EPAC Community of Practice

Conference: ePortfolios Australia Conference 2010 (EAC2010)

2010-03-08T15:12:00.000-08:00

ePortfolios Australia Conference 2010 (EAC2010) - widening participation by engaging the learner

Following on from the successes of the VET E-portfolios Showcase in 2009 and the ALTC Australian ePortfolio Symposia in 2008/2009, ePortfolios Australia Conference 2010 (EAC2010) will bring together national and international educators and thought leaders to showcase current e-portfolio practice and demonstrate the ways e-portfolios are serving as catalysts to support and engage adult learning from the:

* vocational education and training (VET) sector
* higher education (HE) sector, and
* adult and community education (ACE) sector

EAC2010 will be held on the 3-4 November 2010 at the Angliss Conference Centre in Melbourne, with a Vendors ePortfolios Showcase to be held on the evening of Wednesday 3 November.

Vendors and sponsors interested in participating in this event can register their interest by contacting Allison.Miller@flexiblelearning.net.au or phone: 08 8348 4075.

For more information:
http://www.flexiblelearning.net.au/content/e-portfolios-australia
http://www.flexiblelearning.net.au/files/eport_aust_dl_alt_A5_110210.pdf

Conference: AAEEBL Call for Proposals

2010-03-08T15:10:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone: Please join us in Boston at the Seaport Hotel from July 19-22. The Call for Proposals is open. The site to submit a proposal to is https://eventbrainz.com/event/aaeebl2010 We expect 600 attendees. Campus Technology, right next door in the Seaport World Trade Center adds another 800 attendees. We share an exhibit hall, so in addition to a full conference on ePortfolios, you can visit hundreds of booths in the shared exhibit hall. ePortfolio-related booths will be tagged in an easily recognizable way.

The proposals submitted to us will be reviewed by our program committee; only some proposals will be accepted. This is a refereed academic conference.

Featured speakers: Randy Bass, Helen Barrett, Helen Chen, Darren Cambridge, Bret Eynon, Trent Batson, Gary Brown, Phil Long, Kathleen Yancey, Terrel Rhodes, Serge Ravet, Peggy Maki, Steve Ehrmann, Allison Miller, Rob Ward, Marij Veugelers. France, the U.K., Australia and the Netherlands are represented.

Proposals will begin to be reviewed April 1; final deadline is May 1. Submit early to give yourself the best chance to be on the program.

Article: As We May Learn: Revisiting Bush

2010-03-08T15:08:00.000-08:00

As We May Learn: Revisiting Bush
By Trent Batson
02/03/10
Campus Technology

http://campustechnology.com/articles/2010/02/03/as-we-may-learn-revisiting-bush.aspx?sc_lang=en

Article: The Higher Education Hedgehog

2010-03-08T15:07:00.000-08:00

The Higher Education Hedgehog
By Trent Batson
02/16/10
Campus Technology

http://campustechnology.com/articles/2010/02/17/the-higher-education-hedgehog.aspx?sc_lang=en

ePortfolio articles in Transformative Dialogues (2009)

2010-01-15T13:41:00.000-08:00

Transformative Dialogues: Teaching and Learning Journal
http://kwantlen.ca/TD.html
Volume 3, Issue 2, November 2009
New Media and Ways that it Supports Scholarship

Curriculum Leadership Portfolios: Enhancing Scholarly Approaches to Undergraduate Program Reform - Harry Hubball & Marion L. Pearson, University of British Columbia
http://kwantlen.ca/TD/TD.3.2/TD.3.2_Hubball&Pearson_Curriculum_Leadership_Portfolios.pdf

Encouraging Integrative Learning through Current Events and Learning Portfolios - Marice E. Rose, Ph.D., Fairfield University
http://kwantlen.ca/TD/TD.3.2/TD.3.2_Rose_Encouraging_Integrative_Learning.pdf

Using Electronic Faculty Course Portfolios to Showcase Classroom Practices and Student Learning - Paul Savory and Amy Goodburn, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
http://kwantlen.ca/TD/TD.3.2/TD.3.2_Savory&Goodburn_Faculty_Portfolios.pdf

January 2010 EPAC/AAEEBL Virginia Tech webcast

2010-01-13T17:15:00.000-08:00

If you'd like to join us and AAEEBL for tomorrow's webcast with Virginia Tech University on Telling the learning story: Students' authentic experiences used to assess learning, at 10-11 a.m. PT/12 p.m.-1 p.m. CT/1-2 p.m. ET, connection information is posted here: http://epac.pbworks.com/2010_01-Virginia-Tech-webcast

We still encourage you to register for the event since this will allow us to contact you directly once the archived recording and chat transcript are available. We also use the registration information to solicit feedback and suggestions for future webcasts and chat topics as well as to support networking among our members.

Association for Authentic, Experiential, and Evidence-Based Learning (AAEEBL)/EPAC Webcast with Virginia Tech University
Telling the learning story: Students' authentic experiences used to assess learning
Thursday, January 14, 2010
10-11 a.m. PT/12 p.m.-1 p.m. CT/1-2 p.m. ET.

Registration and event follow-up:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dGQ4WjI1MFpPZklkX0hHcnltdWNNbUE6MA

NOTE: We ask that you to fill out the above form even if you attended the event but did not pre-register since this allows us to follow up with you directly once the recording of the event and chat transcript are available. It would also be helpful for us to inform of you of future events of interest.

Description: For the past several years, Virginia Tech has been engaged in a campus-wide effort to explore and adopt ePortfolio technology in appropriate places in its curriculum. From a handful of interested faculty in 2007, the ePortfolio Initiatives Office has grown to be working with more than 60 different projects across seven colleges. A large part of our success, we think, is not to focus too much on the technology for ePortfolio deployment, but to focus instead on using the technology to encourage student learning and assessment of that learning. Though we have a variety of ePortfolio projects, we find that our most successful and vibrant projects are those that engage with authentic activities that use the students' creative voices to analyze experiences from their perspectives. In this way, assessment of that learning, by the student, the instructor, and the institution, is enhanced by including qualitative, individual pictures of each student's different experiences with the curriculum. In this webcast, several examples of these projects will be reviewed, including our next big focus: our first-year experiences. As part of its regional reaccreditation efforts, Virginia Tech is planning to focus on first-year experiences in order to enhance overall institutional quality and effectiveness by improving student learning. In order to facilitate synthetic, reflective learning across a variety of experiences, ePortfolios will be one among other tools used. In this session, we will discuss how and why we chose to use ePortfolios, and how they will assist us in assessing the elements of the AAC&U VALUE Rubrics.

Our presenters will be Marc Zaldivar, Director of the ePortfolio Initiatives, an office of the Learning Technologies Department at Virginia Tech, and his Assistant Director, Teggin Summers, both of who will discuss some of the student-centered activities used in our ePortfolio projects. Also from Learning Technologies is C. Edward Watson, Director of Professional Development and Strategic Initiatives, who will provide information about the history and future potentials of the ePortfolio Initiatives. Finally, from the Office of Academic Assessment, Kate McConnell will talk about our adoption of the AAC&U VALUE Metarubrics and our plans for assessment of the First-Year Experiences.

Seeking ePortfolio examples for AAC&U Gallery of Writing

2010-01-12T00:27:00.000-08:00

2009.12.21

In partnership with the National Council of Teachers of English, the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) has created a Gallery of Writing within the much larger National Gallery of Writing project.

The AAC&U Gallery is looking for submissions of work that characterizes liberal education in the 21st century. The AAC&U page on the Gallery: http://www.aacu.org/gallery/index.cfm

The AAC&U Gallery itself: http://www.galleryofwriting.org/galleries/association_of_american_colleges_and_universities_gallery

We would be interested in e-portfolio examples or other innovative practices, reflections, examples. Address questions, please, to Susan Albertine: Albertine AT aacu.org

Thanks!

--Susan Albertine

Co-curator, AAC&U Gallery
Senior Director, LEAP States Initiative
AAC&U

January 2010 EPAC webcasts

2010-01-05T11:08:00.000-08:00

After a rather quiet fall, EPAC will be kicking off 2010 with two co-sponsored webcasts scheduled for January and some opportunities to meet in person!

