Student Electronic Portfolios for Teaching, Learning, and Assessment

Susan KahnIndiana University-Purdue University

Indianapolis

31st EAIR ForumVilnius, Lithuania24 August, 2009

One student’s perspective

“So you get here and they start asking you, ‘What do you…want to major in? …what courses [do] you want to take?’ and you get the impression that’s what it’s all about – courses and majors. So, you take the courses. You get your card punched. You try a little this and a little that. Then comes GRADUATION. And you wake up and you look at this bunch of courses and then it hits you: They don’t add up to anything. It’s just a bunch of courses. It doesn’t mean a thing.”

What is an ePortfolio?

• “A collection of electronic evidence assembled and managed by a user, usually on the Web…Such electronic evidence may include inputted text, electronic files…images, multimedia, blog entries, and hyperlinks. E-portfolios are both demonstrations of the user's abilities and platforms for self-expression.” (Wikipedia)

• “Created by the three principal activities of collection, selection, and reflection, student portfolios can be succinctly defined as collections of work selected from a larger archive of work, upon which the student has reflected.” (Yancey, 2001)

Templated Career PortfolioFlorida State University

Guided Portfolio Experience

• A series of related portfolio activities or processes designed by instructor, assessment coordinator, or some

• Organized into a visual framework (matrix or outline)

• Participation is facilitated by faculty or staff and guidance (instructions, rationale, examples) is embedded in the software.

Three uses

Why ePortfolios?

1. For students– Track growth and development– Develop capacities for metacognition and self-directed

learning– Support reflective practice– Integrate and apply learning

2. For faculty– Create guided portfolio experiences– Provide a focus for curriculum development and improvement

3. For programs and institutions– Authentic assessment for admissions, improvement and

effectiveness, accreditation

Advantages for Assessment

“Documenting learning in this way places the focus on actual achievements that are viewed directly, rather than on proxies of achievement like cumulative GPAs or test scores that are only indirect indicators of learning. The focus is also on what students can do with their knowledge and skills and not simply on whether knowledge has been acquired.” (Huba & Freed, 2000)

ePort for what?• Pre-professional portfolio (Biology)• Focus on critical thinking (Engineering &

Technology)• Focus on professional ethics (Dentistry)• Focus on integrating learning (English, Visual

Communication)• Catalyst for curriculum revision around learning

outcomes (Secondary Education)• Authentic documentation of competencies for

assessment and accreditation (Dentistry, Visual Communication)

• Assessment of prior learning for credit (OLS)

Development in Reflective Thinking

• Ability to self-assess

• Awareness of how one learns

• Developing lifelong learning skills

Implementation Issues

• How will the portfolio be designed to fulfill the institution’s or department’s purposes?

• How will the portfolio be integrated into program curricula? What changes will this require?

• Who will read and evaluate student portfolios? When?

• What are the infrastructure needs? What resources are needed?

• What faculty development is needed? What skills will students need to develop?

Lessons Learned

• Start with small pilot projects and with faculty/departments that need e-portfolio for specific purposes

• Consult extensively with early adopters• Be prepared to offer lots of faculty

development and technical support• Expect uneven levels of participation and

interest at first

“I no longer see what I have to offer as an English job hunter in mere terms of degree possessed and years of experience…I look at what I have to offer in a larger context. Beyond the essential in my resume that I share with all other graduates, I now see capacities in critical thinking, communications, and multi-project analyses. All these capacities can be supported with the creative and scholarly material in my matrix.”