ePortfolio Use Cases at IU
The following ePortfolio use cases form the primary context for establishing the nearterm needs at IU:
IUPUI Principles of Undergraduate Learning
The Principles of Undergraduate Learning (PULs) are the essential ingredients of the
undergraduate educational experience at IUPUI. They form a conceptual framework for
all students' general education, but necessarily permeate the curriculum in the major
field of study as well. More specific expectations for IUPUI's graduates are determined
by the faculty in a student's major field of study. Together, these expectations speak to
what graduates of IUPUI will know and be able to do upon completion of their degree.
Principle 1: Core Skills
Written Communication
Comprehend, Interpret, and Analyze Text
Oral Communication
Quantitative Analysis
Use of Information Technology
Principle 2: Critical Thinking
Principle 3: Integration and Application of Knowledge
Principle 4: Intellectual Depth, Breadth, and Adaptiveness
Principle 5: Understanding Society and Culture
Principle 6: Values and Ethics
Courses, degrees, departments and schools need to map their portfolio components
with the PULs and accreditation standards.
IUPUI Psych Nursing ePortfolio Case
The ultimate goals for the psych nursing graduate program to use ePortfolio tools to map
specific course objectives for the full array of program courses to a set of national
standards put forth by their professional association. Students and faculty would interact
with the ePortfolio by entering into a dedicated site. Students will, primarily, submit
reflections that state how they’ve met specific course objectives via ePortfolio’s matrix
tool. Reflections will be collected using a standard reflection form already included as an
option with the tool. CIG coordinators will then have data sets that show how students
are meeting or failing to meet course objectives and therefore national standards. This
data can be organized and displayed via ePortfolio reporting mechanisms.
Because of current ePortfolio limitations, the psych nursing program will focus on merely
collecting reflections from students per course. The aggregation of the course objectives
at the program level will be performed manually by program or CIG coordinators. Having
the ability to map between SAKAI tools such as assignments and ePortfolio would be of
great benefit to the psych nursing program. Additionally, having efficient methods of
administering ePortfolio at the program level would be of high value. The psych nursing
program intends to ramp up the depth of usage as future enhancements allow and the
application matures.
IUPUI Adult Education Capstone Project
The Adult Education Master’s program has a Capstone element that currently involves
collecting artifacts, writing a reflection piece for each artifact, submitting to a discussion
forum and receiving feedback from peers. A student will update each reflection piece
based on feedback from peers and the course facilitator(s). Upon completion of all
required portfolio items, the student will create a résumé and upload everything to a drop
box. ePortfolio tools can not only facilitate the current process, but enhance it.
Use Case: Misty Waters has uploaded all items from her Master of Science program in
Adult Education into her My Workspace Resources. During the Capstone project, Misty
is presented with a matrix that has been created by the instructor. Each cell of the
matrix represents the particular requirement for the Capstone. Misty selects an artifact
from her Resources list and adds the association to the appropriate cell in the matrix.
She then writes a “caption statement” that reflects upon why this artifact was selected
and what it means to her. Misty is in a group of students who review each of the other
matrices in the group and provides feedback. After receiving the feedback from the
students, Misty will make the necessary changes to her caption statement (reflection).
The final piece of the Capstone project is for Misty to create a résumé and a portfolio for
grading purposes and for possible distribution to prospective employers.
IUPUI Herron School of Art and Design – Integrative Department Grant
The Dept of Visual Communications within the Herron School of Art and Design recently
restructured their undergraduate curriculum. As part of this process, they developed a
learning matrix that maps professional standards from their accrediting organization to
the IUPUI Principles of Undergraduate Learning. The new curriculum includes five
required and 6 elective courses that incorporate problem-based learning and/or
collaborative or service learning components culminating in a major project. The
department would like to use ePortfolio to fulfill the following objectives:
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Increase the student achievement of essential competencies for professional
design practice. Evaluate internally based on assessment of capstone portfolios.
Evaluate externally based on professional assessment of capstone portfolios.
Increase the student achievement of Principles for Undergraduate Learning.
Evaluate based on assessment of capstone portfolios. Evaluate based on survey
of IUPUI impact on alumni learning and other appropriate mechanisms.
Provide to the IUPUI education community a curriculum model for integrated
learning. Evaluate based on assessment of IUPUI American Democracy Project
team, Center for Service and Learning and IUPUI Program Review &
Assessment Committee.
Provide to the design education community a curriculum model for integrated
learning. Evaluate based on peer review assessment by accrediting body
(National Association of Schools of Art and DSIGN) and professional association
(AIGA Design Education Board).
In order to capture student progress toward both professional standards and the PULs,
some method of mapping one standard onto the other within ePortfolio is desired. In
addition to making extensive use of the Matrix tool, the department will probably want to
develop customized reports summarizing student work for accreditating agency.
IU Kokomo Communications Degree Program
The assessment plan is designed to track student's progress in the communication skills.
Together with their advisor, students will select the learning outcomes appropriate to
their goals and the requirements of the program. These student learning outcomes will
be entered into the ePortfolio, giving the student and his or her advisor a visual plan for
what the student needs to achieve in order to complete the degree. As the student takes
courses, he or she will collect artifacts or items that serve as evidence for having
achieved the various learning outcomes. The student will upload items, and reflect upon
the evidence of each specific outcome.
Keeping track of your progress via ePortfolio will help you make an explicit link between
classroom work and learning goals-an example of active learning. In addition, as you
reflect on each item as evidence of learning, you will increasingly develop responsibility
for and become advocates of your own learning-an example of depth of learning. While
some student learning outcomes are required by the degree, students will also be
permitted to select the outcomes that most closely fit their personal and career goals. As
you will be permitted to upload artifacts of your own choosing, this approach respects
diverse ways of learning and representing one's learning.