College of Education - Graduate

Reading Portfolios

Each graduate candidate enrolled in a program in Reading/Language Arts at GVSU must maintain a Reading Portfolio, which is a requirement for graduation. The Portfolio is designed to provide faculty with a window on graduate candidates’ evolving knowledge, skills, and dispositions, as a means of evaluating the effectiveness of instruction in our program.  The Portfolio is also designed to serve candidates as a collection of important pieces of work that are foundational to future learning experiences. Graduate candidates will rely on materials in the Portfolio in their practicum experiences in particular.

Important Notice

The format for the reading portfolio has changed. Not all candidates will transition into the new format:

  • Candidates who have completed all of the emphasis area coursework (all EDR courses, except for practicum courses) should continue to work with the format of the reading portfolio that was in place when beginning their graduate studies, submitting Sections A, B, & C as directed below.
  • Candidates who are in the process of completing the emphasis area courses have the option to remain with the format in place when they began their graduate studies, or transition into the new format of the reading portfolio.
  • Candidates who are new to the Reading/Language Arts program, will use the new format of the reading portfolio.

New Reading Portfolio Format (Click here for the portfolio format used prior to Fall 2011)

Starting Fall 2011, candidates will include in the portfolio the following items from each course:

  1. Key course assignments
  2. Learning logs (these may look somewhat different in each class, depending on the objectives of the course and the means of accomplishing them)
  3. End-of-course integrative essays (the ‘final’) (these replace the reflective essays previously required for the portfolio)

All of the materials for the portfolio are generated within the reading/language arts courses as part of the learning experiences of those courses.

During the transition to the new format, candidates who do not have all of the above items from courses taken before Fall 2011 should submit the key course assignment(s) and any relevant papers and/or course notes.

The key assignment, learning log, and end-of-course essay from each course should be organized in the reading portfolio in clearly labeled sections as follows:

Section A: Foundational Knowledge
         Materials from EDR 621
Section B: Curriculum and Instruction
         Materials from EDR 622 and/or 623, 627, 631
Section C: Literate Environment & Diversity
         Materials from EDR 624 or 625, 628
Section D: Assessment and Evaluation
         Materials from EDR 626
Section E: Professional Learning and Leadership
         Materials from EDR 685, 687, 696

Candidates should submit each section of the reading portfolio to their faculty advisor for review by the Reading/Language Arts faculty upon completion of all of the courses in that section of the portfolio. The dates for submission are February 15 and October 15. Previously completed sections of the portfolio should be included, cumulatively, in the binder that is submitted. Make sure that your binder has your name prominently on the outside and the following identifying information on an ‘information sheet’ just inside the front cover of the binder:

  • Your student number
  • Your address
  • Your email address
  • Your telephone number
  • The endorsement you are seeking:  Elementary/Secondary Reading Teacher or Reading Specialist
  • A recent unofficial transcript

Because the materials in the binder will have already been evaluated by the instructor of the course in which these materials were created, the faculty review committee will not provide additional feedback. Instead the portfolio will be examined for evidence that students are receiving effective instruction throughout the program and that they are creating an important resource for their practicum and professional experiences.

If you have questions, please contact your Reading/Language Arts advisor.

Page last modified September 22, 2011