Sebuah Kajian Pustaka: ELTIN JOURNAL: p-ISSN 2339-1561 Journal of English Language Teaching in Indonesia e–ISSN 2580-7684 139 PROMOTING COMMUNICATION SKILLS AS JOB-READY SKILLS THROUGH PORTFOLIO ASSESSMENT Yanti Nopiyanti Sopandi1*, Sri Setyarini2, Isry Laila Syathroh3 1yantinopiyanti@upi.edu, 2setyarini.english@upi.edu, 3islaisya@ikipsiliwangi.ac.id 1,2UNIVERSITAS PENDIDIKAN INDONESIA, 3IKIP SILIWANGI ABSTRACT Vocational high school graduates need communication skills to be job-ready. This is a global communication tool and a job-ready skill. However, many difficulties still need in acquiring English communication skills as part of vocational high school preparation for employment, such as body language, mental issues, lack of ideas, grammatical mistakes, etc. Thus, effective teaching, learning, and evaluation may address these issues. This research examined how portfolio assessment promotes communication skills and how students react to it. Quasi-experimental research used pre-tests and post-test. However, observation and questionnaires are also employed to underpin the tests’ findings and as additional data for a more comprehensive investigation. The experimental group (30 students) and the control group (28 students) were 58 software engineering majors. Each group received three portfolio assessment-based therapy sessions. This research revealed three main findings. First, 0.000 is lower than 0.05. H0 is refused, whereas Ha is accepted. Second, the experimental group's paired sample t-test score is 14.533, substantially greater than the control group's 6.823. Third, students prioritized emotive over cognitive and behavioral factors. Keywords: communication skills, job-ready skills, portfolio assessment A. INTRODUCTION Job-ready skills are the specific abilities, knowledge, and traits individuals possess that allow SMK students o effectively fulfill job obligations and contribute to a company’s success. These qualities are frequently acquired via education, training, and practical experience, and they prepare people for work in a certain industry or business. Vocational high school is one of the educations that trains graduates for job-ready skills. A vocational high school is a secondary educational institution with curricula emphasizing practical training, real-world experiences, and industry-specific abilities. It prepares students for employment, competitiveness, and certain distinct talents that may be employed in certain workforces based on their knowledge. This is in accordance with government regulation No. 37/ 2018, which states that the standard of competence of graduates from vocational high schools is centred on skills that increase learners' ability to live independently and pursue further education via occupational training. Sopandi, Setyarini & Syathroh: Promoting Communication Skills … 140 Partnership for 21st Century Skills (2009) says that "job-ready skills" are defined by a group of educators, business leaders, and politicians in the United States as a mix of basic academic courses and 21st-century skills needed for success in the modern workforce. The "Four Cs" describe these skills, which are:1) Critical thinking and problem solving: the ability to examine material, think critically, and solve difficult problems. This means using reasoning, weighing the facts, and making decisions based on what is known. 2) Communication: the ability to explain ideas, facts, and opinions differently, such as through speech, writing, and digital media. It also means knowing many different points of view and constantly listening; 3) Collaboration: the ability to work well with others, add to team goals, and work well with others. This means understanding other people's points of view, resolving conflicts, and using team members’ skills; and 4) Creativity and innovation: the ability to think differently, develop new ideas, and solve problems in new ways. It means being interested, open to new options, and ready to take risks. The Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21S) report from 2009 discusses the importance of skills like information literacy, media literacy, ICT literacy, and flexibility. Regarding the above arguments, it is emphasized that students at vocational high schools are required to graduate job-ready. Mastering communication skills, particularly communication ability in English, is a vital prerequisite for becoming job-ready. This is not just an aspect of worldwide communication but also one of the job-ready talents that may help them advance in their careers. English not only adds significant value to individuals who study it, but it is also the language of the global world, facilitating worldwide business and providing competitiveness in achieving better employment opportunities. English communication or oral English proficiency is the capacity to communicate efficiently in the English language through speaking (Setyarini et al., 2018). This is one of the general abilities required for a fresh graduate to thrive in their work, according to Morreale & Pearson (2008). Human resource managers at Jakarta startup firms agree that graduates must have a comprehensive understanding of English communication skills (Putri, 2022) to be successful in their careers and contribute to the company's success (Du-Babcock, 2006). Communication skills are essential for students in vocational high schools. Fitriani & Ilyas (2019) discovered that presenting skills, as one of the communication skills, increased students' self-confidence, language proficiency, writing, and presentation abilities. Suroto et. al (2017) stated that business communication skills, particularly business presentation, may help vocational students create a career by helping them find a job, continue their education, and start a firm as an entrepreneur. Asih & Ellianawati (2019) discovered that project-based learning increased students' verbal communication abilities, including the ability to express viewpoints, master content, present reports, ask and answer questions, and write clear and intelligible information. Reed & & Spicer (2003) discovered that high school teachers thought abilities related to discourse management methods were more significant than other skills for grade 10 teenagers' communication with them as instructors. Overall, the articles imply that presenting, verbal, and written communication abilities and presentation skills are necessary for vocational high school students to thrive in their future employment. However, there are still many obstacles to mastering English communication skills as part of vocational high school preparation for employability. Multiple studies have demonstrated that Indonesian vocational high school students encounter numerous obstacles in mastering ELTIN Journal: Journal of English Language Teaching in Indonesia, Volume 11/No 2, October 2023 141 English communication skills, particularly speaking. Milania et. al (2022) found that students endure internal and external challenges, whereas Sitorus et. al (2022) identified specific challenges such as pauses, fillers, mental problems, lack of ideas, grammatical errors, and inadequate vocabulary. According to Anhar et. al (2021), students need to be able to use transactional English in some fields, such as the information and technology (IT), marketing, and tourist industries, to assist in their future jobs. Widianingrum et. al. (2020) researched the industry demands for office communication skills during the 4.0 industrial revolution. Their findings concluded that various competencies need to be updated and added to enhance students' capacities to deal with the development of office communication- related businesses. As the studies have stated, there is a need to improve the teaching and learning of English communication skills to prepare students for their future employment better. Specifically, this preparation should focus on improving students' English communication skills. To answer the above challenges, providing appropriate English teaching-learning strategies, including the proper assessment, can shape the students’ communication skills. One of the appropriate assessments to improve this skill is using the portfolio assessment as an alternative assessment. A portfolio can be used to evaluate students' work effectively. Like a paper-based portfolio, a portfolio has advantages in testing language abilities. It aids in the development of student’s performance, the development of instructors' responsibilities, the support of learning, the encouragement of student engagement, the enhancement of the testing process, the improvement of student’s independent learning, and the maintenance of lifelong learning (Barrot, 2015; Cheng, 2008). Huang & Hung (2009) emphasized that portfolios help students strengthen their communication skills by allowing them to write in and out of class. Furthermore, preserving portfolios allows students to get teacher and classmates’ feedback. A portfolio can be used to evaluate students' work effectively. Portfolio assessment in promoting communication skills plays an essential role. According to Williams (2001), portfolio assessment can provide a clearer picture of students’ communication skills and valuable feedback for students. This can lead to improved communication skills and better outcomes for the programs among students. Franco et al. (2020) determined that portfolio assessment is a valuable tool for training students’ communication skills and professionalism. The study discovered that a three-activity portfolio that includes course assessment and learning, self-efficacy activity, and free reflective writing could help enhance teaching and learning, encourage reflection, and connect reflection with practice. Portfolio assessment boosted students' speaking learning process and was extremely helpful for their English-speaking ability growth since they could see their own scores and gauge their progress. Portfolio evaluation can potentially improve lecturers' abilities to analyze students' speaking skills and promote student engagement and attention to the learning