The Use of Student Portfolios in Engineering Instruction

Abstract Student portfolios are listed as a possible means of assessment under the basic level accreditation criteria for ABET “Engineering Criteria 2000.” Efforts to initiate student portfolios in engineering instruction have been reported anecdotally in the literature, but a formal study on student portfolios in engineering has not been presented. We assigned student portfolios to freshmen and seniors taking biological engineering core courses containing a significant design component, and evaluated their effectiveness based on exit surveys, course evaluations, and instructor reflection. Portfolios were used to initiate student‐centered learning, and to address the assessment issues raised by ABET. Results showed that 78% of seniors and 80% of freshmen believed that the use of student portfolios enhanced their learning. Among the freshmen, 69% of those students who were identified as sensing types by the Myers‐Briggs Type Indicator found portfolios useful, while 87% of the intuitive types found them useful. In this paper, the methodologies for using portfolios are detailed, the results of applying the portfolio method are presented, and implications and recommendations are discussed.