e-Portfolios

There is sometimes an assumption that the term e-Portfolio describes the digitisation of the familiar paper-based portfolios (with perhaps the inclusion of some new media), that have been used to document evidence of achievement and used principally as an assessment tool. An important aspect of lifelong learning is the learners' ability to assemble, demonstrate and reflect on the skills, knowledge and achievement they have built up during their learning experiences. One of the functions of electronic portfolios (e-portfolios) is to support this kind of activity.

There is a shift of emphasis therefore, from the notion of an e-Portfolio being owned by an individual institution, to the notion of the e-Portfolio being owned by the learner for their personal development and personal use. This may include activities aligned to specific learning outcomes or courses but could also involve the learners giving access to relevant parts of their e-Portfolio for different purposes e.g. to a prospective employer. The scope therefore of an e-Portfolio is much broader than a record of achievement for a single course and will be become a personal record of lifelong learning both formal and informal. The image below represents the structure of an e-portfolio system.

The briefing paper - e-Portfolios - What institutions really need to know - is a useful JISC publication which highlights the links between National Policy and the JISC programme on MLEs for Lifelong Learning. The paper outlines the key issues and challenges around the implementation of e-Portfolios. These include the need for standards and specifications to ensure interoperability, data storage capacity, equal access, security, privacy and ownership.

An overview of JISC activities in the field of e-Portfolios describes the JISC funded projects which are investigating a number of the issues around the use of e-Portfolios and personal development planning (PDP). These include projects which focus on the use of these learning technologies to aid a learner's transition between different environments (school/college/university) and/or institutions in terms of transferring personal data, artefacts and reflections. Other activities deal with the use of e-Portfolios for applying for jobs, work placements and building CVs. Many JISC projects have been working in the important area of supporting reflection and PDP through the use of e-Portfolios.

Watch a 30 minute recording of the RSCtv video presentation on e-Portfolios in Practice