Eastern Connecticut State University
Strategic Plan Benchmark Proposal
For discussion Spring Semester 2009
Strategic Initiative: 3.2: Develop and implement a digital portfolio/experiential transcript requirement
Co-Chairs: Mr. Nick Messina and Dr. David Stoloff
Contact Information: Mr. Nick Messina – , 860 – 465 – 0209
Dr. David Stoloff – , 860 – 465 – 5501
Benchmarks:
3.2.1. Develop and implement a digital portfolio/experiential transcript requirement. (AY 2009-2010)
3.2.2. Require entering students utilize a digital portfolio including documentation of experiential learning beginning AY 2009-2010.
Definition:
“An electronic portfolio includes the use of electronic technologies that allow the portfolio developer to collect and organize artifacts in many formats (audio, video, graphics, and text). …. Often, the terms electronic portfolio and digital portfolio are used interchangeably. However, I make a distinction: an electronic portfolio contains artifacts that may be in analog (e.g., videotape) or computer-readable form. In a digital portfolio, all artifacts have been transformed into computer-readable form. An electronic portfolio is not a haphazard collection of artifacts (i.e., a digital scrapbook or multimedia presentation) but rather a reflective tool that demonstrates growth over time.”
Barrett, Helen (2000). Create Your Own Electronic Portfolio. Retrieved from http://electronicportfolios.org/portfolios/iste2k.html.
Proposal:
I. Goals for Student Success
Goals
A. Positive student learning goals linked to this proposal:
· habits of self-assessment and lifelong learning will be improved with a process through which students record and reflect on their academic and professional accomplishments
· students learn to organize learning artifacts in ways that reinforce skills and knowledge and assist them in integrating and synthesizing learning from various contexts
· students develop a sense of empowerment, ownership of the learning process and deepen understanding regarding the opportunities for meaningful learning outside the traditional classroom setting
· job and graduate school placement will be assisted by electronic portfolios
B. Objectives related to these goals:
· Students will demonstrate the skills of a reflective learner by identifying personal strengths and challenges, assessment of learning and setting goals for the future
· Students will document the full range of his or her learning experiences (including experiential learning) in a comprehensive and reflective way
II. Implementation Plan
A. Method
1. Needs and Interest Assessment
A survey of faculty conducted by the implementation committee during fall 2008 suggested modest agreement with a wide range of primary purposes of an electronic portfolio requirement for all students (see results in Appendix A). The majority of the respondents (N=41) thought Eastern’s ePortfolio system should be …
Percent – strongly agree or agree / Survey item92% / Easy of use, easy to learn
88% / Ability to support large files
71% / A common format that is easy to learn, teach, and use
71% / Ability to create specific views of the ePortfolios for specific audiences
71% / An employment tool for graduates
63% / Longevity of the accounts – beyond the end of each semester
61% / Ability to generate individual and group qualitative and quantitative information
61% / A reflective tool for students
61% / A student assessment tool
58% / Integration with other educational technology at Eastern
54% / A program assessment tool
There was less agreement with the ePortfolios being a course assessment tool
(46% in agreement), a university assessment tool (37% in agreement), a graduation requirement
(37%), or a resource for alumni (27%).
2. E-Portfolio as a Graduation Requirement: A Gradual Approach
As in all initiatives in educational technology, this infusion of ePortfolios at Eastern CSU will be a dynamic process. The e-portfolio at Eastern will be a student-centered learning tool that may be incorporated into various learning environments, such as major or minor programs, core curriculum or co-curricular experiences.
Dr. Helen Barrett, who was a guest speaker at Eastern on April 2, thanks to the support of Vice President Rhona Free and the Center for Educational Excellence, described the various purposes and uses of electronic portfolios and outlines stages of concern for the implementation of electronic portfolios (see Appendix B); she agreed for us to videotape her presentations. Following our discussions with Dr. Barrett, we expect that the first phase of implementation of electronic portfolios at Eastern will begin with students documenting their learning and evolving with some programs and departments employing these student materials to assess and document achievement. Dr. Barrett’s videos are now featured on the Eastern Television website:
http://nutmeg.easternct.edu/easterntelevision/teachingexcellenceseminar.htm
Dr. Helen Barrett describes the process of assimilation of e-portfolios into academic cultures. We expect that the process of infusion at Eastern will follow this pattern.
“Stages of Concern -
1. Awareness/Information concerns (they don't know anything about e-portfolios and they need lots of information and a vision)
2. Personal concerns (they know about e-portfolios but have no experience with them, either personally or with their students)
3. Management concerns (they have some personal experience with e-portfolios but aren't sure how to manage a classroom full of students developing them)
4. Consequence concerns (their students are started developing e-portfolios and they want to do the best job of using the portfolios for improving student learning
5. Collaboration concerns (their students are well along in the process, and they want to collaborate with other colleagues about using e-portfolios
6. Refocusing concerns (they see real evidence of student achievement, and they want to do something better)”
Barrett, H. (2005). Professional Development Guide. Retrieved from http://electronicportfolios.org/teachers/profdev.html .