process (Hapsari et al., 2021). However, this research has been conducted previously. Previous research indicates that portfolio assessment can efficiently promote and evaluate communication skills in higher education. Isaias & Issa (2013) found that incorporating assessments of communication skills, such as reflective journals and presentations, can improve students' communication skills and self-esteem. As determined by Paretti (2004), who examined the use of e-portfolios in evaluating student and programmatic success, E-portfolios are a viable alternative to paper portfolios. Aitken (1994) discussed using portfolios to evaluate program objectives, such as Sopandi, Setyarini & Syathroh: Promoting Communication Skills … 142 communication skills, and developing a computer-mediated assessment. Williams (2001) analyzed the use of portfolios in evaluating engineering communication, highlighting the significance of explicit communication of portfolio objectives and the effectiveness of reflective statements. However, there is a lack of research on how portfolio assessment can promote communication skills as job-readiness skills. This study aimed to investigate: (1) the effect of portfolio assessment on promoting students' communication skills; and (2) students’ response to the portfolio assessment approach for promoting students' communication skills. B. METHOD The researchers utilized a quasi-experimental method in their study. This study's data was gathered using a pre-test and a post-test. Students in this study were chosen from two classes in the eleventh grade specializing in software engineering from one of the vocational high schools in the Bandung area. Consequently, 58 pupils were chosen and divided into two groups by the school: the control group (28 participants) and the experimental group (30 participants). The experimental group consists of students who receive treatment for promoting communication skills and are evaluated through portfolio assessment. In contrast, the control group consists of students who receive treatment for promoting communication skills and are evaluated through formative tests assigned by the school, each of which receives treatment for three meetings. The independent variable in this study is portfolio assessment, while the dependent variable is communication skills as job-ready skills. However, observation and questionnaires are also employed to underpin the tests’ findings and as additional data for a more comprehensive investigation (Cook et.al., 2002; Hattie, 2012) The testing procedure, the distribution of questionnaires, and the observation were the three methods that were used to collect data. After the post-test, as well as during the treatments themselves, questionnaires were given out. The instrument's validity and reliability were considered during the instrument analysis test. The data analysis processes involved data normality and homogeneity, paired sample t-tests, and regression tests. In addition to that, the replies to the questionnaire and the observations include both positive and negative remarks. This study analyzes data from questionnaires and observations using several methodologies based on the Likert scale. According to Sugiyono (2013), the Likert scale is an instrument that may be utilized to evaluate an individual's or group's attitudes, points of view, and perceptions of social phenomena. The range of possible scores is from one to five. How respondents react to statements is affected by each scale component: strongly agree, agree, hesitate, disagree, and strongly disagree. When calculating, Hadi (2014) made use of the following equation: p = f/n x 100%. C. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION This section includes statistics on the effects of portfolio assessment on students’ communication skills as a measure of their readiness for the workforce. When analyzing the test results, the instrument's validity test, reliability, difficulty level, and differentiability are all considered. After conducting tests, it was determined that all of the findings were accurate. The acquisition of the validity level for question number one was found to be 0.677, while the validity level for question number two was 0.886, question number three was 0.946, and question number four was to be 0.886, question number three was found to be 0.946, and question number four was found to be 0.864. The interpretation of validity offered ELTIN Journal: Journal of English Language Teaching in Indonesia, Volume 11/No 2, October 2023 143 by Daniel et al. (2019) lends credibility to the conclusions presented here. According to the calculation study of the instrument reliability coefficient of the test results, the reliability of the test is extremely high for the questions for which the 69-reliability coefficient is 0.92 based on the classification reliability coefficient that utilizes SPSS 26 version. The study found that the reliability of the test was extremely high for the questions for which the 69- reliability coefficient was 0.92. In light of