Webcast: Work-Based Folios in the UK and USA
Date and Time: Wednesday, January 13th at 8-9:30 a.m. PT/11-12:30 p.m. ET/4-5:30 p.m. GMT

This unique transatlantic webinar will feature presenters from both the UK and USA who will deliver 4 short presentations on the growing use of web based eportfolios for use in "work based learning.” JISC Regional Support Center East and West Midlands have teamed up with EPAC to exchange experiences of how eportfolios are being used in this growing area of higher education. Attendees will be given the opportunity to interact with presenters and networking with colleagues via the use of voting and chat features in this live session.

Dr. Jacqueline Goodwin, coordinator of the eFolio Pennyslvania effort -- http://www.efoliopa.com/ will be joining Jill Lumsden, Career Development Coordinator of the Florida State University Career Portfolio as our speakers on the U.S. side. Speakers from the UK are Simon Grant of JISC CETIS who will be discussing his new book, Electronic Portfolios: Personal Information, Personal Development and Personal Value (more about Simon can be found here: http://www.simongrant.org/home.html) and Michael Gilroy, E-Learning Manager Lincoln Academy Ltd t/a ISIS Training/ (http://www.isis-training.co.uk). Mick has had a pivotal role in developing and introducing organisation-wide use of technology including the embedded use of e-portfolio, for which the company won Becta Technology Exemplar status.

The webcast is free to attend and we encourage anyone who is interested to register at
http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dG9pVlRwcVpHV19XQjNYZHcweVJna0E6MA.

Webcast: Virginia Tech University
Date and Time: Thursday, January 14th at 10-11 a.m. PT/1-2 p.m. ET

Jointly sponsored with the Association for Authentic, Experiential, and Evidence-Based Learning (AAEEBL), this interactive webcast will feature the university-wide ePortfolio initiatives at Virgina Tech aimed at improving education, learning assessment, and student engagement by using collaborative online tools. Our presenters will include members of the Learning Technologies team who are leading this work.

EPAC webcasts are free to attend and are open to anyone interested in ePortfolios. Space may be limited for some of the events and pre-registration may be required. More information on where and how to join the webcasts will be posted shortly on our blog and wiki at http://epaccop.blogspot.com/ and http://epac.pbworks.com/.

Article: Student role in assessment?

2009-11-12T14:47:00.000-08:00

Where is the Student Voice in Assessment?
By Trent Batson
11/4/09
Campus Technology
http://campustechnology.com/articles/2009/11/04/where-is-the-student-voice-in-assessment.aspx

Many ePortfolio systems focus on institutional assessment data, putting student assessment--especially students' own reflections on their work--in second place. Batson advocates a voice for students in the assessment process.

Article: ePortfolios and Lifelong Learning

2009-11-12T14:37:00.000-08:00

Here, There, & Everywhere
By Dian Schaffhauser
11/01/09
Campus Technology
http://campustechnology.com/Articles/2009/11/01/ePortfolios.aspx

Electronic portfolios can follow a student beyond graduation into careers and other life pursuits-- but not if the university can't guarantee access, or if the data won't transfer from one system to another. A look at how ePortfolios can be true repositories of lifelong learning.

Article: Course Requirement: Friend Your Professor on Facebook

2009-11-12T14:32:00.000-08:00

From The Chronicle of Higher Education
November 12, 2009
http://chronicle.com/blogPost/Course-Requirement-Friend/8827/?sid=wc&utm_source=wc&utm_medium=en

Some professors don't let students see their Facebook pages. Peter Juvinall insists students "friend" him.

The Illinois State University instructor decided the best way to connect with a bunch of freshman business students in a short 8 a.m. class was to conduct much of the course where they are anyway—on Facebook.

So, as he explained during last week’s Educause conference and in a subsequent interview, he uses Facebook as a course-management system by instructing students to “friend” his personal page on the first day of class.

...

Teaching on Facebook works with one of Mr. Juvinall's main messages: that students should think of their online presence as a digital resume. Employers have been known to ask alumni to check out the Facebook pages of job candidates, he points out, since some Facebook users allow anyone within their university's network to view their profiles.

Report: What Learning Will Be Like in 2015 from Herman Miller (2009)

2009-11-12T14:01:00.000-08:00

From Herman Miller's Education Solutions E-newsletter
November 2009

New Interpretation of What Learning Will Be Like in 2015

Recently, Herman Miller convened a panel of experts to re-examine 12 predictions made in 2005 about learning in the year 2015. The latest panel agreed that many of the trends identified in 2005 had already become mainstream realities. What was required was a more nuanced and contemporary interpretation to recognize how the current financial environment had affected the original discussions. That interpretation is outlined in a new research summary entitled "The Outlook for Learning: Views on the Future."

http://www.hermanmiller.com/MarketFacingTech/hmc/research/research_summaries/assets/wp_Outlook_for_Learning.pdf

Article: Implementing Electronic Portfolios: Benefits, Challenges, and Suggestions (2008)

2009-10-28T15:42:00.001-07:00

EDUCAUSE Quarterly, vol. 31, no. 1 (January–March 2008), pp. 34–41

This research describes the lessons learned during initial implementation of e-folios at four teacher education programs

http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE+Quarterly/EDUCAUSEQuarterlyMagazineVolum/ImplementingElectronicPortfoli/162514

Occasionally, we'll highlight ePortfolio-related articles that might be of interest to EPAC members. Some of these articles will be current but we may also revisit publications from the past that address issues that are still relevant today.

If you have an article to contribute, please let us know!

ELI Webinar: Using Electronic Course Portfolios to Support the Scholarship of Teaching (2009.11.09)

2009-10-28T15:33:00.000-07:00

http://net.educause.edu/content.asp?SECTION_ID=473
If your institution is a member of the Educause Learning Initiative (ELI), you might be interested in signing up for this web seminar:

Bridgett Piernik-Yoder

Assistant Professor
University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio

Topic: Using Electronic Course Portfolios to Support the Scholarship of Teaching
Date: November 9, 2009
Time: 1:00 p.m. EDT (12:00 p.m. CDT, 11:00 a.m. MDT, 10:00 a.m. PDT)
International participants: You may wish to visit this external time-conversion website to calculate the event's start time in your time zone.
Duration: 1 hour

Malcolm Brown, director of the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative, moderates this web seminar with Bridgett Piernik-Yoder. As discourse regarding the evaluation of teaching has evolved, an established definition of the standards of scholarship of teaching has emerged. In adhering to these standards, it becomes imperative to document teaching practices and investigate methods that support the examination and sharing of teaching practices. Whereas the concept of scholarship of teaching has been defined, little information is available regarding specific tools and processes to support scholarship of teaching.

The purpose of this presentation is to illustrate how course portfolios are one effective tool in documenting teaching practices to support reflective technique and invite peer review. The use of an electronic course portfolio as a flexible tool to support scholarship of teaching will be highlighted. Additionally, the challenges and benefits of developing electronic course portfolios will be presented, as well as suggestions to facilitate the development process.

This free seminar is an exclusive benefit for ELI member organizations—you and any others at your institution are invited to attend. Virtual seating is limited, however, and registration is required. REGISTER NOW.

AAEEBL Newsletter - 2009.10.28

2009-10-28T14:59:00.000-07:00

For information on how to sign up to receive these newsletters, please join the The Association for Authentic, Experiential and Evidence-Based Learning (AAEEBL) Google Group here: http://groups.google.com/group/w2ep?hl=en. You do not need to be a member of AAEEBL to join this list.

We've sent updates to the entire AAEEBL community for the past 9 months as we grew from 30 individuals to 230 individuals in 7 countries and 80 member institutions. Now, in recognition of our status as an established professional association, "updates" have become "newsletters," although not yet formatted as such.

** The AAEEBL website, www.aaeebl.org, is a social site which supports discussions. The site is updated almost daily so reflects the latest status and activities of AAEEBL. It would help AAEEBL greatly if you could put a link from your own sites to http://www.aaeebl.org.

