Nathan Garrett :: Blog :: A tri-part view of eportfolios

I just ran across Helen's page on research questions (http://electronicportfolios.org/research.html), and thought that a comment she made was particularly apt.  She said something about viewing portfolios on three levels: a digital archive of student work, a learner-centered view with a learner's authentic voice, and an institutional-centered assessment with rubrics and standards.

I really think that this 3-part system integrates the ways that several different groups view portfolios.  Teaching & Learning people interested in institutional growth and assessment have standards, students have a personal voice, and students' parents get some bang for their educational buck.  It sounds like these three also fit what students really need / want: personal & reliable file storage and a personal voice (blog), and what profs want: a way to easily standardize and measure educational effectiveness.

I think that we can view each of these goals as requiring a different kind of technology.  People interested in assessment have html-like pages, grids, etc... (OSPI, iwebfolio, ...).  Blogs support personal reflection.  Filing cabinets supports saving work online.   

I do think that this 3-part framework is still missing something -- community.  I've been reading thru John Zubizarreta's e-portfolio book, and one thing he highlights is the importance of community in a portfolio.  

While it is important that a portfolio be an intensely personal place, I think that many of the benefits of the net center on connecting people.  A portfolio is a presentation of yourself to the world, but it's nice to know what the world thinks...

Having a system that integrates each of these things would be a better portfolio system than the awkward kludges I've been dealing with at work.  What if a student could post a paper, reflect on it in a blog entry, and submit it to meet an institutional requirement, all in the same system?  Why not be able to turn a blog entry into a paper & tag it to show up in  your classes' journaling assignment slot? 

Anyway, my 2 cents;

Nathan