these findings, it is possible to employ the instrument test for both the pre-test and the post-test. The following is a rundown of the findings from the various analytical tests that were carried out: 1. The Effect of Portfolio Assessment on Students’ Communication Skills. The first analysis employed regression analysis. It is discussed how one variable, known as the dependent variable, affects another, known as the independent variable. In other words, this study aims to determine how the portfolio assessment influences students' communication skills. Statistical assumptions for basic linear regression data are as follows: a) If the significance value < 0.05, then Ha is accepted. b) If the significance value > 0.05, then Ha is rejected. The following findings were obtained as a result of the processing of the data using the basic regression linear analysis function of The SPSS 26 application for Microsoft Windows: Table 1. The Results of a Linear Test Based on a Simple Regression Model Unstandardized Coefficients Standardized Coefficients t Sig. B Std. Error Beta 1 (Constant) 19.476 4.125 4.722 .000 TBL .441 .132 .533 6.495 .000 The findings of simple linear regression data processing were then examined to see if they could predict the dependent variable. In other words, whether portfolio assessment affects students' communication abilities were tested. Using the method from Sugiyono and Susanto (2015), a simple linear regression equation may be constructed based on Table 1. Y = ɑ + bx. The value of (a) is known to be 19,476. Because this is a constant quantity, if there is no portfolio assessment (X), the constant value of communication ability (Y) is 19,476. And (b) is the regression coefficient number with a score of 0.441. This chart indicates that with every 1 value addition of the portfolio assessment (X), students' communication skills (Y) are affected. As a result, portfolio assessment has an effect on students' communication skills. To put it another way, the regression equation is Y=19,476 + 0.441X. Furthermore, in relation to hypothesis testing, the table above may be used to determine that the significance value is 0.000 less than 0.05. As a result, H0 is rejected while Ha is approved, implying that "there is an effect of portfolio assessment on students' communication ability." It is in accordance with the findings of Kusmiart et al. (2020), who discovered that students' communication skills improved greatly after getting the treatment. 2. The Difference of Enhancement Sopandi, Setyarini & Syathroh: Promoting Communication Skills … 144 In the second step of the study, the paired sample t-test was used to assess whether or not there is a significant difference in mean between two samples that are either paired or linked to one another. The outcomes of the paired sample t-test analysis are presented in Table 2, which includes the following: Table 2. Paired sample t-test Paired Differences t df Sig. (2-tailed) Mean Std . De viat ion Std . Err or Me an 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Upper Pre-test - 3.6 .76 - - - 29 .000 Experiment - 14.533 98 14 15.06 13.86 17.3 Post-test 8 2 40 Experiment Pre-test -6.823 3.4 .87 -7.862 -5.068 - 28 .000 Control - 31 13 9.25 Post-test 3 Control The preceding table shows the significance value, often known as Sig. (2-tailed), is 0.000 rather than 0.05. In relation to this finding, it was determined that Ha was granted acceptance. This study’s findings indicate a significant disparity between the means of the post-test for the experimental group and the control group. A difference in the values was found between before and after therapy, according to the paired sample t-test. The results suggest that the student is making progress toward a higher score. Clearly, this illustrates that the review of students' portfolios has an impact on the students' ability to communicate. It has been determined that the value of the experimental class is higher than that of the control class. The change in these values between the pre-test and post-test scores is significant enough to be considered significant. In addition, there is a distinction between the mean value increase of the experimental class, which is 14.533 percentage points more than that of the control class, which is only 6.823 percentage points. 3. Students’ Responses After Using Portfolio Assessment A questionnaire and observations were used to obtain attitude data. The questionnaire in the study had 20 statements. After evaluating students using the portfolio evaluation, each questionnaire was used to determine their emotional, behavioral, and cognitive abilities. The questionnaire and observation results were separated into positive and negative remarks. Table 3 shows the results of students' replies after being taught through portfolio assessment. Table 4 shows the results of the observation sheets data. Table 3. Questionnaire Responses from Students Positive Statements No Affective Aspect 5 4 3 2 1 ELTIN Journal: Journal of English Language Teaching in Indonesia, Volume 11/No 2, October 2023 145 1 I'm curious about portfolio assessment as a means of improving my English skills. 