** Four AAEEBL conferences in 2010 are already set: 1) March 22-24, 2010, Clemson University, first conference for the AAEEBL Southeast Chapter, 2) May 18, 2010, Stonehill College, MA, first conference for the AAEEBL New England Chapter, 3) May, 2010 [date not finalized], Case Western Reserve University, first conference for the AAEEBL Midwest Chapter, 4) July 19-22, 2010, Boston, Seaport World Trade Center, first annual AAEEBL conference. See www.aaeebl.org for more information.

** Other conferences under discussion: 1) ANZ AAEEBL Chapter, 2) Northwest AAEEBL chapter, 3) Rocky Mountain AAEEBL chapter.

** AAEEBL has ten corporate affiliates who have provided financial support to AAEEBL: Desire2Learn, Task Stream, FolioTek, Adobe, Epsilen, Digication, CommonNeed, eCollege (Pearson), Blackboard, The Longsight Group. Logos are being installed on our home page.

** A listserv has been set up by EPAC which provides a discussion forum for the EPAC Community of Practice which each of you can join as well by going to: https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/epaccoplist. The list is: epaccoplist@lists.stanford.edu. EPAC retains its regular presence at http://epac.pbworks.com/ and at its new blog: http://epaccop.blogspot.com/.

** A call for papers for AAEEBL 2010 in Boston will be sent out in December via this list and other lists you may be a member of. AAEEBL 2010 is co-located with Campus Technology and co-hosted by AAC&U and by NERCOMP.

** The first AAEEBL survey and research project is being formed with a focus on student reflections. You will be seeing more information about this survey and project in the next month.

-----------------
I'd like to include brief mentions of news from you in the next AAEEBL newsletter, so send me vignettes or brief write-ups to feature.

Best to you all
Trent Batson

Report: Focus on Formative Feedback (March 2007)

2009-10-22T11:57:00.000-07:00

An interesting report from ETS and a comprehensive literature review on feedback, particularly formative feedback on student learning:

Focus on Formative Feedback
By Valerie J. Shute
Available at www.ets.org/Media/Research/pdf/RR-07-11.pdf

From the POD listserv

Article: The Limitations of Portfolios (10/16/09)

2009-10-16T09:10:00.000-07:00

October 16, 2009
Inside Higher Ed
http://www.insidehighered.com/views/2009/10/16/shavelson

Electronic collections help show the range of students' work, but are not standardized or scalable enough to be used for broad assessment purposes, write Richard Shavelson, Stephen Klein and Roger Benjamin.

A provoking perspective...thoughts, comments, reactions? The comments to the article are also worth reading as are AAC&U President's Carol Schneider's response here: http://blog.aacu.org/index.php/2009/10/19/the-proof-is-in-the-portfolio/ and Dr. Helen Barrett's blog posting here: http://electronicportfolios.org/blog/2009/10/limitations-of-portfolios.html

A German Review of ePortfolio Platforms (2009)

2009-10-13T18:14:00.000-07:00

Review of ePortfolio Platforms (2009/5/18)

From the Regional Support Centres "Midlands Eportfolio Group" listserv (10/09)

NOTE: This document is in German -- skip to the matrix (pg 25)

http://www.bildungstechnologie.net/blog/evaluation-von-e-portfolio-software-abschlussbericht

via Google Translate: http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.bildungstechnologie.net%2Fblog%2Fevaluation-von-e-portfolio-software-abschlussbericht&sl=auto&tl=en&history_state0=auto

Call for Proposals: Ed-Media 2010, June 28-July 2, 2010

2009-10-11T22:56:00.001-07:00

ED-MEDIA 2010: World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia & Telecommunications
June 28-July 2, 2010 * Toronto, Canada
The Westin Harbour Castle on Lake Ontario

Submissions Due: Dec. 18, 2009
http://aace.org/conf/edmedia/call.htm

TOPICS:
http://aace.org/conf/edmedia/topics.htm

The scope of the conference includes, but is not limited to, the following major topics as they relate to the educational and developmental aspects of multimedia/hypermedia and telecommunications:

1. Infrastructure: (in the large)
- Architectures for Educational Technology Systems
- Design of Distance Learning Systems
- Distributed Learning Environments
- Methodologies for system design
- Multimedia/Hypermedia Systems
- WWW-based course-support systems

2. Tools & Content-oriented Applications:
- Agents
- Authoring tools
- Evaluation of impact
- Interactive Learning Environments
- Groupware tools
- Multimedia/Hypermedia Applications
- Research perspectives
- Virtual Reality
- WWW-based course sites
- WWW-based learning resources
- WWW-based tools

3. New Roles of the Instructor & Learner:
- Constructivist perspectives
- Cooperative/collaborative learning
- Implementation experiences
- Improving Classroom Teaching
- Instructor networking
- Instructor training and support
- Pedagogical Issues
- Teaching/Learning Strategies

4. Human-computer Interaction (HCI/CHI):
- Computer-Mediated Communication
- Design principles
- Usability/user studies
- User interface design

5. Cases & Projects:
- Country-Specific Developments
- Exemplary projects
- Institution-specific cases
- Virtual universities

6. Special Strand: ** Universal Web Accessibility **

DEADLINES:
http://aace.org/conf/edmedia/deadlines.htm

Submissions Due: December 18, 2009
Authors Notified: February 9, 2010
Proceedings File Due: May 3, 2010
Early Registration: May 3, 2010
Hotel Reservations: May 27, 2010
Conference: June 28-July 2, 2010

Conference: ABET Symposium, April 15-17, 2010

2009-10-08T12:30:00.000-07:00

Proposals are now being accepted for the April 15-17, 2010 ABET Symposium (formerly “Best Assessment Processes”). NEW format includes resource room to review examples of ABET self-studies and multiple program tracks. Proposals are now being accepted in the following tracks:

Program Assessment Processes
Writing your Self-Study
Preparing for the Evaluation Visit

Proposals are encouraged for three hour workshops in any of the track areas to be offered on Thursday afternoon April 15. Submit your proposal at http://www.abet.org/symposium.shtml. All proposals will be peer reviewed.

Location is in Las Vegas at the non-casino, Alexis Park Las Vegas Resort Hotel with rates at $69 per night for suites.

Conference: New England Educational Assessment Network, 11/6/09

2009-10-08T01:58:00.000-07:00

Integrating Classroom, Program and Institutional Assessment
Friday, November 6, 2009, at the College of the Holy Cross
Worcester, Massachusetts
8:30 AM to 3:00 PM

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Linda Suskie

The Forum sessions represent an array of institutions from across New England and will focus on key issues in higher education assessment, including topics on:

--General Education and General Outcomes Assessment
--Discipline and Program-Based Assessment
--E-portfolios and other tools
--“Best Practices” in Assessment Implementation

Registration forms are attached and available on the NEEAN website: www.neean.org

Conference: 2009 Assessment Institute in Indianapolis, October 25-27, 2009

2009-10-06T07:26:00.000-07:00

2009 Assessment Institute
October 25-27, 2009
The Westin Indianapolis
http://www.planning.iupui.edu/institute

In-depth Learning Opportunities with Scholars/Practitioners for all Faculty and Academic and Student Affairs Administrators

Pre-Institute Workshops: Extended learning opportunities with experienced practitioners

Keynote Panel and Concurrent Workshops with leaders of successful assessment initiatives including:

Jamie P. Merisotis, Lumina Foundation for Education
Thomas A. Angelo, La Trobe University, Australia
Trudy W. Banta, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis
Peter T. Ewell, National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS)
George D. Kuh, Center for Postsecondary Research, Indiana University
Jeffrey A. Seybert, Johnson County (KS) Community College

SPECIAL TRACKS
Track Plenary Sessions & Workshops Emphasizing Assessment in:

Civic Engagement, keynote by Victor M.H. Borden, Indiana University
ePortfolios, keynote by Helen C. Barrett, University of Oregon
Faculty Development, keynote by Myles G. Boylan, National Science Foundation
First-Year Experience, keynote by Jane V. Wellman, Delta Project on Postsecondary Education Costs, Productivity, and Accountability
Student Development and Diversity, keynote by Gwendolyn Dungy, NASPA - Student Affairs Administration in Higher Education

CONTINUING OUR TRADITIONS - We will present sessions with national assessment leaders, the Best Practices Fair, and additional learning opportunities emphasizing:

Accreditation
All Major Fields
Assessment Methods
Community Colleges
General Education

Article: Employers, Students May Both Be To Blame For Soft Skills Disconnect.

