Latest WBL-Shot = WBL: Digital Portfolios, Digital Courses or Digital Postboxes?
Derrin Kent
WBL: Portfolios, Courses or Postboxes?
The question Derrin asks is:
"What's wrong with doing e-Portfolios for WBL in the same way as we used to do Paper-Based Portfolios?"
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Ray Tolley
Hi, Derrin,
My instinctive reaction to your question is “Nothing at all !” As I have posted for the last three years, I think that the e-Portfolio is ideal for WBL for several reasons. Certainly it can replicate traditional paper-based portfolios – if that’s all you want. I presented my first portfolio in 1958 and see many similarities, measure of progress, evidence of variety of skills, reflection, testimony from others, suggestions for future progress etc.
However, if I stop and put the brakes on for a minute, I might say “What? The SAME way? NEVER !!!” The e-Portfolio has so much more power for peer-review and mentoring, through rich media comments, polls, surveys or Likart Scales etc and thus providing formative feedback, never mind multiple concurrent access by interview panel members etc or using common artefacts within different ‘personas’ of the same e-Portfolio.
However, I’m not sure whether Open Source Software is necessarily the right solution for all adults or even supported OSS ? Somewhere along the line support needs to be provided, either within staff/development costs or support provided by the vendor. I prefer to provide a product which tries to avoid any additional workload by tutors and in fact by appropriate scaffolding reduces induction costs. – But that’s another story!
BW
Ray Tolley FEIDCT, NAACE Fellow, ACQI, MBILD
ICT Education Consultant
Maximise ICT Ltd
P: http://raytolley.v2efolioworld.mnscu.edu/
B: http://www.efoliointheuk.blogspot.com/
W: http://www.maximise-ict.co.uk/eFolio-01.htm
Winner of the IMS 'Leadership Regional Award 2009'
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I am picking up my spirits a bit more recently as I am talking to more
and more WBL providers who see the benefits of "paper-behind glass"
and "portfolio-based learning".
We do still need to remind some people out there that as an
educational provider, we have a RESPONSIBILITY to ensure that learning
happens.... not just a responsibility to assess already existing
competencies. This is why a reflective ePortfolio like Mahara makes
more sense than a simple assessment tracker.
And... in a paper-based world, we decided that a portfolio-based
evaluation process was a better process for Work-Based Learning
facilitation than was a classroom based course with lots of tutor
presentation and lots of tests. And that is why Mahara makes more
sense for WBL than Moodle. I am not saying we don't need Moodle, I
am saying we need oth, but, in the WBL context, the Moode platform is
actually of secondary importance to the Mahara platform.
I also agree fully with your point, ray, that we can and should extend
our e-portfolio platforms with features we might associate with a more
interactive Personalised Learning Environment (PLE). For more of my
thoughts on this, check out my MoodleMoot UK 2010 Presentation
available for viewng and download here: http://www.slideshare.net/tdmslides/presentations
Ref: your comments re: Open Source Software... I am left a bit
confused. There are more reasons to adopt Open Source Software other
than Cost Savings, including:
* Increased security/stability
* Avoid vendor lock-in/being tied to a company
* Easily customised to suit YOUR needs
* Enterprise class software available
* Faster development/ reduced bugs
* YOU can be involved in the development process
Read more here:
1. http://www.oss-watch.ac.uk/resources/strategists.xml
2. http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/cio/ict.aspx
3. http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/alexsingleton/8218787/George_Osborne_has_the_solution_to_faulty_Government_IT_procurement/
Ref: avoiding workload by tutors.... I am also confused. I think we
both agree that a good portfolio-based learning tutor will seek to
"mediate" and "scaffold" the growth of the learners they are engaged
with?
Derrin.