In times of challenging educational and technological change, there exist opportunities for ePortfolio processes to gain mainstream adoption. This paper considers how ePortfolio’s central processes can deliver increasingly relevant technologies for individuals progressing through work and education, and how ePortfolio-activities may be on the cusp of being truly mainstreamed through evolutions in education, personalised technology, social media and open data.

1. Into the Void:
Change as a Catalyst, presenting
new opportunities to embed e-
Portfolios into Community and
Lifelong Learning
Kirstie Coolin
Centre for International ePortfolio Development, (CIePD)
Research and Learning Resources
www.nottingham.ac.uk/eportfolio
Friday, August 17, 2012 EPIC 2012, London 1

2. Introduction
• Where are e-Portfolios now?
• What is the common vision?
• How can we articulate this?
• Can opportunities be realised in the challenge
space?
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3. A Journey...
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4. With possibly no answers...
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6. From Gartner
• E-Portfolios are Web-accessible repositories for
student work, both graded and ungraded, which may
be shared with authorized parties.
• Adoption is still hampered by interoperability issues
• Problem of who owns and supports the portfolio
• Until megavendors (Google/Facebook) enter the
market and offer lifelong srevices in the form of cloud
e-Portfolios this issue is not likely to be solved..and e-
Portfolios will experience a limited uptake
Extracts/summary from Gartner Hype Cycle for
Education report, 2011
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7. What questions does this raise?
1. Are we all talking about the same thing?
2. Are e-Portfolios actually mainstream? what is
the evidence?
3. Are these the only drivers? What about
individual drivers?
4. How can they be used most effectively?
5. Do students use them willingly? Are they
empowered to take responsibility for their own
self-directed and lifelong learning?
6. Where are the challenges and opportunities for
transformational change?
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8. Shoebox/file store vs. assessment
Portfolio vs. Personal learning space ?
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9. Are e-Portfolios mainstream?
• What is a successful implementation?
• A lot of e-Portfolio activity still occurs in
pockets – represents siloed activities
• Name “e-Portfolio” is still problematic –
has baggage
• Need to redefine and describe its core
processes, in accessible language
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10. What would motivate senior managers
and decision makers to decide on a
transformative role for e-Portfolio within
their organisation?
What would motivate learners to take
ownership of their learning?
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11. Current challenges for education
• Employability
• Global competiveness
• Impact of higher fees (greater
expectations)
• Savings and efficiency
• Student experience
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Frank Hurley

12. Move e-Portfolio processes into the
challenge space
These present educators and implementers with an
opportunity to promote the process benefits of e-
Portfolios to decision makers
E-Portfolio can respond to new challenges – more
relevant than ever? The need for self-directed,
professional and lifelong learners – who can
argue with that?
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13. Ride the change
• Easier to „sell‟ to senior management, students,
services and careers – decision makers open to
new technologies and approaches to e.g.
Assessment/employability
• Demand for work experience/placements
• Professionalism and reflective practice
• Learning communities – e.g. mentors, tutors,
employers, careers advisers
• Integrative learning – recognition of wider
employability skills
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14. How can learners be motivated?
“Employability can be enhanced through personal
development planning, but success will depend
upon the extent to which students see a „pay-off‟
for the effort that they put in.” (Embedding
employability into the curriculum, HEA)
http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/assets/documents/employability/id460_embedding_em
ployability_into_the_curriculum_338.pdf
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15. Some student viewpoints (CIePD SHED
project 2012)
• “We come to University and assume that employability
is getting the degree but are starting to learn that it‟s
the degree plus other stuff” (engineering student at
Nottingham)
• “Students would be motivated to use their e-Portfolio if
they could have it when they leave to help them find a
job” (Student, Nottingham)
• “a tool for marketing to differentiate ourselves to
employers” (Construction students at Derby College)
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www.nottingham.ac.uk/eportfolio/shed

16. E-Portfolios and other technologies
Where do student, employer and institutional
drivers meet, and what would this look like in
terms of processes and tools? – transformation
through evolution?
• Couch the language for the audience?
• Integrate into day-to-day activity/platforms
• Use communities around learning activity
• Join up learning activities with e.g. Useful
information, Employment search, access to
placements, mentoring etc.
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17. Competition
Government
Policy Institution
Assessment
Educator Professional
competence
Communities
Learner
Individual
concerns
What goes into
Tools
the void?
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Current

18. Thank you
Some Acknowledgements:
• ePortfolio Implementation Study (Gordon Joyes,
https://epip.pbworks.com)
• E-Portfolios: Go Big or Go Home (Darren Cambridge,
http://www.educause.edu/ero/article/e-portfolios-go-big-or-go-home
• Blurring the Boundaries: Social Networking
and E-Portfolios (Helen Barratt,
http://www.maclearning.org/articles/48/blurring-the-boundaries-social-
networking-e-portfolio-development)