employability

an eportfolio can be an enhanced CV which would show in great detail a person's skill base.

it might be more reliable as traditional CVs as on these ones the applicant could talk about the skills ad experiences they gained while the eportfolio enables a direct link to actual objects that can back up the claims

institutional benefits

eportfolios help departments to demonstrate more effectively their graduates learning profiles and skills required for the workplace. eportfolio would enable students to demonstrate in their own words and with the products of their own efforts, the value and effectiveness of their educational experiences.

eportfolios might facilitate greater interaction allowing interface no matter where the students or tutors are located. There are not physical, spatial or temporal boundaries

what students get

Development and maintenance are the key activities in the success of an eportfolio enabling a student to actively engage in their learning and progress. By maintaining their own eportfolio a student reflects on what they are doing and have done and considers why they are doing it and the reasons for it. This might clarify their understanding of the direction wished to pursue. Adding to tis should be mentioned that by maintaining their eportfolio students arm themselves with valuable computer skills essential in their workplaces.

time and effort as an investment for a long term benefit

help to see what are they good at and build on it

benefit of eportfolio

there is power as the process will be monitored as well as the product.

pedgaogy shifts from a course-driven focus to a student-centred approach placing emphasis for learning firmly on the student.

aim now should be on encouraging and motivating students to identify and respond to their own learning needs and then in turn gather and record evidence of this learning within the eportfolio

student has the power

so the owner is responsible for maintaining the system, utilizing its functions and facilities, improving their learning experience and development.

Work stored could be used later for reflection and to prove competence

This could also include information and skills coming from extra curriculum activities, work experience and would allow these to be captured and utilized presenting a greater portrait of an individual

The interaction between institutions, instructors, advisors, employers and peers creates a varied learning community

-touching the point of audiences/reaching various lecturers

-is it not what is needed for learning "interaction"?

eportfolios are seen as a hub through which to manage pur participation and thereby our learning

purpose of an eportfolio

The benefits of eportfolio are

learning tool for the user -engaging?

monitoring tool for institutions -assessment/evidence of development?

mechanism for employment opportunities -skills & experience?

Combining achievements and artefacts submitted through the course of study that student has the ability to organise and reorganise the contents to create different views tailored to specific audiences or generate further discussion and future study. Combining these and the reflection/discussion provides a rich tapestry of the learners' experiences and skills.

That's what is needed for Phd students

The eportfolio places the student at the centre of the development process enabling control over their learning.

This links with student lead learning or independent learning.
Using the students as a resource which is a point made in the Supervisors Day

what are digital artefacts

A digital artefact is any electronic media, for example; a word document, a video clip, a digital photgraph. Production of these artefacts involves digitizing materials such as scanning an illustration. A student wanting to demonstrate debating skills could insert a video clip, showing their participation in a debate with a group of peers, into their eportfolio. This artefct could be shown to tutors or employers to demonstrate that student's ability to debate.

To use the eportfolio for reflection the student would review the artefacts stored in their repository. Using tutor feedback and self-reflection the student looks closely at and analyzes their progress, highlighting strengths and limitations, hence indicating developmental needs.

For instance

recording an spanish class
recording audiovisual material for a spanish class
recording interview for a phd

http://www.eradc.org/papers/ePortfolio_Weblog.pdf

how eportfolios work

An eportfolio has a similar look and feel to a personal website. the main difference is a link to a personal repository containing items of work, tutor/employer comments, feedback and reflections.

being critical

as eportfolios exist for different purposes a "one size fits all" approach will not suffice so the student needs to be able to create front end displays tailored to the task required

for instance

a job hunter might need to show a CV and links when necessary to demonstrate certain experience in a job or certain skill

why to use a eportfolio

One main strenght of the eportfolio is the ability to alter the dynamics of learning pedagogy, students are actively engaging in their learning not just the recipients of information. Reflecting on what they are learning may help map out future direction.

eportfolio definition

1)An ePortfolio is a web-based information management system that uses electronic media and services. The learner builds and maintains a digital repositor or artefacts, which they can use to demonstrate competence and reflect on their learning. Having access to their records, digital repository, feedback and reflection students can achieve a greater understanding of their individual growth, career planning and CV building. Accrediation for prior or extra-curricular experiences, a sense of control over how they are represented and direction over what is shown makes the ePortfolio a powerful tool.

2)It is simply an organised collection of completed work.
It is associated with assessment, but also with accreditation, reflection, student resumes, career tracking. However, it is as if this new tool is the answer to all the questions we didnt realize we were asking.

By using e-portfolios, three trends have merged:
tudent work is mostly in electronic form, or is based on a canonical electronic file.
the Web is everywehre: we assume although it might not always be true that our students have ready access to the Web
Databases are available through Web sites, allowing student to manage large volumes of their work