Using e-Portfolios to enhance student learning

1. Using e-Portfolios to enhance student learning Nicola Zulu M.A.Ed International School of Lusaka

2. AGENDA • Use of Web 2.0 applications for education • View popular Web 2.0 tools • What is for Free (mostly - at this point in time) • How to use the tools for creating e-Portfolios • e-Portfolios to enhance learning • e-Portfolios for assessment • Examples of e-Portfolios • Hand’s on with wikispaces/pbworks N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

3. Wikis to explore and use NZulu ePortfolio Teachers pbsworks area Teachers wikispaces area/ N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

4. What is “Web 2.0!” • Read-write Web environment • Socialization through the Internet • Sharing, collaborating and exchanging ideas in ways that were not dreamed of a few years ago • Web 2.0 is a phrase used to describe the change in the way we interact when using the Internet • Cloud computing – a service rather than a product N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

5. Applications • Services • Network • Use of browser • Reduced costs • Connectivity • Reliable N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

6. Web 2.0 in Education • Increases user creativity and community while concurrently empowering user ownership of content • User-generated content leading to "collective intelligence" that benefits many • Collaborative in nature and features user-generated content • There are advantages that benefit educators • Web 2.0 addresses some basic frustrations that plague students and teachers • Frustrations with contrasting operating systems ( PC/Mac) and expensive software are just a couple of the issues • In contrast, Web based applications run smoothly on minimum system requirements • The backbone of the Internet is the common thread that allows for easy access to Web-based solutions that are accessible with a variety of browsers such as Internet Explorer, Safari, Chrome and Firefox. N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

7. collaboration/participation/collective intelligence safety in numbers personal connections--from words, pictures, video, and audio transparent selves…transparent Web harnessing collective intelligence second generation of services “democratizes” media authentic, peer-to-peer channel of communication open, flexible collaboration collective power community participative Web Web as a platform Web changing from “medium” to “platform” collective judgments user actions provide value architecture of participation human-computer interaction interactive, community-based Internet applications the wisdom of crowds bookmarking >>> social bookmarking authentic, peer-to-peer channel of communication user-generated content data and applications opened to creative use by the public creative amateur is cherished N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

8. Trying to define and categorisewhat “Web 2.0” really means is like trying to change the tyreon your car while it’s going down the motorway….. IMPOSSIBLE N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

9. This screen capture was using JING – free download that allows you to share images, videos, documents etc. N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

10. Sharing Photos Educational Uses Scrapbooking Class reunions Portfolio School events Fundraising Embed in blogs, PowerPoints, class Web sites… Other uses? Library of Congress’ Flickr site Video – Online Photo Sharing in Plain English N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

11. Sharing Videos • Top 10 Video Sharing Sites from PC World • http://blip.tv/ • http://www.stage6.com/ • http://www.brightcove.com/ • http://www.revver.com/ • http://www.veoh.com/ • http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?mkt=en-us&tab=soapbox • http://www.youtube.com/ • http://www.vimeo.com/ • http://www.jumpcut.com/ • http://vids.myspace.com/ List of video sharing sites - http://www.hybridsem.com/blog/2007/07/01/list-of-video-sharing-sites-and-impact-of-video-marketing/ N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

12. Sharing PowerPoints Synch uploaded video with your PowerPoint “free Web-based alternative to PowerPoint. Create & edit Flash presentations online. Send presentations via e-mail or publish on your Web site or blog” And even more sites! N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

13. Teacher Support electronicportfolios.org Dr. Helen Barrett – the e-portfolio guru Cooltoolsforschools.wikispaces.com http://coolcatteacher.blogspot.com/ Great website for teaching ideas using Web 2.0 Wiki – online software that lets users modify any content, plus everything (formatting included) about the wiki Social bookmarking – store, organize, search, and manage bookmarks of Web sites using metadata & tagging N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

14. Social Networks N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

15. All these cool tools that can be used in creating e-Portfolios… N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

