Portfolio Assignment

This assignment will briefly consider the merit of portfolio evidence. It will define validity; reliability and triangulation to enable an appraisal to be made of the strengths and weaknesses of the content of six portfolio evidences (one from non-branch) generated during practice placement which will be included within appendices to underpin the achievement of   Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) practice proficiencies ‘2.1.1’ (utilise a range of effective and appropriate communication and engagement skills) and ‘2.3.1’ (select valid and reliable assessment tools for the required purpose). It will discuss how the portfolio evidences were used to achieve Bondy (1983) practice level performance during placement practice.   Finally, it will develop an action plan which will be included within appendices to improve the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary for legal, safe and effective practice whilst unsupervised (NMC 2011).

Portfolio is “a collection of evidence, usually in written form, of both the products and processes of learning which verifies achievements of personal and professional development, by providing critical analysis of its contents” (McCullan, Endacott, Gray, Jasper, Miller, Scholes and Webb (2003, p.289).   Portfolio evidence is a valuable asset which can be beneficial to review and reflect upon professional development, formulate thoughts, identify limitations and decide what new learning need is required (Pearce 2003). Consequently, as a valuable learning asset, there is need for portfolio evidence to be valid and reliable.

Joppe (2000) maintains that validity is the extent to which a measure or method possess the quality of being truthful and believable. Reliability is defined as the extent to which results are consistent over time in the use of a particular instrument (Burns and Grove 2009). Creswell & Miller (2000 P.126) define triangulation as the “formation in a study using a validity procedure for convergence among different...