What the Heck is an Eportfolio?

To paraphrase Evelyn Waugh, "There are only three rules for making Eportfolios.  Unfortunately, no one knows what they are."

But the concept -- the goal, the endgame -- is crystal clear.  Just as art/photo/design students have always presented a paper "portfolio" of their best work upon graduation or when searching for jobs, all students should/could create an online portfolio which contains examples of their best work in college.

Of course, what defines "best work" is wide open to different definitions.  Could be academic categories, such as work which demonstrates "critical thinking," "writing skills," "research skills," "scientific skills," and "computational skills."  But clearly no one set of criteria will suffice for all situations. So creating the criteria for inclusion in an eportfolio would be part of the process.

Comments

[Diana Wong]

[5 points. Thanks for the comments. I did find that blogging made for a great "thought-processor."] In the beginning of the quarter when you first describe the eportfolio project, I think many of us were confused. Now as the quarter progresses and we have a clearer grasp of your learning style, I think the eportfolio project has become clearer. Our portfolio is pretty open ended which might be the reason why many of us aren’t clear. We are so used to very specific rules and directions. I’m planning on making an art portfolio but with new “flat world tools.” Rather than submitting a large leather case with paper and canvas artworks, I can scan all my art with a scanner and upload it to the computer. This way I don’t have to lug around a huge suitcase and bring originals of all my art pieces. I think eportfolios are a great idea because it is more convenient. It also shows more about yourself, like how you design the portfolio, and how you format things. Do you like your text scattered in bright yellow letters? Or do you like the format organized with plain black text? “But clearly no one set of criteria will suffice for all situations. So creating the criteria for inclusion in an eportfolio would be part of the process.” This should help many of those who are confused with the portfolio. It is supposed to be up to you, you are the author, put what you want on it. There is only one simple guideline “Just as art/photo/design students have always presented a paper "portfolio" of their best work upon graduation or when searching for jobs, all students should/could create an online portfolio which contains examples of their best work in college.” Hopefully this will clear things up because it is confusing at first, but it is supposed to allow creativity, that is why directions are vague, its up to you what you put on it. Well, that’s how I see it. Glad you have this up! It is inspiring and I’m glad it encourages thinking and creativity.