Developing writing skills based on writing portfolio in German as a foreign language: An empirical study for portfolio work

Abstract

In German as a Foreign Language Education, portfolios are used for different purposes. One of the most common areas of portfolio use is ‘writing portfolios’, which are prepared by instructors to plan students' writing processes and improve their writing skills by giving feedback, regular review and control. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the functionality of the portfolio work carried out within the scope of the writing course and its effect on writing success by receiving the opinions of the students. The study group of this research consists of 39 students who studied in the first year of the German Language Teaching Department of Education Faculty at Trakya University in the academic year 2022-2023. Since it was thought to be the most appropriate research method for the purpose of the study, the phenomenological research design, which is a qualitative research method, was preferred. In the study, a semi-structured interview form containing 4 questions was created by the researcher and used as a data collection tool. The study aimed to assess students' perspectives on various aspects, including the impact of their portfolio work in the writing course on their writing habits and achievements, feedback received, and the types of texts they composed for their portfolios. The obtained interview data were analyzed with content analysis which is a qualitative method for data analysis. According to the study findings, students were positively influenced by the portfolio assignments in general and expressed their desire for the constant implementation of this approach.