The Use of ePortfolios to
Assess General Education
Essential Questions
 What is the purpose of the ePortfolio?
 How will students understand our expectations?
 What competencies do we wish to assess?
 Who will do the evaluation?
 What kind of rubrics do we need?
 How can we use our findings to improve general education?
Overview of Clemson ePortfolio
2006 – 2007 ePortfolio implemented as a mechanism to
evaluate general education
Implemented with 2006-07 freshman class
(transfers as well)
2007 – 2008 Year 2
Assessment implemented (formative: peer feedback;
Summative: faculty assessment)
2008 – 2009 Year 3
Google and CUePort
2009 – 2010 Year 4
First Graduating Class with ePortfolios
Where are we now?
Building an Infrastructure
• Clearly articulated purpose
• Build support
• Build Assessments
• Select the technology
Challenges
• How to Integrate ePs within a Gen Ed curriculum
with multiple moving parts
Faculty
• Buy-in vs. engagement
• Role in artifact development, selection
• Scaffolding of eP for students
• Available platforms
Competency Development
 Used consistently across institution and
assessment type
 Designed by faculty/Revised by faculty
(22,19,8)
 Must be measurable
 Communicate the criterion clearly
 Examples help
 Iterative
Rubric Development
 Used consistently across institution and
assessment type
 Designed by faculty/Revised by faculty
 Communicate the criterion clearly
 Examples help
 Iterative
2 Paradigms of Assessment
(Ewell)
•
•
•
•
•
•
Formative (Improvement)
Internal
Engagement
Multiple/triangulation
Qualitative and quantitative
Overtime, comparative,
established goal
• Multiple internal channels
and media
• Multiple feedback loops
•
•
•
•
•
•
Summative (judgment)
External
Compliance
Standardized
Quantitative
Comparative or fixed
standard
• Public Communication
• Reporting
Framework for Discussion
With apologies to Nike, move away from “Just
Do It!”
For Students
For Faculty
From Faculty “Buy-In” to Faculty Engagement
What does the research say?
Instructional Design – Diffusion of innovation
(Rogers)
Higher ed lit - Furco & Moely (2012)
Copyright © 2013 by Gail Ring, Clemson University & Kathryne Drezek McConnell, Virginia Tech
Purpose Clearly Communicated
Clarity of purpose
Be clear about the time commitment –
Change doesn’t happen overnight!
Be transparent about the evolving nature
of the project on your campus - THINGS
WILL CHANGE!
Informing Students of Our Expectations
 Syllabi
 “It’s on the syllabus; so where is the disconnect?”
 Common freshman experience
 On-Line and face-to-face support
 _______________________________
 Quality Enhancement Plan
 Faculty Buy-in (Engagement)
Clemson: Challenges Encountered
 Lack of clearly understood purpose
 Limited engagement: faculty and students
 Adopting/inventing a tool that is multi-faceted and
allows for student ownership
 Helping students make the transition from
collecting “stuff” to collecting evidence.
 Do we really want to know what our students
don’t know?
 How will we make the initiative sustainable?
Added Value to the General
Education Program
• Assessment
• Provides an opportunity for improvement
 Gathering data on student learning outcomes (SLO) for 6
years
 Conversation about Gen Ed.
Data Driven Decision Making - Closing the Loop
 Providing data on SLO back to colleges/departments
 Courses are changing
 AH
 Part of the QEP
 Communication is part of the conversation again
Why the Struggle is Worthwhile
• Direct information on student learning outcomes
• Evidence of high impact practices
• Documentation of student attainment of General
Education competencies (even for transfer students)
• Better understanding of overall curriculum and a link
to general education competencies
• Message to students: learning is not a “check off”
ePortfolio Assessment as Iterative
Process
Implementation
Faculty Development
Gather Evidence
Review Evidence
Engage in Change
Analyze Results
Make Recommendations
References
• Ewell, P. (2012). Assessment, Accountability and
Improvement: Revisiting the Tensions.
http://www.learningoutcomeassessment.org/doc
uments/PeterEwell_005.pdf
• Furco & Moely (2012). Using Learning
Communities to Build Faculty Support for
Pedagogical Innovations. Journal of Higher Ed.
• Rogers, E. (2003). The Diffusion of Innovations,
5th Edition