2009-09-25T00:05:00.000-07:00

Familiar themes: Employability. Oral and written communication skills. Making connections. It's not enough to have these skills but being able to articulate what you know to other people.

Employers, Students May Both Be To Blame For Soft Skills Disconnect.
http://www.cityam.com/city-focus/pbj1ca62vs.html

The UK's CITY A.M. (9/24, Barber) reports, that both in the UK and internationally businesses are bemoaning the lack of soft skills in new hires. Yet some schools do offer training in this area, and offer opportunities such as "small consultancy projects" that give students real-world experience. "So if students know that soft skills are valuable, why do employers complain that they don't have them? The fault, perhaps, is on both sides." Students, on one hand, "can be bad at recognizing and articulating the skills they have," and for that reason "PricewaterhouseCoopers launched an employability skills clinic last year, to help students identify skills picked up in part-time work or extra-curricular projects – and learn how to put them in words that employers understand." A PwC official said that "employers also have to clarify what they require from graduates," noting "a disconnect where employers have said grads don't have the skills we need, and students say 'we don't know what you're looking for.'"

From ASEE First Bell

Resource: ePortfolio Day of Planning (2009.08.13)

2009-09-16T15:48:00.000-07:00

ePortfolio Day of Planning
August 13, 2009
San Jose, California
http://teachingcommons.cdl.edu/eportfolio/resources/dop/index.html

The ePortfolio Day of Planning was carefully balanced to include an overview, hands-on workshops, a panel discussion, “5-minutes-of-acclaim” sessions, and the closing. Workshops provided guided instruction, time-on-task, and time for discussions.

This post-conference website will support attendees upon return to their institution, and act as a source of information and support for those who simply could not attend the conference. Links to as much of the material as possible are available, including ppt, supplemental handouts, case studies, and worksheets. Videos are also available.

Educause 2009: E-Portfolio Lightning Round

2009-09-14T15:11:00.000-07:00

Educause has posted their conference program and here's one session that might be of interest.
http://www.educause.edu/E2009/EDUCAUSE2009/EPortfolioLightningRound/176034

E-Portfolio Lightning Round
Session Type: Teaching and Learning
Wednesday, Nov 4th, 2009

10:30 AM - 11:20 AM

This lightning round will spark ideas around e-portfolios, offering five different views spanning strategy and implementation, curricular redesign and assessment, and off-the-shelf systems and reenvisioned tools. For many, e-portfolios have been clouds on the horizon. Come learn rapidly about e-portfolios from those who have been at the edge of the brewing storm.

Building Blog-Based E-Portfolios: Multiple Units and Dynamic Platforms
Geoffrey C. Middlebrook, University of Southern California
At USC, an inter-unit collaborative effort among faculty, administrators, and technologists develops blog-based e-portfolios that showcase students' learning processes and products.

Design, Implementation, and Maintenance of the Clinical Practice E-Portfolio
Ivy Tan, University of Saskatchewan
We will highlight the system features and challenges of an e-portfolio system (customized Mahara) that we implemented to replace a paper-based portfolio.

Eastern CT SU's Liberal Education E-Portfolios During Trying Times
David L. Stoloff, Eastern Connecticut State University
How do first-year colloquia and e-portfolios facilitate student development in a time of trying budgets, work-weary faculty members, and Web 2.0 tools like Facebook?

Implementing Electronic Portfolios by Beginning with Student Assessment
Patrick Lowenthal, University of Colorado Denver
The value of e-portfolios depends on how, when, and why students use them. We will describe how we redesigned our assessment/evaluation plan to focus on student learning.

Searching for an E-Portfolio Solution Collaboratively
Lorna Wong, University of Wisconsin System Administration
We used the D2L e-portfolio system in a pilot project to find a cost-effective, pedagogically sound, easy-to-use solution that fits the diverse needs of our system's institutions.

Cal for Proposals: SITE 2010, March 29-April 2, 2010

2009-09-02T01:01:00.000-07:00

SITE 2010: Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education International Conference
March 29 - April 2, 2010 * San Diego, CA
http://site.aace.org/conf/

CALL FOR PARTICIPATION
** Submissions Due: Oct. 21, 2009 **

SITE 2010 is the 21st annual conference of the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education. This society represents individual teacher educators and affiliated organizations of teacher educators in all disciplines, who are interested in the creation and dissemination of
knowledge about the use of information technology in teacher education and faculty/staff development.

You are invited to participate in this international forum which offers numerous opportunities to explore the research, development, and applications in this important field. All proposals are peer reviewed.

SITE is the premiere international conference in this field and annually attracts more than 1,200 leaders in the field from over 50 countries.

Call for Proposals: E-Learn 2009, October 26-30, 2009

2009-09-02T00:05:00.000-07:00

E-Learn 2009: World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, & Higher Education
October 26-30, 2009
Vancouver, BC Canada

Organized by: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE)(http://www.aace.org)

Final Call for Participation Deadline: Sept. 8
http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/call.htm

Advance Program / Registration: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/advprog.htm
Keynote/Invited Speakers: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/speakers/
Workshops: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/tutorials/

Call for Presentations: TechEd 2010 Conference, April 11-13, 2010, Pasadena, CA

2009-09-02T00:00:00.000-07:00

Technology in Education for the Real World
http://www.techedevents.org/2010/
Pasadena Convention Center, Southern California

We are seeking inspiring presenters to share their knowledge and experience in teaching and learning in this digital age through proven effective uses of instructional and institutional technology. Presentations key to fulfilling the needs of the TechEd audience highlight pioneering methods of delivering education in a learner-centered environment through effective uses of technology, learning communities, diverse learning styles, collaborative partnerships and innovative administrative practices.

We invite you and your colleagues to submit a proposal to present at this landmark educational technology conference to be held April 11-13, 2010 in Pasadena, California. This Call for Presentations is extended to educators, administrators, information technology personnel, and corporate partners.

Submission Deadline is October 30, 2010

SESSION TOPICS
Google
Moodle
Facebook / Twitter
Online Course Development
Overcoming the Digital Divide
Strategies for Online Tutoring
New Developments for Careers in Tech Ed
Digital Imaging / Photography
Successfully Using Adaptive Technology
Intellectual Property & Plagiarism
Interactive Classroom - Clickers, Whiteboards, & Other Tools

Inside Higher Ed's Blog U: The Importance of Getting It Wrong

2009-08-28T14:31:00.000-07:00

Inside Higher Ed's Blog U: Technology and Learning: A space for conversation and debate about learning and technology
The Importance of Getting It Wrong
August 27, 2009

http://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/technology_and_learning/the_importance_of_getting_it_wrong

This posting highlights an instructor's experience introducing "disruptive innovations" into an introductory sociology course. Two lessons learned that relate to ePortfolio implementations:

"The first thing learned from this experience was that when having classes create media projects (as opposed to traditional papers) it is necessary to set very hard limits on the numbers of these projects...the time and energy spent producing the media projects crowded out time and energy to work with the curriculum."

"The second lesson I learned was that in introducing new teaching methods it is necessary to enforce limits on students technological use, as they will gravitate to the more robust and time intensive tools if you let them."

Article: New Literacy and ePortfolio Audiences

2009-08-28T14:28:00.000-07:00

Clive Thompson on the New Literacy
Wired Magazine
August 24, 2009

http://www.wired.com/techbiz/people/magazine/17-09/st_thompson

This brief article includes an interview with Professor Andrea Lunsford and a compelling conclusion that has obvious implications for ePortfolio reflections and audiences.

We think of writing as either good or bad. What today's young people know is that knowing who you're writing for and why you're writing might be the most crucial factor of all.

