Electronic Portfolios Analysis - Essay Example

Electronic Portfolios Insert Insert Among highly flexible technologies are E-Portfolios. It has a number of applications that consists sustaining education in a setting that is official traversing all the age groups, sponsorship and development of the career. Further, it covers judgment from a professional view alongside registration and reviewing by the institution. It also includes accreditation. E-portfolio refers to a container that is said to be digital with the capability of storing a number of digital content including video, images, text, and sound. The later supports evaluation and a number of pedagogical purposes (Cambridge, 2010). As results, the e-portfolio is termed as a repository that learners hold as proof for their development and a foundation to reflect on the learning process. It further encompasses education, delivery and receipt of comment, making plans and setting targets. In addition, collaboration and presentation to a group of people for a variety of reasons for instance partying, display of achievement and during recruitment into jobs. (Cambridge, 2012) States that a portfolio that is electronic consists of technologies that are electronic and gives the developer of the portfolio a variety of formats to organize the artifacts. E-portfolios are complex with functionalities like an administration tool to run and present work build with a number of applications and to establish who has the privilege to see the work. In general e-portfolios enable learners to gather various works and present their portfolios in varied formats. That is inline with the understanding that knowledge dwells in the perspective of both the past and current relationship socially. Teachers traverse five levels in the process of using E-portfolios to weigh their learners. The first stage includes identification of intent, the standards, and addressees. An illustration is the basis of the outcome of the students target by the teacher like establishing cohesion and coherence in essay writing. Teachers then create a means to evaluate the e-portfolio like a framework or behaviors that are observable. Next involves determining the category of the audience as teachers, parents or professors because these addressees affect the designing of the e-portfolio. The following is the selection of the location for the storage, choosing the software tool and assembling artifacts meeting the standards. For proper utilization of the e-portfolio, make a suitable choice of the software. As a result, the consideration by teachers is suitability and availability of software that is in line with the vision and stylistic nature of the portfolios developer. They also need to select a suitable medium for presentation and storage. The latter is to the audience of the portfolio. However, on the basis of software choice, there exist many options. An example is the use of Wiki spaces and blogs to keep safe essays that belong to students and give teachers an opportune to watch and collect the growth of their students. Level three is about students reflecting on their works and achievements of goals they wish to attain. Furthermore, it is inclusive of the means tutors give feedback and how students keep the feedback. These aspects have to be in place before the creation of the e-portfolio. Level four involves the connection of the portfolio and the organization of the digital artifacts. The stage involves the selection of software that facilitates the creation of hyperlinks between the goals, work samples of students, frameworks and the assessment process. The process of development and quality of end product rely on the choice of software. The characteristics possessed by various packages of software are unique to them, and its effects are expanding or limiting the options in the portfolio. The final level involves recording of the collection to a suitable means of presentation and storage. That is what encompasses portfolio performance. The above constraints differ depending on whether it is a working or presentation portfolio. Whereas videotape, hard disks, zip disks, and network servers are suitable for working portfolio, web server, videotape or CD-Recordable disc applies to the formal portfolio. The manner in which to present the final portfolio to the audience either by the students or the teachers depends on the context and strategies set by them. New strategies involve conferences led by students. These ensure that learners share their portfolios with peers, parents or employers in waiting. Professionals get a chance to contribute to use in teaching with other colleagues. The result is useful comments and teamwork in assessing themselves. E-portfolios enable works by students to get digitized, stored in a system that is computerized to facilitate revision through time and access by colleagues, suitable employers, and the faculty. The flexibility is for students to digitize content in various formats. These are digital videos, slides, electronic journals, blogs, discussion boards and podcasts. The many options will enable the students to share their works of creativity with those who can give comments and weigh their learning process and the establishment of skills. It also includes a review of their experiences in life as it appears in the documentation. Using e-portfolios standards as a super way than use of essays or writing during the class session is prevalent. Through the practice, students see writing as something that is continuous and an act of communication in the public. E-portfolios, as used in the writing stage, provides an opportunity for learners in the beginning stage of writing to review their drafts while placing emphasis on the critical areas. After the writing stage, the students discussed their essays to ascertain the flow and accuracy. They then shared the work with peers and teachers. These e-portfolios are critical for the development of the student and teachers professionally. It helps to maintain with the innovations in the digital society. (Bartlett, 2002) Explains a survey study involving 26 students who created electronic portfolios in the first year of their program on teacher education. The creation involved standards of teaching, implementation of a lesson through a video clip and lessons that amounted to two. The findings involved students identifying learning opportunity through the use of technology. In addition, work showcase is encouraged through the convenience of a mouse click. E-portfolios also have a variety of tools to facilitate organization especially where learners a number of applications. Benefits of e-portfolios include a boost in students confidence and self-esteem. That will enable them to take control of their learning. Through the use of e-portfolios in storing students portfolios, their work is portable, distributable and easily accessible. Work performance can be replayed any time by those learning. Consequently, faculty will keep in touch with students especially if they make their portfolios professional. The ecological benefit of using e-portfolios includes the reduction in sound and urge to use paper-portfolios. The use of e-portfolios enables editing and modifications by incorporating a change in layout and fonts to match various purposes and addressees. In quest to become eco-friendly, there is need to encourage others to become eco-friendly through utilizing e-portfolios to minimize on how much natural resources we use. The findings reveal that through reading and choosing appropriate sentences, students can write their essays. Students can achieve growth personally and development in writing through the use of writing in a format that is structured. Other findings by (Kent, Hand, Bradbury & Kent, 2010) shows how using e-portfolios enhances setting of goals and facilitates planning from a personal standpoint. The previous is learning independently by assigning strategies and purposes. There are various challenges in the use of e-portfolios. These include training of teachers and students in the use of the tools in the technological sphere. It is done before the teacher program on education uses the e-portfolios. In essence, the program has to provide sufficient facilities with suitable hardware and software. These alongside labs will provide a serene to work on the e-portfolios. The study according to (Kent, Hand, Bradbury & Kent, 2010)reveals how teachers and students did not affirm that use of e-portfolios is a valuable tool to establish thinking that is reflective. Elsewhere, understanding of technological aspects can be very sophisticated. The study by (Haywood, 2005) on 544 undergraduates from two universities reveals how lack of understanding in technology made them spend more time and need more support alongside high workload on returns. These students were using e-portfolios for the first time. In addition, there was motivation issues related to buy-in on the value of e-portfolios. They are also not suitable for students who have problems with their linguistic capabilities especially in assessment of self. Feedback from (Stefani, Mason & Pegler, 2007) shows that participants in the study failed to exercise self and peer-assessment efficiently because of uncertainty. Further, it is due to misconceptions and insufficiency in proficiency. These suggestion from the study alongside what learners raised as concerns are vital in implementing the proposed project on e-portfolio especially in classrooms on languages. References Cambridge, D. (2010). Eportfolios for lifelong learning and assessment. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Cambridge, D. (2012). E-portfolios and global diffusion. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference. Kent, D., Hand, R., Bradbury, G., & Kent, M. (2010). Mahara 1.2 ePortfolios. Birmingham, U.K.: Packt Publishing. Stefani, L., Mason, R., & Pegler, C. (2007). The educational of e-portfolios. London: Routledge. Read More