Using Professional Portfolios as an End-of-Program Assessment
Presented by Dr. Karla Collins and Dr. Audrey Church
In an effort to offer a more practical culminating assignment at the conclusion of a program, many fields are turning to a professional portfolio as an alternative to or replacement for the traditional comprehensive exam or thesis. When the School Library Media program was updated in 2014 to the new School Librarianship program, the decision was made to change from the comprehensive exam required for master’s candidates to the professional portfolio required for all program completers. Based on information from other school library programs where a portfolio has been implemented, we felt that this change would better meet the needs of our students. The professional portfolio has been in place in the School Librarianship program since Fall 2014. Anecdotal evidence and informal feedback from the candidates has shown an overall satisfaction with the change; however we wanted a more formal assurance of quality to help us determine if the professional portfolio is meeting the needs of our students.
In this presentation, we present preliminary findings which indicate that the professional portfolio is a more effective culminating experience than the comprehensive exam for students in this School Librarianship graduate program. We also provide some ideas to consider when deciding to implement a professional portfolio as an end-of-program assessment.
Presenter bios:
Karla Collins is an assistant professor in the School Librarianship program in the College of Education and Human Services. Before coming to Longwood in 2012, Karla spent over 20 years in PreK-12 public schools as a school librarian at the elementary, middle, and high school levels. She also taught as a classroom teacher at a variety of levels. Karla received her PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from Old Dominion University. She is active in both state and national associations for school librarians.
Audrey Church
Audrey Church is a professor and coordinator of the School Librarianship program in the College of Education and Human Services. Prior to coming to Longwood in 2000, she was a building level school librarian in Virginia public schools for 20 years. The author of three books and numerous journal articles, she currently serves as president of the American Association of School Librarians. Audrey received her Ph.D. in Education from Virginia Commonwealth University.
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