Save the Date: Seminar on Researching and Evaluating Personal Development Planning and e-Portfolio

2009-08-27T08:20:00.000-07:00

The Centre for Recording Achievement, An Associate Partner of the Higher Education Academy (UK)

in association with:
The Inter/National Coalition for Electronic Portfolio Research
The National Action Research Network (NARN)
The Scottish PDP Forum

The third international residential seminar

‘Researching and Evaluating Personal Development Planning and e-Portfolio.’
Nottingham[1], UK, 26-8th April 2010

The Context:
In the UK the implementation of Personal Development Planning (PDP)[2], reinforced in the revised QAA Guidelines (2009), represents a unique teaching and learning project and a ‘world first’; the introduction of a particular means of supporting student learning by cross-sectoral agreement. Many UK Higher Education Institutions have chosen to support PDP through an e-Portfolio system.

This approach is highly congruent with other initiatives across the world; rapid development in the use of e-Portfolios in global Higher Education has given rise to exploration of how such tools work to support learning and progression.

Consultation work has served to confirm the importance of developing an enhanced evidence base, through robust evaluation and research, to inform the effective implementation of PDP and e-Portfolio practice. For both we need greater attention to more systematic evaluation material that enables decisions to be made about the contribution of such approaches to:

student learning (and particularly to moves to support more personalised learning);
student autonomy, self-efficacy, self identity, intentionality and life-skills;
employability;
attainment;
inclusion
support for off-campus/work-based learners, and
self presentation for transition.

Following on from the successful second international seminar held in Oxford in 2006, this event will bring together leading practitioners and researchers to further develop a community of practice that will:

share critically evaluated practice amongst e-Portfolio and PDP practitioners
Showcase work undertaken by the National Action Research Network for PDP and e-Portfolio and the Inter/National Coalition for Electronic Portfolio Research
Build research capacity by supporting emergent research and researchers
Encourage a critique of current research, monitoring and evaluation practices
Facilitate further discussion of appropriate research and evaluation methods
Contribute a robust evidence-base to underpin the effective implementation and use of e-Portfolios and PDP

The event is purposefully intended to be of interest to:

educational researchers
e-Portfolio and PDP project leaders and practitioners
e-Portfolio and PDP practitioner-researchers
educational developers
teaching fellows
HE learning and teaching managers

It will be intentionally inclusive, in that submissions and participation are invited from established and emergent researchers. Studies employing various methodologies are welcome, from case studies of individual students and cohorts of staff to larger, cross-institutional studies linked to retention and graduation data.

A call for contributions can shortly be issues. Proposals can take the following forms:

Trigger Papers – these half hour sessions will briefly synthesis current research, raise a key research and evaluation question, propose a novel research methodology or present research in progress for discussion.
Research reports – these half hour sessions will report [20 mins report plus questions] on completed PDP and e-Portfolio research and evaluation projects addressing one or a number of the themes listed above. Where possible we will seek to combine such reports into longer symposia.
Keynote contributions – synthesising and overarching plenary elements.

FURTHER DETAILS TO FOLLOW SHORTLY; PLEASE MAKE A NOTE IN YOUR DIARY NOW

[1] A modern conference facility easily accessible by train, car and air.. See http://forms.ncsl.org.uk/mediastore/image2/conferencecentre/home/index.html
[2] Defined as ‘a means by which students can monitor, build and reflect upon their personal, academic and career development’ (Quality Assurance Agency 2009).

Conference: AAC&U's Personal and Social Responsibility Meeting

2009-08-25T15:14:00.000-07:00

Educating for Personal and Social Responsibility: Deepening Student and Campus Commitments
October 1-3, 2009
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Program (pdf)
Register now online

Educating for Personal and Social Responsibility: Deepening Student and Campus Commitments will bring together faculty, student affairs educators, academic administrators, students, and others to explore how to move education for personal and social responsibility to the center of institutional culture and academic practice. The program (pdf) will feature promising practices that develop students' civic engagement and social responsibility in both a local and global context; personal and academic integrity; ability to examine and understand differing (and often competing) perspectives; and ethical and moral reasoning.

The conference will feature new research based on survey responses from 24,000 students and 9,000 campus professionals at twenty-three colleges and universities on the availability of learning opportunities for social and personal responsibility. The research revealed that, although there was overwhelming consensus that education for personal and social responsibilities should be a goal of a college education, far fewer respondents strongly agreed that their institutions had opportunities for such learning.

As stated by Anne Colby and William Sullivan (both of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching) in an article they co-wrote for the winter 2009 issue of AAC&U's Liberal Education:
"The relative lack of institutional investment in students' personal and social responsibility reflects the widespread assumption that academic content knowledge and the intellectual skill of analytic or critical thinking...are the overriding aims of higher education and that the development of personal and social responsibility is only distantly connected with those aims...[W]e take issue with both of these assumptions, arguing that colleges should aim to teach students how to use knowledge and criticism not only as ends in themselves but also as means toward responsible engagement with the life of their times."

From the program, here's a description of a poster presentation that may be of interest to EPAC members:

Curricular and Co-Curricular Designs and Pedagogies
Using Meaningful Reflection to Enhance Learning for Social Responsibility
Susan M. Mountin, Director of the Manresa Project, Kim Jensen Bohat, Director of Service Learning, and Terence Miller, Director, Office of International Education—all of Marquette University

John Dewey said, “We do not learn from experience…we learn from reflecting on experience.” Large numbers of students each year participate in volunteer community service programs, curricular service learning, and immersion experiences, both domestically and internationally, but the service in itself is often not a sufficient tool for advancing education for personal and social responsibility. How do campus leaders go about creating time for reflection in and out of the classroom? Why is reflection important in the moral and ethical development of students? How do faculty and staff teach the skills of reflection in a culture filled with noise? How does reflection shape attitudes, dispositions, and behaviors? These questions shape this poster presentation, which will explore meaningful reflection as a key method for deepening students’ social responsibility. The poster will feature: (a) evolving definitions of reflection and how it can enhance learning; (b) models for good pedagogical practice steeped in reflection used at Marquette University (e.g., classroom reflections including writing, WIKIs, e-portfolios, and silence; out-of classroom reflections for service learners on topics such as diversity, understanding social injustice, connecting service and course concepts, and exploring vocation as a result of the experience); and (c) pre- and post-service reflection activities for students in global immersion and academic service learning experiences. The poster will also feature creative exercises which can be used to surface students’ ethical and moral values in relation to their service experiences.

Resource: RSC Midlands Eportfolio Group webcast (2009.07.16)

2009-08-23T01:31:00.000-07:00

Kevin Brace who maintains the Midlands ePortfolio Group listserv in the UK (http://groups.google.com/group/rscmeg) organized a webinar event using Instant Presenter as the delivery platform in July 2009 featuring speakers talking about their experiences from recent eportfolio pilots. According to the description, this short online workshop focused on a number of different Midlands learning providers who have been involved first hand with the
piloting of eportfolios.

Paraphrasing the description of the session: Presenters were given a slot to discuss their project outcomes. The aim was to make this a very interactive and focussed session, so each presenter was followed immediately by a Q&A session. A selection of pilot projects covering differing
platforms, target user groups, and project aims were procured. The intention was to share the highs and lows of piloting an eportfolio system/process to allow others to benefit from the piloteers experiences.

For more information on the webcast and associated resources:
http://wiki.rscwmsystems.org.uk/index.php/Eportfolio_piloteers%2C_16th_July_2009

Sounds like a great model for EPAC...what do you think?

Social Media Seminar Series

2009-08-23T00:51:00.000-07:00

http://AACE.org/GlobalU/seminars/socialmedia/

Upcoming Seminars
September 8, 2009: 3:00 PM Eastern USA
October 13, 2009: 9:00 PM Eastern USA
November 10, 2009: 3:00 PM Eastern USA
December 8, 2009: 9:00 PM Eastern USA

AACE Global U, http://AACE.org/GlobalU/, is a continually developing initiative intended to provide learning and professional development opportunities on the latest research, trends, and best practices related to learning and technology.

The seminar series, led by George Siemens and David Cormier, is without fee and will include live interactive sessions, in addition to discussions with guest speakers and participants. All sessions are co-sponsored by and archived in the Education & Information Technology Library (http://EdITLib.org )

Social media and emerging technologies are gaining increased attention for use in education. The list of tools grows daily. Examples: blogs, wikis, Ning, podcasts, Facebook, Twitter, Second Life, cloud computing, surface computing, mobile learning, and so on.