16. Understanding e-portfolios • Area for student to place work • Teacher has access to subject areas • Student interacts with the teacher for special projects • School encourages parents to participate in students learning • Teacher and student together help setup the portfolio • Teacher establishes access for parents of child’s work • R eflection • E ngagement • A ssessment • L earning N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

17. Student transition to Secondary school Teacher input: Parent input: Formative feedback given, constructive ideas etc Student shares e-portfolio with several groups Student steadily adds to own e-Portfolio in Primary school Visiting teacher provide ideas for special research Parents can now see selected work at home Teacher supports student to select artifacts Parents take regular interest in child’s e-portfolio N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

18. Why e-portfolios matter • an electronic portfolio provides an environment where students can collect their work in a digital archive • select specific pieces of work to highlight achievements • reflect on the learning demonstrated in the portfolio • set goals for future learning to improve; and celebrate achievement through sharing this work • collaborative support and reflection N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

19. Planning Purpose: • for authentic assessment (feedback on student work to facilitate improvement), as well as showcasing best work and growth over time. Tool capabilities: • all interaction between teachers and students around learning activities and products. Students: • to create, store artifacts and reflections, and organise their work, with hyperlinks to artifacts Teachers: • to review the work and provide feedback in narrative form. N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

20. Student transition to Further Education Teachers can check work from previous years (primary) Student presents results and discusses with parents and form -tutors at end of a course Student builds upon material and expands the e-Portfolio in Secondary school Careers counselor suggest resources for future options Student has clear planning and reflection, also changes image/style Friends discuss each other’s work and share ideas Student presents report to class for peer evaluation Teachers check and make comments on selected items N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

21. E-portfolios that support Assessment for Learning • Purpose of portfolio agreed upon with learner • Artifacts selected by learner to tell story of their learning • Portfolio maintained on an ongoing basis throughout the class or semester • Portfolio and artifacts reviewed with learner and used to provide feedback to improve learning • Portfolio organization determined by the learner along with teacher/advisor • Formative – what are the learning needs in the future? • Summative – what has been learned to date? N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

22. Reflection • Heart and soul of the ePortfolio • Provides rationale for why certain artifacts have been included • Presents the overall goals of the e-portfolio • Gives opportunity for feedback and interaction with the group/teacher/parent N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

23. Limitations of e-portfolio’s • Teachers reluctance to experiment with the unknown • Restricted to current course of study • No collaboration or growth taking place • Poor Internet connection • Time to identify and organize Artifacts • Lack of support from school • Time N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

24. Internet Access – How important? Poor Internet Access? • Microsoft Office • Adobe Acrobat • Web Page Editors These tools do not require Internet access to create electronic portfolios. Can be published on CD/RW and if published on the web require server space. Good Internet Access? • Any commercial fee-based system • Think.com (a free service) • Web 2.0 Tools; blogs and WikiSpaces • Open Source Portfolios These tools require a good browser and Internet access. N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

25. Summary • Lots of Web 2.0 applications for education • Creates rich, engaging & exciting learning environment • Users become information producers, not simply consumers • Promotes student-centered learning through e-portfolios • Educators become more efficient and effective in providing a digital-wise environment • Students are motivated to create N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11

26. References • Bibliography • ACCAU. http://www.aacu.org/meetings/annualmeeting/AM11/eportfolioforum.cfm 2011 • Barrett, Helen. E-portfolios. September 2011. <http://electronicportfolios.org/> • Brear, David. Web 2.0 Tools and Their Educational Applications. February 2008 • Unknown. Using Electronic portfolios for Formative/Classroom based Assessment. New York City. • Beekman. Computer Confluence. New York: Pearson, 2008. • Fox, J, Learning to learn the 21st Century way, 2011 • Jones, Stuart. "E-Portfolios and how they can support personalization." PDF file. unknown. • Thompson, John. Web 2.0 Applications for Educators. 2010 N. Zulu ISAZ Oct ‘11