Building Portfolios: A Means for Developing Habits of Reflective Practice in Physical Therapy Education

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to consider the use of portfolios as one method to foster reflective practice in teaching and learning. The authors contend that building a portfolio is a learning experience in and of itself as well as a product for use informative and/or summative assessment of student learning, teacher and practitioner development, and program performance. In a review of the use of portfolios by learners, teachers, and programs, they describe how the purpose and goals of a portfolio serve to guide its design, enactment, and outcome analysis. By engaging in a mentored, collaborative, and reflective process of portfolio development, students, practitioners, and teachers are able to make better sense of what they are doing and plan for continuous improvement stimulated by critical self-assessment of what they have done. The process of building portfolios supports the development of reflective practitioners who continuously assess their own performance and plan for ongoing learning and development.