"Social Media" seminars explore the impact of new technologies, research, and related projects.
___________________________________________

To receive event updates, signup at: http://AACE.org/GlobalU/seminars/socialmedia/
Seminar Recordings: http://EdITLib.org/GlobalU/
Seminar Community: http://www.AACEConnect.org/group/socialmedia

Call for Chapters: Emerging Technologies for Learning: Impact on Cognition and Culture

2009-08-23T00:42:00.000-07:00

Emerging Technologies for Learning: Impact on Cognition and Culture
Editors:
Dr. Madhumita Bhattacharya, Athabasca University, Canada & Massey University, New Zealand
Dr. Nada Mach, California State University, Dominguez Hills and
Dr. Mahnaz Moallem, University of North Carolina, Wilmington

Published by: AACE--Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education Distributed by: EdITLib--Educational & Information Technology Digital Library

Introduction
This book will encompass the technological influence on learning and cognition from a cultural prospective. This book weaves together different kinds of learning technologies with the thread of cultural diversity to meet the local and global educational needs. For example, one can take the cultural context embedded in the “learning objects” and use it to teach about that culture. Different chapters under each section of the book will deal with different issues related to that particular section topic. Case studies will be included to illustrate educational changes that have occurred with technological advancements. Critical reflection, analysis and suggested research approaches will propose ways and means to handle the present and indicate trends for future.

The book will include the latest developments in education, particularly emerging technologies and their impact on culture and cognition. It will list successful examples of student modeling for multimedia learning environment design, instructional delivery systems, and applications of technology where computer and mobile technologies play an indispensable role. The book will also present discussions of innovative ideas, as well as issues related to learning, teaching and assessment , work place learning, the roles of current and future technologies in learning.

Deadlines

September 10, 2009: Short abstract of 150-200 submission (via wikispace)
September 25, 2009: Extended abstract submission (via email at mitanadamahnaz@gmail.com )
Chapter proposals submitted for the second call could be presented at the AACE SITE conference in San Diego in March 2010.
October 2, 2009: Notification of Acceptance (by email)

Thought provoking post on "Reflective Twitter" from the POD list

2009-08-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

Thoughts anyone?

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 17:07:00 EDT

Reflection (or do you spell it reflexion?) - now there's an inspirational thought and one where I have to own up to a technological thought or two. Quite some time ago now I was discussing the concept of reflective log with a Math professor at a
residential (= boot camp). He had already sat through my standard lecture and the discussion in the bar got him no further until he turned to leave in order to go and contribute to his blog. That proved a turning point in the discussion.

However, I have some concerns about the directions that many of us are going with reflective logs or portfolios. A colleague of mine sought to improve students' reflection by providing a high degree of scaffolding - this improved the quality of the work that she received but I am concerned that the students merely responded to the questions provided and didn't actually reflect. I guess that over time we have to remove the scaffold and hope that the edifice retains the same quality.
--
Bland Tomkinson
University Adviser on Pedagogic Development
http://www.campus.manchester.ac.uk/pdo/meet/bland

Any views expressed in this email are personal to me and not necessarily those of the university.

ePortfolios in New Zealand

2009-08-18T15:51:00.000-07:00

Check out this paper on the ePortfolio needs of New Zealand schools, released in August 2009

http://mle-reference-group.googlegroups.com/web/ePortfolio+Report+Final.pdf?hl=en&gda=wsCcL08AAAC0CorbPfKoXK2BeDq1dBV-bpFx-1NUZRdsNTul8ooFP0YmUvFrh7GcXRwcamDsJTbRtsn-EBfyydwKE3a4I4E645yMLzqmPGYUbW7dRNGHXA

The downside of encouraging peer feedback and critique?

2009-06-30T15:02:00.000-07:00

As we've tried to scale student ePortfolio use in the classroom and encourage reflective thinking, there has been great interest in the idea of creating an environment where fellow classmates would be invited to offer feedback and critique on each other's work. Is there a downside to this? Read on...

Court fails Toronto professor’s grading on a budget
Emily Senger, National Post
Published: Thursday, June 18, 2009
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=1710436

A University of Toronto professor who got students to grade their peers’ work has seen the practice blocked by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.

From George Siemens' e-Learning Resources and News:

Article: The $5,000 Approach to Teaching Writing

2009-06-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

An interesting take on motivating students, external validity and relevance of classroom work with implications for how we might scaffold and support reflection.

The $5,000 Approach to Teaching Writing
By Bob Kunzinger
The Chronicle of Higher Education
June 29, 2009
http://chronicle.com/weekly/v55/i40/40kunzinger.htm?utm_source=at&utm_medium=en

Article Med School 'Senioritis' - Learning outcomes and medical education

2009-06-30T14:14:00.000-07:00

Med School 'Senioritis'
Inside Higher Ed
June 25, 2009
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/06/25/fourthyear

Last March, Washington and Lee University's Law School dean told Inside Higher Ed that, "We wouldn't dream of training doctors only from a book," as a justification for his then newly unveiled plan to transform the third year of law school with experiential courses. Well, medical schools may have taken the hint. In a study and corresponding editorial published Wednesday in the July issue of the Association of American Medical Colleges' Academic Medicine journal, experts are calling for a reform of the traditional senior year medical curriculum. The report -- which was co-authored by six medical school professors, five of whom are from the University of California at San Francisco -- argues that medical curricula often fail to fully utilize the fourth year of medical school, succumbing instead to what some might call "senioritis." With students interviewing for residency programs throughout the year and senior grades usually not a factor in residency applications, many claim that students lose the self-motivation that makes their first three years successful. Moreover, medical students are often close to being done with their core requirements.

From The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching - News You Can Use

Survey: ePortfolio use in Accreditation

2009-06-24T23:56:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

I continue to collect information on ePortfolio use in Accreditation.

If you could take a few minutes to complete a survey, it would be much appreciated.

The short version: http://www.surveygizmo.com/s/146490/eportfolios-and-use-in-accreditation-short-version- (six questions)

More detailed version: http://www.surveygizmo.com/s/146449/eportfolios-and-use-in-accreditation (12 questions)

Thank you!

(Survey results will be posted when organized.)

Kathleen Willbanks
CSU Center for Distributed Learning
(707) 664 2021
Follow me on Twitter: KW_ePortfolios

Conference: The International Conference on the Potential of ePortfolios in Higher Education

2009-06-24T11:21:00.000-07:00

July 2, 2009
University of Economics and Business
Vienna, Austria
http://www.eportfolio09.at/

The International Conference on the Potential of ePortfolios in Higher Education focuses on strategies for E-Portfolio implementations at Universities and its implications for Lifelong Learning. On occasion of the results of two national research projects on E-Portfolio implementations at Universities funded by the Austrian Ministry of Science and Research, the conference puts the following issues into the center of discussion: Implementation models and case studies, international experiences, data security and protection, the acknowledgement of prior learning, didactic implications and interoperability of software systems. The conference is directed towards decision and policy makers at university and governmental levels, academic teachers, trainers and tutors as well as the scientific community.

JISCmail list for UK Mahara e-portfolio news

2009-06-24T11:15:00.000-07:00

A new JISCmail list has been set up for people interested in the Mahara e-portfolio in the UK. It will disseminate information on developments and events, specifically the annual conference.

Mahara is an open source e-portfolio system.

To join the list, follow the link http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/mahara-uk

and then click on the 'Join or leave'

From the Midlands Eportfolio Group listserv

ePortfolio Workshop at Stanford, 8/10-8/12: Early Bird discounts extended

2009-06-20T16:05:00.000-07:00

You (or someone above you) has decided to implement ePortfolios in your class, department, program, institution. Where do you begin? What resources about ePortfolios already exist? What tool should you use? Who else is doing this? Will this really benefit my students, faculty, my campus?

If you're thinking about the above questions (and more), please consider joining us at Stanford University this August 10-12, 2009 for USING ePORTFOLIOS FOR TEACHING, LEARNING AND ASSESSMENT at http://wallenberg.stanford.edu/wsi/eportfolios.html.

