Portfolio-Based Assessment

The second presentation that I attended focused on the new format for the entry-level Global Studies (formerly International Studies) students at U of I, and that is portfolio-based assessment.

In deciding whether or not to use portfolio-based assessment, determine the goals, outcomes, and assessment of the portfolio. This department first had students create an e-identity. In this e-profile students talked about themselves, their values, their interests, and made a dream plan for themselves. The next step was to have them create web pages on the culture of their choice. There are several choices on which program to use to do these types of portfolios. Here are a couple:

http://www.taskstream.com/pub/PDF/ToolsBrochure.pdf

U of I is using Mahara for their pilot:

http://mahara.org/

In this pilot program there are three major assignments. First the individual profile, then the midterm project where the skills are combined with organizing information gleened from online, and thirdly, a group project that involves online collaboration. This allows for the skills to be linked with the research. The final group project involves navigating communication among group members. They are able to send links to each other through Mahara.

The presenters described two main groups that students fall into: technophobes and overconfident users. However, the technophobes are a relatively small group, and the overconfidence ended after the first deadline. In order to give students support for the e-portfolio, workshops and office hours were set up. The technology is taught very briefly in lectures discussing what the assignment would be, and then in a series of 10 computer lab workshops.

When working with e-portfolios there are problems with plagiarism, most of which are unintentional. Students need to understand that EVERYTHING taken from online needs to maintain a citation. Students can't just cut and paste. They need to be taught how to cite a reference online.

One of the benefits of online portfolio assessment is that when students ask for letters of recommendation, the professor can use the e-portfolio as a reference. A downside of portfolio assessment is that it is a lot of work. E-portfolios can very easily be turned into a capstone project.

Stay tuned,
Michelle