Telling Our Stories, CTDLC 2007

ePortfolios in Action:An Evolving Learning Landscape

Gail Matthews-DeNatale, Ph.D.Associate DirectorAcademic Technology, Simmons College

Presentation Overview

1. Preliminary Thoughts

2. Stories and Learning

3. ePortfolios in Action

4. Final Thoughts

Part I

Preliminary Thoughts

Preliminary Thought #1

Developing an ePortfolio program is not for the faint of heart

Preliminary Thought #2

Our culture yearns for truth tellers … yet people who tell the truth seem to be in short supply

Jon Stewart

Glenn Kelman, Redfin

Mary Catherine Bateson

“It can be very difficult to recognize the ways in which one situation or event in your life is linked to others …Because our society has preferred

continuous versions of stories, discontinuities seem to indicate that something is wrong with you. One strategy … is to make a story that interprets change as continuity.”

Preliminary Thought #3

ePortfolios help students get in touch with their inner truth-teller

Part II

Stories and Learning

What is “Story”?

Story is…

•Product•Process•Cycle

“Stories are the large and small instruments of meaning, of explanation, that we store in our memories.”Joe Lambert / Roger Schank

Story as Product

“Those who do not have power over the story that dominates their lives, the power to retell it, rethink it, deconstruct it, joke about it, and change it as times change, truly are powerless, because they cannot think new thoughts.”

Salman Rushdie

Story as Process

Story as Cycle

Reflection& Analysis

Share withOthers

Experience

Deeper PersonalUnderstanding

FutureStories

Challenging Questions for Educators

How can we help students increase the amount of time they devote to reflection and critical thinking?

How can we help students articulate what they’re learning? … and what they need to learn?

How can we help students remember and care about learning?

Part III

ePortfolios in Action

Undergraduate Honors ePortfolio

Undergraduate Honors: The Truth

eP Contents Perceived Value

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Undergraduate Honors: The Truth

GSLIS ePortfolios

GSLIS ePortfolios: The Truth

School of Social Work ePortfolios

School of Social Work ePortfolios

SSW ePortfolios: The Truth

Part IV

Final Thoughts

Final Thoughts

ePortfolios support students as they learn to

1. Cherish the product

2. Enjoy (but don’t underestimate) the process

3. Embrace the truth-telling cycle

We owe it to them to do the same!