In this three day institute, participants will have the opportunity to actively explore how ePortfolios and Folio Thinking can support integrative (deep) learning and demonstrate learning outcomes. Through interactive discussions and activities, participants will be engaged with a range of ePortfolio case studies that highlight best practices in supporting integrative learning, methods for evaluating ePortfolio work, and strategies for successful ePortfolio adoption and implementation.

A unique outcome of this workshop will be a personal ePortfolio built by the individual/team that can subsequently be shared with colleagues and students to visibly document and model the value of what was learned. The program will also include time for project planning as well as individual consulting with each of the instructors.

Instructors: Helen L. Chen, Stanford Center for Innovations in Learning and Wallenberg Hall; John Ittelson, K-20 California Education Technology Collaborative and CSU Monterey Bay; Tracy Penny-Light, St. Jerome’s University, Canada

Fees: Until June 30, 2009: Individual enrollment: $995.00 USD per person; Team enrollment (3 or more persons): $895.00 USD per person

Please feel free to contact Dr. Helen Chen, Course Director, for more information.

Conference program: ePortfolio 2009, London, 22-24, June 2009

2009-06-17T00:38:00.000-07:00

ePortfolio 2009 — KC 2009 — LNC 2009
Innovation, Creativity and Accountability
Learning Forum London, 22-24 June 2009

This looks like a fantastic program with a diversity of topics and speakers.
http://www.epforum.eu/lfl2009/conference/programme

Blog: e-Portfolios and Learning

2009-06-15T15:45:00.000-07:00

Link to the blog of Glenn Johnson of Penn State where they are doing some innovative work with blogs and ePortfolios.

http://www.personal.psu.edu/gfj100/blogs/e-portfolios_and_learning/

Article: Studies Explore Whether the Internet Makes Students Better Writers (6/15/09)

2009-06-15T11:54:00.000-07:00

Emerging findings from the "Stanford Study of Writing," a five-year study of the writing lives of Stanford students, have important implications for how and where written reflection occurs in students' lives and the role of ePortfolios in supporting these activities.

STUDY EXPLORES WHETHER INTERNET MAKES STUDENTS BETTER WRITERS
The Chronicle for Higher Education
June 15, 2009
http://chronicle.com/temp/email2.php?id=Mr9MvgS2wzmnzwTKdqfgDgdfh9nQMpVp

As a student at Stanford University, Mark Otuteye wrote in any medium he could find. He wrote blog posts, slam poetry, to-do lists, teaching guides, e-mail and Facebook messages, diary entries, short stories. He wrote a poem in computer code, and he wrote a computer program that helped him catalog all the things he had written. But Mr. Otuteye hated writing academic papers. Although he had vague dreams of becoming an English professor, he saw academic writing as a "soulless exercise" that felt like "jumping through hoops." When given a writing assignment in class, he says, he would usually adopt a personal tone and more or less ignore the prompt. "I got away with it," says Mr. Otuteye, who graduated from Stanford in 2006. "Most of the time." The rise of online media has helped raise a new generation of college students who write far more, and in more-diverse forms, than their predecessors did. But the implications of the shift are hotly debated, both for the future of students' writing and for the college curriculum.

From The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching

Call for proposals: E-Learn 2009

2009-06-15T11:49:00.000-07:00

World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, & Higher Education
October 26-30, 2009 * Vancouver, BC Canada

FINAL CALL FOR PARTICIPATION
** Submission Deadline: September 8, 2009 **

1. Submission Information, Deadline Sept. 8:

Call for Presentations: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/call.htm
Submission Guide: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/submitguide.htm
Presenter Guide: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/PresenterLounge

2. Major Topics: www.aace.org/conf/elearn/topics.htm
3. Presentation Categories: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/categories.htm
4. Products/Services Showcases & Presentations: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/corporate.htm
5. Proceedings & Paper Awards: http://www.aace.org/pubs
6. For Budgeting Purposes: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/rates.htm
7. Vancouver. Canada: http://www.aace.org/conf/cities/vancouver.htm
8. Deadlines: http://www.aace.org/conf/elearn/deadlines.htm

Event: Competences for learning, assessment and portfolio, 7/1/09, Manchester, UK

2009-06-15T11:02:00.000-07:00

Date: 2009-07-01: Wednesday 1st July; 10:00 to 16:00
Location: Manchester Metropolitan University Business School Room 301

Please register on the CETIS Events system

http://wiki.cetis.ac.uk/Competences_2009-07-01

From the Midlands ePortfolios Group listserv

Event: e-Portfolios in the supprt of learning, 7/1/09, Nottingham, UK

2009-06-15T10:54:00.000-07:00

List members may be interested in an upcoming event hosted by The e-Assessment Association (http://www.e-assessment.com/).

What: e-Portfolios in the support of learning - Launch event of the e-Portfolios special interest group

When: Wednesday 1st July, 10am-3.15pm

Where: EMFEC, Robins Wood House, Aspley, Nottingham

Further details can be found below:

From Kev Brace, Midlands ePortfolio Group listserv

Podcasts with Rob Ward and Sandra Winfield

2009-06-15T10:42:00.000-07:00

"Here are the remaining podcasts recorded when making the Jisc e-Learning Show.

Rob Ward is Director of the Centre for Recording Learning Achievement. He talks about progressions routes and e-Portfolios in this interview.

Sandra Winfield is project manager at the Centre for International e-Portfolio Development at Nottingham University. She talks about the use of e-Portfolios to support work based learners."

Find the above two and other more general e-learing ones @ URL :

http://www.pontydysgu.org/category/wales-wide-web/page/2/

From Kev Brace, Midlands ePortfolio Group listserv

The First Year at LaGuardia Community College

2009-06-15T01:00:00.000-07:00

AAC&U's Diversity and Democracy Newsletter
Volume 12(2), Spring 2009

The First Year at LaGuardia Community College
By Paul Arcario
http://www.diversityweb.org/DiversityDemocracy/vol12no2/arcario.cfm?utm_source=news&utm_medium=blast&utm_campaign=divdemspring09

Report: Investigating the Application of Social Software to Support Networked Learning

2009-06-15T00:35:00.000-07:00

From George Siemens' eLearning Resources and News (6/8/09)

Investigating the Application of Social Software to Support Networked Learning (.pdf at http://eprints.qut.edu.au/18476/1/c18476.pdf) suggests that "university students need to learn new network and software literacies to become digital citizens". In addition to being literate (and therefore be able to participate in the consequential conversations occurring through, or mediated by, technology), authors state students spend surprisingly limited time in socialization (p. 17).

As background, Vincent Tinto has produced a model that promotes academic and social integration as key requirements to student retention. Students who feel connected to each other an the institution are less likely to drop out. I'm not familiar with studies to date that have looked at social networking services as a resource for reducing attrition...but it's a worthwhile concept to explore... Later in the report, the authors share a view that innovators on many campuses likely hold: "Centralised ICT Services departments have proved a barrier to the exploration of innovative emerging online technologies and services being explored in this project."

From Adobe: Using ePortfolios to Demonstrate Growth and Assess Learning

2009-06-14T23:19:00.000-07:00

This recorded webinar from Adobe is free to view although registration is required.

Using ePortfolios to Demonstrate Growth and Assess Learning
https://www.adobe.com/cfusion/event/index.cfm?loc=en_us&id=1396255&event=register_no_session

The evolving nature of work and the economy in the 21st century requires that students gain a new set of skills, including critical thinking, innovation, and creativity to be successful. Authentic and problem-based learning strategies are becoming more widely used across education, and methods for gauging progress and achievement are also evolving. ePortfolios are an important response to trends changing the nature of learning which allow learners to demonstrate learning through multiple formats including digital media. Join Alan Foley, Associate Professor, Syracuse University as he reviews the use of ePortfolios to gauge student progress, achievement, and development.