12% 82% 6% 0% 0% 2 After being trained with a portfolio assessment strategy, I felt more comfortable speaking English. 12% 82% 6% 0% 0% 3 After being introduced to the portfolio assessment method of instruction, my motivation to communicate in English increased. 25% 75% 0% 0% 0% No Cognitive Aspect 5 4 3 2 1 4 After being introduced to the portfolio assessment method of instruction, I was more confident using my body language when I presented my assignment. 7% 83% 10% 0% 0% 5 After being introduced to the portfolio assessment method of instruction, I could make sentences in English with proper grammar. 0% 55% 40% 5% 0% 6 My vocabulary has increased after using the portfolio assessment. 0% 85% 15% 0% 0% 7 My ability to express an idea is increased after using the portfolio assessment. 8% 60% 32% 0% 0% 8 After utilizing portfolio assessment, I have a deeper comprehension of the meaning and intention of each statement while using English. 0% 81% 19% 0% 0% No Behaviour Aspect 5 4 3 2 1 9 After using the portfolio assessments, I want to make my own video presentation. 0% 46% 54% 0% 0% 10 I will use the portfolio assessment strategy to promote my communication skills as job-ready skills. 0% 46% 54% 0% 0% Negative Statements No Affective Aspect 1 2 3 4 5 11 I am not curious about portfolio assessment as a means of improving my English skills. 0% 0% 20% 73% 7% 12 After being trained with a portfolio assessment strategy, I did not feel more comfortable speaking English. 0% 0% 24% 76% 0% 13 After being introduced to the portfolio assessment method of instruction, my motivation to communicate in English did not increase. 0% 0% 0% 100% 0% No Aspect of Cognitive 1 2 3 4 5 14 After being introduced to the portfolio assessment, I was not confident using my body language when I presented my assignment. 0% 0% 90% 10% 0% 15 After being introduced to the portfolio assessment method of instruction, making sentences in English with proper grammar was difficult. 0% 13% 27% 60% 0% Sopandi, Setyarini & Syathroh: Promoting Communication Skills … 146 16 My vocabulary mastery did not increase after using the portfolio assessment. 0% 0% 0% 100% 0% 17 My ability to express an idea did not increase after using the portfolio assessment. 0% 0% 5% 95% 0% 18 After utilizing the portfolio assessment, I did not have a deeper comprehension of the meaning and intention of each statement while using English. 0% 0% 10% 90% 0% No Behaviour Aspect 1 2 3 4 5 19 After using the portfolio assessments, I was not interested in making my own video presentation. 0% 0% 42% 58% 0% 20 I will use a different strategy to promote my communication skills as highly employable skills. 0% 0% 0% 100% 0% As shown in Table 3, the effective portions of the questionnaire are listed at numbers 1, 2, 3, 11, 12, and 13, which can be observed by consulting this table. Based on the analysis's explanation, one can reach the following conclusion: In general, students assert that the efficacy of students, such as motivation and interest in learning, has a positive impact on using the portfolio assessment approach to develop their communication skills. This method has a positive impact. This is evidenced by the computation of the data, which revealed that 91% of it could be comprehended adequately (Farid, 2018). In addition, there are assertions numbered 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18 regarding cognitive aspects. At least five distinct categories of communication skills assessment pertain to this facet, and they have to do with accuracy, language, body language, vocal usage, and expressing and organizing ideas. According to Farid (2018), 82% of students reacted favorably to the course. This can be inferred from the numerous comments made regarding this particular characteristic. The final aspect is behavioral. This aspect examines how the portfolio assessment strategy is implemented and utilized by English language learners on a daily basis. This aspect appears in statements 9, 10, 19, and 20. After the statements have been calculated, analyzed, and accumulated, it can be concluded, based on Farid's (2018) interpretation, that 62% of the student responses to the behavioral aspect indicate a positive response. Table 4. The result of Observations Sheet Data No Statement Meetings Positive Statement 1 2 3 1 Students are more curious about using portfolio assessments to improve their English communication skills. 3 4 4 2 Students easily understand the portfolio assessment delivered by the teacher because it is more comfortable. 3 4 4 3 The portfolio assessment encourages students to improve their English communication skills. 3 4 5 4 Students enjoy their evaluation of learning English using portfolio assessment. 3 4 5 5 Students are motivated to improve their communication skills using portfolio assessment. 2 4 5 6 The portfolio assessment gives students more space and opportunities to speak and improve their communication 3 4 4 ELTIN Journal: Journal of English Language Teaching in Indonesia, Volume 11/No 2, October 2023 147 skills. 