Does an English reading intervention together with a discourse digital portfolio improve students' oral English skills?

Although portfolios in schools have proven to be useful especially with second language learners, their use in assessing L2 oral language skills has not been developed or examine at length. The author working with twelve students observes the outcome of using a digital discourse portfolio while tutoring students in English oral development. The weekly tutoring sessions span a nine week period with a student speech sample digitally recorded for each week and then analyzed by the tutor and the student. Selected samples, based on preset criteria, compose the student's digital discourse portfolio. The results of a district approved oral English exam indicate that the portfolio did not affect the students' oral English development as much as their teacher's belief in transitioning students from their first language into their second.