AAC&U Conference: Integrative Learning: Addressing the Complexities

2009-06-12T13:53:00.000-07:00

Association of American Colleges & Universities
Integrative Learning: Addressing the Complexities

Network for Academic Renewal Conference
October 22-24, 2009
Atlanta, Georgia
Conference website and registration information: http://www.aacu.org/meetings/integrative_learning/index.cfm

Integrative Learning: Addressing the Complexities will focus on four major themes:

1. Purposes. What are the hallmarks of integrative learning? What are the aims and purposes of integrative learning programs? How can integrating and applying their learning help students move past fragmentation and develop a sense of motivation and purpose in the world?
2. Designs. What kinds of curricular, co-curricular, community-based, and pedagogical designs help to foster integrative learning?
3. Reality Check. What kinds of institutional supports and incentives facilitate more integrative learning opportunities?
4. Assessment. How are campuses documenting and deepening students’ integrative learning through assessment?

Saturday Plenary, October 24, 2009

Supporting Integrative and Lifelong Learning through Authentic Assessment, Teaching, and E-portfolio Development

AAC&U’s VALUE project (Valid Assessment of Learning in Undergraduate Education) seeks to contribute to the national dialogue on assessment of student learning. It builds on a philosophy of learning assessment that privileges multiple expert judgments of the quality of student work. Three members of leadership campuses from the VALUE project will discuss interpretations of integrative learning and examine broad issues that are likely to emerge when faculty and their institutions begin to take up the teaching, learning, and assessment of integrative learning.

Marcia Mentkowsi, Professor of Psychology and Director, Educational Research and Evaluation, Alverno College; Melissa Peet, Research Associate, University of Michigan; and Julia Williams, Professor of English and Executive Director, Institutional Research, Planning and Assessment, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Submit Proposals for 2010 AAC&U Annual Meeting

2009-06-12T13:48:00.001-07:00

Submit Proposals for 2010 AAC&U Annual Meeting

AAC&U invites you and your colleagues to submit a proposal for our 2010 Annual Meeting: “The Wit, the Will . . . and the Wallet: Supporting Educational Innovation, Shaping Our Global Future.” Efforts to sustain creative innovation and address the future of liberal learning in a context of dramatic change are evident within all sectors of the higher education community. We invite you to share your best efforts to translate educational vision into concrete practices. Proposals can be submitted online through July 20, 2009. Please see the online call for proposals for complete information at http://www.aacu.org/meetings/annualmeeting/AM10/cfp.cfm.

(from AAC&U's News and Events, http://www.aacu.org/aacu_news/AACUNews09/June09/news_events.cfm?utm_source=news&utm_medium=blast&utm_campaign=NewsJune09#AM)

Australian ePortfolio Project

2009-06-09T01:28:00.000-07:00

AeP.2 Australian ePortfolio Project
Researching ePortfolios in education, employment and community
http://www.eportfoliopractice.qut.edu.au/

AAEEBL Meeting, June 17, 2009 in RI

2009-06-08T10:36:00.001-07:00

We are meeting on June 17 at Bryant University in RI to discuss forming a New England chapter of AAEEBL. See www.oshean.org to register for the Member Forum. It's free and will, as always, be a
splendid event. Anyone nearby is welcome to join us for the AAEEBL session.

(From Trent Batson, The Association of Authentic, Experimental and Evidence-Based Learning, http://www.aaeebl.org/)

Save the Date: AAEEBL ePortfolio conference

2009-06-08T10:33:00.000-07:00

Our first annual conference will take place in Boston, July 27-29, 2010. Co-hosted by The Association of American Colleges and Universities; co-located with Campus Technology. We expect over 600 attendees. For now, just save the date.

(From Trent Batson, The Association of Authentic, Experimental and Evidence-Based Learning, http://www.aaeebl.org/)

Washington Post: Alternative Testing on the Rise (6/8/09)

2009-06-08T09:51:00.000-07:00

Alternative Testing on the Rise
Washington Post
June 8, 2009
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/07/AR2009060702227.html

Portfolios have long been used for in-depth evaluations because they can gauge more skills and higher-order thinking. Many educators say the year-long portfolios are a fairer way to measure what some students know, but pass rates for portfolio tests are relatively high, which helps educators meet academic benchmarks but raises questions about the tests' value in rating schools. Portfolios also are expensive, not to mention thousands of teacher hours spent compiling them. This article is in The Washington Post.

(From The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching)

National Educational Computing Conference 2009

2009-06-08T00:07:00.000-07:00

National Educational Computing Conference (NECC) 2009
June 28-July 1, 2009
Washington, DC
http://center.uoregon.edu/ISTE/NECC2009/

Seven ePortfolio related sessions can be found by searching the program here: http://center.uoregon.edu/ISTE/NECC2009/program/search.php

1) ePortfolios 2.0: Web 2.0 tools to Improve/Showcase Student Technology Literacy
[Formal Session: Lecture]
Helen Barrett, electronicportfolios.org
Wednesday, 7/1/2009, 12:00pm–1:00pm WWCC 103 B

Learn how to implement free interactive Web 2.0 tools to facilitate classroom-based assessment of student technology literacy, including the advantages and disadvantages of blogs, wikis, and Google Apps.

2) The Dynamic Nature of ePortfolio Requirements and Processes
[Formal Session: Panel]
Linda Mensing-Triplett, Lesley University with Arlene Borthwick, Ann Cunningham, Davina Pruitt-Mentle and Laura Turner
Tuesday, 6/30/2009, 3:30pm–4:30pm WWCC 158

This panel discussion on the use of ePortfolios in schools examines implementation processes and challenges and the use of eportfolios for program evaluation purposes. Recommended by ISTE's SIGTE

3) Developing and Managing an Effective Internship Experience in a Distance Education Program
[Informal Session: Poster]
Kristen Winter, Johns Hopkins University with Francesca Carpenter and Lauren Owen
Tuesday, 6/30/2009, 10:00am–12:00pm WWCC East Registration Lobby, Table: 3

Discover technology tools and techniques to structure an internship at a distance. Overcome challenges of working with site-based mentors, assessing learning, integrating eportfolios, and promoting self-evaluation and reflection

4) ePortfolios for Students & Staff Using Free Web 2.0 Tools
[Informal Session: Poster]
Scott Floyd, White Oak Independent School District
Monday, 6/29/2009, 11:00am–1:00pm WWCC East Registration Lobby, Table: 6

Meet representatives from one Texas district who will share exactly how they met a changing landscape for students and staff while garnering welcome attention. Recommended by ISTE's SIGTEL

5) ePortfolios: Painless Implementation in the K-12 Space
[Informal Session: Poster]
Clarke Stevenson, EdCube Pty Ltd. with Michael Giulieri
Monday, 6/29/2009, 11:00am–1:00pm WWCC East Registration Lobby, Table: 2

More than 10 years of research, development, and trial and error culminated in a roadmap for success. (contains Commercial Content)

6) The Utility of E-Portfolios in Teacher Education
[Research Paper: Discussion]
Michele Parker, UNC Wilmington with Abdou Ndoye and Albert Ritzhaupt
Monday, 6/29/2009, 11:00am–12:00pm WWCC 159, Table: 4

This study will validate the Electronic Portfolio Student Perspective Instrument using a different population. Implications for preservice teachers will be discussed.

7) SAF140 Web 2.0 Tools for Classroom-Based Assessment and Interactive Student ePortfolios
[Workshop: Hands-on]
Helen Barrett, electronicportfolios.org
Saturday, 6/27/2009, 8:30am–3:30pm WWCC 150 B

Web 2.0 tools facilitate interaction and feedback. Evaluate free online tools to create interactive ePortfolios that support formative assessment, focusing on academic standards and the NETS*S.

Competencies in Medical Education - Are ePortfolios not far behind?

2009-06-05T06:38:00.000-07:00

Competencies Over Courses in Medical Education
Inside Higher Ed
June 5, 2009
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/06/05/medical

The American Association of Medical Colleges, in collaboration with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, on Thursday released a report aimed at defining scientific competencies for doctors. The paper, "Scientific Foundations for Future Physicians," identifies eight competencies in the medical school curriculum and eight in pre-med programs that all students should master on their way to becoming doctors.

This clearly follows the trend we're seeing in higher education towards outcomes-based assessment. The article mentions both Alverno College (one of the earliest institutions to implement ePortfolios) and the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) which is already developing a learning portfolio tool for residents.