Based upon Barrett’s framework for the movement from awareness to refocusing, the application of electronic portfolios is slowly gaining faculty and university acceptance, moving from awareness/information to personal and management concerns. The consensus has moved towards an initial emphasis on students developing and assessing their own electronic portfolios and the need for departmental and programmatic flexibility in the uses of ePortfolios for assessment.
Several strategic initiatives reference the use of electronic portfolios and suggest that they should be incorporated into their implementation plans. These include Liberal Arts Work!, Global Citizenship Program, the Center for Community Engagement, the First Year Program and the Liberal Arts Core Curriculum. See Appendix C for the description of how each of these initiatives plan to integrate electronic portfolios into their programs.
The Education Department and the School of Continuing Education currently employ electronic portfolios with their students. A number of departments have indicated an interest in exploring and piloting an e-portfolio system for one or more of their courses. These include English and Social Work.
Faculty members in the Environmental Earth Science Department discussed this initiative and their department chair asked that this statement be included: - “If a department wishes to incorporate the digital portfolio into a course the department retains the ability to determine the most appropriate course."
The implementation of the use of electronic portfolios at Eastern will be a phased process which will begin with further technical exploration, faculty development, departmental discussions on the integration of electronic portfolios in meaningful ways within the curriculum, support for pilots and infusion, and ongoing assessment of this process.
3. Initial Technical Approach – some options:
- Explore ways of using each student’s “Z drive” to develop an ePortfolio.
b. Provide a beginning generic e-portfolio template and instructions to all incoming first year students on a flash drive.
c. Explore ways of using available software like PowerPoint or One Note for
students to develop portfolios that are stored on flash drives.
d. Explore ways to make use of Blackboard VISTA and/or future course management systems, used for online courses at Eastern, as ongoing ePortfolio platforms.
e. Explore the uses of free or low-cost ePortfolio software, like Google Sites, to develop scaffolding for an Eastern ePortfolio process that would be web-accessible. (A prototype Eastern ePortfolio site and a video on Eastern’s Liberal Education Electronic portfolio is available at http://sites.google.com/site/easterncsueportfolio/. A video developed by students in LAP 130 – Leading Edge Educational Technology, Spring 2009, “The Adventure of ePortfolio”, posted at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5LJa-OV7pQ, illustrates student attitudes towards the potential of ePortfolios.)
f. Explore ways of developing a process to pilot and assess other ePortfolio software, including LIVE@EDU or a future ePortfolio component within Blackboard.
4. Initial Infusion: Student Expectations and Support
a. Convene a design team (see 6 below) that will continue to develop guidelines for electronic portfolios at Eastern.
b. Expect that all incoming students develop and maintain an electronic portfolio and promote a culture that supports the infusion of electronic portfolios as a tool for documentation of student learning.
c. Develop a module within the FYR 174 course, and the technology supports in CIT, on the creation and maintenance of an ePortfolio.
d. Identify and support major programs that will be early adopters of an e-portfolio format.
e. Encourage academic programs to explore using other technologies to draw together disparate information for the purposes of analyzing problems and reflecting upon solutions.
f. Develop a teaching module that can be used to teach the practice of reflection on learning. This can be used by the First Year Program, LAP130 courses, Tier III LAC courses, Center for Community Engagement, major, minor and certificate programs and individual faculty.
g. Encourage, but not require, that the documentation of the reflective component of the Tier III class be included in this e-portfolio. “TIER III affords students the opportunity to reflect on and apply knowledge and skills acquired in the first two tiers and in their major” As part of this tier each student must: “Reflect on the context of their independent inquiry or artistic creation; and Reflect on this work as an outcome of their liberal arts education.” (Liberal Arts Core Curriculum, 2006, http://nutmeg.easternct.edu/lapc/LACC2006.htm ).
5. Faculty Development
To fully implement an e-portfolio requirement will require faculty development through the Center for Educational Excellence, the support of FYR 174 faculty members and peer mentors, CIT and IT staff to provide support for the enhanced technology infrastructure, IT support for Requests for Proposal (RFP) or Request for Information (RFI) processes, assessment of prior experiences with ePortfolios and follow-up studies of student assessment of their own efficacy resulting from developing ePortfolios.
6. E-Portfolio Design Team
A proposed design team, to be convened early in the Fall 2009 semester, would provide leadership in the next steps of this initiative. This group, composed of a representative of the Center for Educational Excellence, CIT, at least one faculty member or representative from each school, a representative of the engaged learning initiatives, the First Year Program and at least one student will be charged with the implementation, support and assessment of this initiative for a three-year period. Support will be provided through the Center for Educational Excellence. An annual report on progress will be submitted to the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
7. Assessment
Student Learning
E-portfolios may assist in assessing student learning by:
· Contributing to students’ abilities to reflect upon their learning as required in the Tier III capstone
· individual majors, minors and other elective or university-wide programs (such as the Writing Program, First Year Program, Liberal Arts Core Curriculum) may employ e-portfolios to assess student learning
· providing opportunities for LAC Tier III faculty to assess the outcome of students’ liberal arts learning
E-Portfolio Program Assessement
The infusion of e-portfolios as a student requirement at Eastern will be assessed in process as detailed in the timeline. Assessment of the infusion approach will include tracking: # of faculty employing e-portfolios, # of majors with some e-portfolio usage, # of majors which require an e-portfolio in one or more courses, # of programs (including minors) which require or expect an e-portfolio, and # of students using an e-portfolio during this three-year period.
