Using portfolios to assess student performance in school health education

Outcome-based education is a topic of growing interest in educational circles today. More performance-oriented than traditional learning approaches, outcome-based education requires students to demonstrate what they know and what they can do. Because of this emphasis, outcome-based curricula will require new methods to assess student achievement. One approach is the portfolio, a repository that enables students to document authentic examples of academic work and presentations as well as nonschool accomplishments. The possibility of using portfolio-based assessment as a viable mechanism to promote comprehensive school health education is examined. Practical recommendations concerning portfolio development and evaluation are offered.