7 Using portfolio assessment, students can be more creative with their assignments. 3 4 5 8 The students readily comprehend the material and assignments because the teacher provides plain study instructions. 2 4 4 9 When preparing for class, students may speak freely in English. 3 4 4 10 The method employed has the potential to improve the ability of students to communicate in English. 2 3 4 Negative Statement 11 Students are dissatisfied and uninterested in studying English utilizing the portfolio assessment strategy. 3 4 4 12 Students struggle to comprehend the English material and assignments the teacher gives because the learning assessment is not enjoyable. 3 4 4 13 Students utilizing portfolio assessment to turn in assignments often report feeling ashamed of their English language skills. 3 4 4 14 Students dislike learning through portfolio assessments. 2 4 5 15 When employing the portfolio assessment, students have a lower motivation to study. 3 4 5 16 Students' potential to improve their English communication skills may be hindered due to the assessment strategy. 3 4 5 17 When employing this strategy of assessing students' progress in English learning, students tend to be unengaged in class. 3 4 5 18 Students don't understand how to do the assignments and tests. 2 4 4 19 When working in class, students have less freedom to use their English. 3 4 4 20 The strategy does not assist students in learning how to communicate. 3 3 4 Total Percentage 57 % 77% 89% Means of Percentage 75% Observation Category Good The findings of the observations allow for the possibility of drawing the conclusion that the pupils made progress due to being instructed to utilize the portfolio evaluation strategy. It is possible to interpret seventy-five percent of the observed proportion of outcomes as indicating acceptable criteria. 57% of the total was yielded during the first meeting. This result was impacted by the observer's assessment of the students' bewilderment and lack of comfort with the researcher's techniques and instructions, as well as the fact that many students were still bewildered despite the researcher’s efforts. Additionally, this result was influenced by the fact that the researcher's methods and instructions were uncomfortable for the students. In addition, the percentage grew from the first meeting to the second, rising to Sopandi, Setyarini & Syathroh: Promoting Communication Skills … 148 77% compared to the first meeting's results. This was because students started to embrace the behavior, learning, and assessment techniques the researchers offered and the instructions were clearer. Additionally, this was owing to the fact that the instructions were made clearer. However, there was still skepticism over the efficacy of this strategy in improving students' abilities to communicate effectively. At the third meeting, the results showed a significant increase of 89%, which was influenced by the fact that the observer saw that the students were accustomed to and enjoyed the given learning and assessment strategies and that the portfolio assessment improved students’ communication skills. Additionally, the results were influenced by the fact that the observer saw that the students were accustomed to and enjoyed the given learning and assessment strategies, and that they enjoyed the given learning and assessment strategies. The use of a portfolio assessment method, which can have an effect on students' interest, motivation, and capacity to communicate in English, is one of the ways in which Observer contributes positively to the growth of students.. It is possible to draw the following conclusion from the research findings: portfolio assessments significantly affect students' communication abilities. The test’s basic linear regression model findings make this very clear. The findings of the paired sample t-test, which revealed the same significant value, and the results of a rise in the mean value in the experimental class, which was bigger than the mean value in the control class, both support this hypothesis. This is consistent with the findings of prior studies carried out by Daniel (2019) and Hapsari et al. (2021), both of which demonstrated a discernible rise in the level of communication proficiency exhibited by students after being exposed to the portfolio assessment approach. However, there are some discrepancies regarding the sample utilized and the kind of assignment set. In the prior research, college students were used as the sample, and the sort of task that was being investigated was speaking for ordinary lectures and communication in the form of groups or individuals. In contrast, the evaluation approach utilized in this research is known as the portfolio assessment. Students can demonstrate their work in a way that reflects their interests, abilities, and performances, such as their communication skills, using one of the alternative forms of assessment known as a portfolio evaluation. It is