meaning of portfolio but also reveal
its benefits. In fact, both teachers and learners gain from portfolio as a useful
teaching-learning activity and an effective assessment.
1.3.2. Types of portfolio
There are different way to categorize portfolios:
Haladya (1997) classifies portfolios into five types that are ideal,

showcase, documentation, evaluation and class portfolio. The ideal portfolio,
which contains students‟ all works, is not given to students a grade but they
have to self- assess their own portfolio. The showcase portfolio only includes
the students‟ best works. It, therefore, is not suitable to be assessed and
graded. The documentation portfolio involves a collection of work over time
11


showing students‟ growth and improvement. This portfolio contains quality
and quantity data. The evaluation portfolio includes a standardized collection
of student‟s work and could be determined by the teacher or, in some cases,
by the student. This type is suitable for grading students. The class portfolio
contains students‟ grade, teacher‟s view and knowledge about students in
classroom.
Charlotte and Leslye (1997) categorize portfolios into three major
types: working portfolio, display portfolio and assessment portfolio. The
working portfolio is an intentional collection containing both work in progress
and finished sample of work. Its major purpose is to keep the students‟ work.
The display portfolio is sometimes referred to as the showcase or best works
portfolio. Its purpose is to showcase the students‟ highest achievement. The
assessment portfolio documents a students‟ learning over time, based on
curriculum objectives.
Venn (2000) groups portfolios into two types: product portfolio and
process portfolio. The product portfolio is used to document accomplishment
while the process portfolio documents the stages of learning and provides a
progressive record of students‟ growth. In general, teacher prefer to use
process portfolios because they are ideal for documenting the stages that
students go through as they learn and progress (Venn, 2000, p.533).
In short, portfolios can be subdivided in various ways to serve different
purposes. Based on the aim of the instruction, teacher can select a proper type

and apply it. This study examined the progress students‟ autonomy by using
reading portfolio as assessment tool.
1.3.3. Characteristics of a portfolio
Paulson, Paulson and Meyer (1991) view portfolio as a concept with
various realization depending on who creates it - the learner- as well as the
12


environment in which it is created – the classroom. However, all portfolios
still process a number of typical characteristics. Following are three main
features of a portfolio:
- Combining assessment and instruction: Hamps- Lyons (1994; as
cited in Chen, 2006) considers portfolio both assessment and instruction tool
through which teacher has a repertoire of evaluation techniques to make use
of. Thus, learners can feel as ease as they have more chances to show their
effort and improve the final scores. Besides, the fear of being assessed may be
reduced when assessment is interwoven into instruction. Meanwhile, teacher
guidance and instruction is undoubtedly necessary to avoid confusion for
learners.
- Focusing on learners‟ learning effort and progress: Chen (2006)
quotes Dudley (2001) to argue that the real aim of portfolio is not assessing
but revealing learners‟ effort and progress as well as giving them a sense of
achievement. Only in this sense, can portfolio show its value and result in
maximum benefits. In other words, portfolio is a learning tool rather than an
assessing tool. On the other hand, assessment – though not the most important
role of portfolio- functions are a considerable source of motivation. Thus,
assessment criteria must encourage students to

reach agreement on

appropriate criteria. Besides, these criteria should be clear and easy to
understand. Normally, they are in form of rubrics with detailed explanation.
- Putting students at the center: According to Birgin and Baki (2007), a
portfolio should be as student – centered as possible. The students are the
portfolio‟s real owners in the way that they select its components, contribute
in deciding assessment criteria, and assess it themselves. In this process,
teacher facilitates guides, offers choices rather than informs, directs, and
predetermines priorities as in traditional teaching. Lynch and Shaw (2005)
13


also emphasize learners‟ active participation in selecting the portfolio
components, showing their reflection, and deciding evaluation criteria.
Besides, Barton and Collins (1997, as cited in Birgin & Bakin, 2007)
state that portfolios of any kind should be multi-sourced; flexible in terms of
assessment; explicitly purposeful and multipurpose; corresponding to both the
course and reality; and, most importantly, encouraging to learners‟ ownership.
Therefore, all portfolios should be outgoing so that they show students‟ effort,
progress, and achievement over a period of time. With the descriptions stated
above, portfolios are not either the arbitrary collections or observation of
student‟s works to be filled haphazardly. It is important that the portfolio
collections should be purposeful, systematic, with clearly determined
evaluation criteria, and are taken over a period of time.
Similarly, Lynch and Shaw (2005) propose seven key features that
portfolios of any type must demonstrate, among which is the requirement that
portfolio evaluation procedure must be through, i.e., both the final product
and the process of creating the portfolio are assessed; and is multidimensional and gathered from various channels including teacher, peer, and
self- assessment.
In short, portfolio must interweave instruction into assessment. The
main purpose is to facilitate students‟ learning so that they have chances to

use and then improve their language skills. Students also have the right to
raise their opinions in how to compose their own portfolios. It is crucial for
the teacher to preserve these features of portfolio to ensure maximum
teaching and learning efficiency.
1.3.4. Reading portfolio
A Reading portfolio is a showcase of a reader‟s growth, experiences,
and achievement. It consists of:
14