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NeoReviews Vol.8 No.10 2007 e405
© 2007 American Academy of Pediatrics

Educational Perspectives

Portfolios: The Next Assessment Tool in Medical Education?

^* Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC

The first 300 words of the full text of this article appear below.

	Introduction

 
Medical education is undergoing significant change at all levels. Self-directed learning and reflection are becoming essential ingredients of both graduate medical training and postgraduate professional development. Recognition is growing for the need to incorporate the concepts of andragogy into physician education, concepts emphasizing that adult learners are self-directed and take responsibility for their own educational choices. The demonstration of competency for assessment of the individual and the educational program has received increased attention in the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Outcome Project. (1) Assessment and documentation of self-directed learning, reflection, and competency are more difficult than traditional methods that have included standardized testing and conference attendance. The portfolio has been advocated as a tool for collecting and presenting these elements of learning at all levels of medical training.

	What is a Portfolio?

 
Butler (2) succinctly defines a portfolio as "a collection of evidence that is gathered together to show a person's learning journey over time and to demonstrate their abilities." Missing from this definition is self-reflection, a component that several authors, including Rees, (3) believe is essential to a portfolio. A portfolio may be paper-based or electronic and serves as a coherent collection of documents chosen by the individual learner to fit the specific purpose of the portfolio.

Several authors have attempted to describe different types of portfolios. Smith and Tillema (4) describe four different portfolio types that are defined according to purpose and setting of use. The purpose of a portfolio may be to assist with promotion or with learning. The background may be to fulfill external requirements or for self-learning. The dossier portfolio is a collection of mandated works that is required for entry into a profession, while a training portfolio is a set of mandatory works assembled for learning during training. . . . [Full Text of this Article]