ABSTRACT
Raising standards in the appraisal of portfolios is an issue of considerable importance (Shephard, 2000). A teaching portfolio for documentation of professional competence is increasingly required as a regular condition for certification (in pre-service teaching education as well as for advanced teaching certificates). There is, however, less research on the assessors’ appraisal of portfolios and the judgmental processes involved, especially with reference to explicit use of criteria and standards of quality (Burns, 1999; Smith & Tillema, 2001). There are questions about the criteria that are applied, and the extent of agreement about the utilization of these criteria (Heilbronn et al., 2002).
