INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandardmargins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor. Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 STUDENT PORTFOLIOS: A VIEW FROM INSIDE THE CLASSROOM DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Linda Jackman Fenner, B.A., M.L.S. ***** The Ohio State University 1995 Dissertation Committee: Approved by K. Dahl D . Fernie ^ A-' T . Rogers Adviser R . Tierney Department of Educational Theory and Practice UNI Number: 9526024 Copyright 1995 by FENNERr LINDA JACKMAN All rights reserved. UMI Microform 9526024 Copyright 1995, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 Copyright by Linda Jackman Fenner 1995 To My Parents ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Dr. Robert J. Tierney taught the first course I took as a doctoral student and many of my subsequent research courses; he served as my dissertation adviser for three years. It is difficult to estimate fully his influence on my life as a practitioner and researcher. Conversations with him are always occasions for inquiry and discovery. As he works with his students, he continually offers his latest insights and most current theories about literacy learning. Students often appropriate his ideas into their own thinking and are so excited by their new discoveries that they forget who got them thinking in a particular direction in the first place. That was certainly my experience in the writing of this study. One conversation of exploration and discovery followed another. In each instance, Dr. Tierney generously supported my thinking and suggested avenues of inquiry that had not occurred to me. I am also grateful to the other members of my advisory committee, Drs. Karin L. Dahl, David E. Fernie, and Theresa Rogers, whose suggestions for revisions and additions to the study contributed significantly in focusing the research perspective and refining the style of the final manuscript. This study also reflects the influence of other fine teachers and researchers who helped me develop many of the theoretical perspectives that became incorporated into this study. Included in this group are Drs. Bonnie Chambers, Diane DeFord, Judith Green, Carol Lyons, Martha King, and George Newell. iii The intimate view of portfolios within a classroom would never have been possible had I not been inspired to return to classroom teaching by two colleagues, Rand Russell and the late David Mosely. They convinced me, through the example of their own work, that a classroom teacher's daily interactions with children always remain the essential element in any education reform effort. The study could not have been completed without the assistance the Dublin City School Board and its administrators. Members of this board granted me a leave of absence from classroom teaching to finish this manuscript. My principal, Timothy Barton, continues to support me as both a teacher and a researcher. During the writing of this study, he also provided the critical endorsement for my leave of absence. I am deeply indebted to the children in this study who brought considerable intelligence and enthusiasm not only to the development of their portfolios, but also to their reflections on how the processes worked. The views they provided of their thinking and culture have significantly enriched my understanding of children's capabilities. The intellectual energy of these children animates the entire study. Finally, I can never sufficiently thank my husband, Ray, who in the course of many long walks in the evening helped me see how it would be possible to complete this project, and my daughter, Elizabeth, whose bright spirit has been a gift to me every day of her life. iv VITA March 24, 1952.................. Born— Bay Village, Ohio 1974........................... B.A., The College of Wooster, Wooster, Ohio 1974-1978...................... Teacher, St. Bernadette School Westlake, Ohio 1978 ........................... M.L.S., School of Library Science, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio 1978-197 9 ...................... Reference Librarian, Public Library of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio 1979-198 1 ...................... School Librarian, Columbus Diocese, Columbus, Ohio 1981-1986...................... Curriculum Director, K-8 Columbus Diocese. Columbus, Ohio 1986-1989...................... Consultant, Ohio Department of Education Columbus, Ohio 1989-199 0 ...................... Coordinator, Martha L. King Language and Literacy Center The Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio 1990-Presen t ................... Teacher, Dublin Schools Dublin, Ohio FIELDS OF STUDY Major Field: Education v TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION.............................................ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...................................... iii VITA................................................... V LIST OF TABLES......................................... x LIST OF FIGURES........................................xi INTRODUCTION ........................................... 1 PART ONE Portfolio Contexts: Conflicting Needs, Interests, Assumptions, and Research Agendas Introduction...................................... 3 CHAPTER I PORTFOLIOS EVOLVING................................ 5 Portfolios in the National Debate Regarding Assessment................................... 5 Assumptions about Portfolios: Important but Often Unacknowledged Differences ........... 7 Recent Insights about Portfolio Use............ 14 A Personal Context for the Study of Portfolios...................................19 Overview of the Findings...................... 29 CHAPTER II HOW THE STUDY WAS CONDUCTED........................ 32 Type of Study................................ 32 Researcher's Role............................ 33 Design and Implementation of the Study......... 38 Planning Phase.......................... 39 Fieldwork Phase..........................39 Presentation of the Findings.............. 41 How Understandings Shifted During the Presentation Phase....................... 43 The Result: A Hybrid Study............... 44 PART TWO How Portfolios Develop: Constructs, Cultures, Conflicts, Case-Building Introduction. .................................. 47 CHAPTER III CONSTRUCTED VIEWS OF PORTFOLIOS................51 Episode 1--The Introductory Portfolio Lesson............................ 53 Episode 2--Students' Recollections of What They Constructed During the Introductory Lesson................. 67 Episode 3— A Conversation about Assessment..........................71 Episode 4--Explaining Portfolio to Others............................. 76 Episode 5— Final Views on Portfolios..........................82 Episode 6--Formal Negotiations of Portfolio Processes................. 86 CHAPTER IV CULTURE: EXPLICIT AND TACIT NORMS AT WORK......92 CHAPTER V CONFLICT: COMMUNICATING THROUGH SPEECH GENRES............................... Ill Analysis: Speech Genres................. 131 Analysis : Socio-Cultural Aspects......... 144 Analysis: Constructs about Portfolios 148 CHAPTER VI CASES: THE CONSTRUCTION OF ARGUMENTS......... 153 New Views on Thinking Skills............ 153 Other Evidence of Warrants in Portfolio Processes.............................. 170 PART THREE Case Studies Introduction.................................... 182 CHAPTER VII CONSOLIDATION: INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCES WITHIN PORTFOLIO PROCESSES................... 183 Case Study #1: Finding the Meaning in the Doing.............................. 187 Case Study #2: A Determined Autobiographer..........................206 Commonalities.......................... 227 vii PART FOUR Conclusions Introduction.................................... 231 CHAPTER VIII A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING CLASSROOM PORTFOLIOS..................................232 Warranting and the Cognitive Click....... 233 Authentic Conversations about Learning 237 A Framework for Explaining Portfolio Events................................. 240 A Test for the Framework: How Well Does It Account for Variability in Implementations?........................ 247 CHAPTER IX SUMMARY OF RESULTS AND