8. Critical Connections
Opportunities, linkages and synergies
o Development of reflective competencies is necessary for community engagement and integrated learning
o Global Citizenship and Global Scholars Programs will request that documentation of activities and reflection be contained in an e-portfolio.
o Liberal Arts Work! may request that students seeking a non-credit internship experience document learning electronically in an e-portfolio.
o The Writing Program may consider ways to use ePortfolios for writing assessment and to fulfill the writing requirement.
o Changes in course management software, university intranet, e-mail and server systems may promote the use of e-portfolios.
Challenges
o Challenge of security
o Challenges of professional development for students and faculty on ePortfolios.
9. Resources
· Personnel
An individual, with affiliations with the Center for Educational Excellence, would be assigned up to 3 FLCS each semester for academic years 2009-2010 and 2010-2011, 2 FLCs for 2011-2012 and 2012-2013, and 1 FLC each semester for 2013-2014, to coordinate the infusion of ePortfolios into the first-year program curriculum, to present workshops for students, staff, and faculty on the ePortfolio applications within their areas of studies, to assist in organizing a process to select an ePortfolio platform that would be stable, secure, and cost-effective, and generate campus-wide support for these initiatives. The Center for Educational Excellence will be offering faculty development support for this ePortfolio initiative.
· Equipment
Potential server space and the purchase of ePortfolio software may be necessary. More discussion with IT at Eastern and in the system office is needed. The potential software for ePortfolios is evolving quickly with the possibility of decisions being made within the next academic year.
· Supplies
Some minimal support for flash drives for incoming students.
· Travel
Travel support for individuals to participate and present on ePortfolios at the conferences of the Connecticut Educators Computer Association, EDUCAUSE, and other associations.
B. Implementation Timeline
The timeline below will examine ways of introducing and infusing ePortfolios at Eastern.
Semester/Session / Goals / Progress AssessmentSummer 2008 – Fall 2008 – Wintersession 2009 / Develop consensus on the goals and methods of ePortfolio applications at Eastern / Developing first draft template of Eastern’s Liberal Education ePortfolio
Spring 2009 / Developing connections with other initiatives on campus – First-Year Program, Expanding Horizons, Liberal Arts Works!, Center for Community Engagement / Discussions with Chairs of each School and with Continuing Education, …
Summer 2009 / Plan for the implementation of ePortfolio introductions in FYR 174 courses. / Learning module created
Fall 2009 / Plan for all students in the First Year Program in fall 2009 will have the opportunity to learn about e-portfolios and their benefits through FYR 174 courses or group meetings.
Convene a design team from Media Services, CEE, CIT, representatives from engaged learning initiatives, representatives from the 3 Schools, and student representative(s). / # of sections in which e-portfolios introduced
Development of general guidelines for ePortfolio goals and implementation.
Spring 2010 / Two major departments and several Tier III courses will explore ePortfolio applications. / # of LAC Tier III section and # of uses in major programs
Summer 2010 / Assess these projects and develop a timeline for first year students to develop experiential transcripts, introducing ePortfolio system to at least 20 FYR faculty and peer mentors / Written qualitative feedback from faculty and students
Fall 2010 / Use ePortfolios in at least 20 FYR sections and 10 other courses, assessing the use of the new system / # of sections in which e-portfolios introduced
Spring 2011 / ePortfolio usage within LAP colloquia and other courses – reaching at least 40 courses / # of LAC sections and # of uses in major programs
Summer 2011 / assessment of the first year of the selected ePortfolio system, recruiting all of the FYR faculty and peer mentors in developing ePortfolios / Written qualitative feedback from faculty and students
Fall 2011 / use ePortfolios in all FYR sections and 20 other courses, Tier III courses ecourses, seeking Tier I and II usage / # of sections in which e-portfolios introduced
Spring 2012 / ePortfolio usage within LAP colloquia and other courses – reaching at least 50 courses / # of LAC sections and # of uses in major programs
Summer 2012 / assessment of the second year of the selected ePortfolio system, recruiting all of the FYR 174 faculty and peer mentors in developing ePortfolios / Written qualitative feedback from faculty and students
Fall 2012 / use ePortfolios in all FYR sections and 50 other courses, including Tier I, II, and III courses / # of sections in which e-portfolios introduced
Spring 2013 / ePortfolio usage within LAP colloquia and other courses – reaching at least 100 courses, including Tier I, II, and III courses, presentations at Expo or A&S Exhibition of ePortfolios, / # of LAC sections and # of uses in major programs
Summer 2013 / institutionalization of ePortfolio system at Eastern, continual assessment and refinement, and showcasing exemplary models / Written qualitative feedback from faculty and students
Assessment of Effectiveness