Written by Gail Potratz

Building ePortfolios with the students in your classroom is a creative, exciting paradigm-changing endeavor. Digitally created portfolios can . . .

• Provide an online container where student work can be stored easily in the classroom
• Allow students to feel empowered about their progress in learning as they are . . .
  • Motivated to take an active part in the progression of skill development and learning as shown in their selected artifacts
  • Allowed to expand student-directed decisions about personal student learning
• Provide purpose for teaching the important skill of self-reflection on one’s work
• Provide numerous opportunities for seamless integration of technology skills such as . . .
  • Site design
  • Creation of various media types—such as text, artwork, video, audio, and images—as artifacts to display
  • Linking and embedding of varied media from where they were created—whether in G Suite or third-party apps such as Animoto, Voicethread, etc.
• Enable students to easily revise and edit their work artifacts

Student Ownership
Once students understand the concept of the portfolio, teachers may select work to be included or allow some student selection to promote ownership and excitement. The portfolios can be created in Google Sites, which is a free tool of the G Suite system in place in many schools already. If most work is done within the applications in G Suites, the integration into a Google site ePortfolio is simplified. That said, some have successfully used the portfolio concepts described above, but used formats such as SeeSaw and other apps to house their student work. The concept far outweighs the importance of the container.

Because the work is online and dynamic, students can easily make changes and additions in their artifacts after teacher/student conferencing. Students are able to show improvements readily and become more satisfied with their artifact. Allowing more student choice in the design of the site and what they choose to include directly connects to an increase in student ownership of the ePortfolio. Allowing some display of outside activities—such as 4H, club activities, and family celebrations—can add to the ownership idea as well. However, the teacher will want to maintain control of the basic requirements necessary to the integrity and purpose of the collection.

Avenue for Communication
Another benefit of online compilation of student work is facilitating the communication with the home. Having a portfolio at a student’s fingertips allows for student-led student/parent/teacher conferences. Listening to a student confidently describe his showcased artifacts and reflect on his learning is a powerful option for such conferences, where the purpose is communicating student learning to parents. If allowed, students can choose to share their portfolio link with out-of-state grandparents or other relatives who find it hard to be as involved in the life and learning of their grandchildren as they desire.

Reflection and Self-Evaluation
Moving into the world of ePortfolios does not alter the integrity of what is taught in the various content areas of the curriculum, but it offers a fresh perspective on how to collect, manage, and review student progress over time as artifacts of similar types are collected through the year or years. Most important, it allows greater student involvement in the learning process as reflection and self-evaluation skills grow.

Adopting this idea may change more than you can imagine about how your students view themselves as learners in the digital age.

Gail Douglas Potratz (DMLC ’74) serves at Martin Luther College as an adjunct instructor for the graduate program. She has a master’s degree in instructional technology and has served in many capacities in WELS educational endeavors, as well as other technology and education venues.