Getting Started with ePortfolios

ePortfolios can serve many purposes, and you as the teacher must define a purpose before being able to choose the best platform, artifacts, and assessment tools. Included on this page are the following:

  • Purpose
  • Evaluation
  • Other Important Considerations


Purpose

There are two primary approaches to ePortfolios in the classroom: The positivist approach and the constructivist approach. Take a look at the table below for a quick overview of the differences.

 


Source: "Researching Electronic Portfolios and Learner Engagement" (Barrett 2005) Links to an external site.

 

As you consider implementing ePortfolios in your classroom, determine whether you want the portfolio to be an assessment for learning or an assessment of learning (or a combination of both!). While constructivist ePortfolios are more intrinsically motivating for students and promote metacognition, positivist ePortfolios can be great resources for a student's teacher in a later grade or even for college and job applications.

 

Evaluation

Once you have decided on a purpose for your students' ePortfolios, you can move forward with deciding how to evaluate them: Checklist, rubric, etc. Below is an example of a rubric used as assessment of learning and students' mastery of pre-determined standards.

Download Final Project_ ePortfolio.pdf

 

Other Important Considerations

Take a moment to read Edutopia's "11 Essentials for Excellent Digital Portfolios" Links to an external site. and consider what the suggest for effective ePortfolio implementation.

 

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