consistent with the findings of Li-Ping & Ahmad (2022), who discovered that there was a significant improvement in the student’s capacity to communicate with one another. In addition, the test results that demonstrated a strong influence are backed up by the findings of the reactions and observations of the students. The student response questionnaire discovered that each indication indicating the student's response to students' communication skills showed extremely high results, particularly from the affective component, which showed a percentage of 91%. This was notably notable compared to the other indicators, which showed less favorable findings. The findings on the observation sheet, which demonstrate that characteristics of affect such as motivation, emotions, and encouragement to be more passionate about learning using the portfolio assessment approach while receiving treatment, support these results (Sunawan et al., 2019). The findings on the observation sheet also reveal that the findings on the observation sheet support these results. The cognitive component is then shown promising outcomes by achieving a score of 82%. Afterward, the results of this element were favorable. The test findings, which revealed a rise of 14.6% compared to the control group's result of just 7.8%, provide credence to this assertion. However, there are several areas in which students' grammatical mastery abilities ELTIN Journal: Journal of English Language Teaching in Indonesia, Volume 11/No 2, October 2023 149 only slightly improved, specifically 56% in positive statements and 61% in negative statements; hence, when means are included, the findings become 58.5%, which is a favorable response. The findings might be considered less significant overall when compared to other cognitive qualities, such as accuracy, the use of language, body language, and expressing and organizing ideas. The accumulation of student replies with a percentage of 82%, which is also backed by observation sheets indicating an increase in each meeting, may be said to lead to an improvement in students’ cognitive ability, which can be said to occur over time. Last but not least, the behavioral component increased by 62%, which was a smaller increase than the previous two. There are contradictions when the results of the questionnaire are contrasted to the students' responses to the positive and negative statements. In contrast to the positive response rate of 61% for the negative statement section, the positive response rate for the positive statement section is only 44%. This is due to the meaning and essence of each statement, wherein the affirmative statement in the first point encourages students to continue utilizing the portfolio strategy. In contrast, the majority of students, 56%, need clarification and provide a hesitant response. This is determined by the significance and meaning of each statement. However, the first item in the section on negative statements indicates that 61% of students responded affirmatively; despite not being interested in creating a portfolio, they stated that they disagreed. The second point is identical, wherein there are inconsistencies in student responses to statements 10 and 20; for positive statements, only 44% of students responded positively, in contrast to the negative statement section, where 100% of students responded positively to responses to negative statements. This may be due to students' reluctance to experiment with novel techniques to improve their communication skills. In addition, if we evaluate students' perspectives on assignments, such as homework, we find that some students view assignments as a burden and need more motivation to complete them. This is consistent with the findings of the study by Baas et al. (2021), which demonstrate the influence of student learning motivation on assignment completion and reveal that students lack the motivation to learn. D. CONCLUSION It is possible to draw the following conclusion from this study's outcomes: portfolio assessments substantially influence students' communication abilities. In addition, there is a greater favorable reaction from students who use this approach than there is from students who do not use this method, with enhanced desire, willingness, and capacity of students to learn English and improve their ability to communicate in English. Students can improve their level of independent learning by practicing a method that is enjoyable to them. However, for students to be steered in the right direction, instructors still need to play a significant part in using this portfolio evaluation technique as a tool to lead their students. Thus, the researchers should address the constraints and identify future possibilities to improve the generalizability, reliability, and practical application of portfolio evaluations in educational contexts. REFERENCES Aitken, J.E. (1994). Assessment in Specific Programs: Employment, Program, and Course Student Portfolios in Communication Studies. 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