Adult Edn & e-Portfolios

I've just come across a most impressive set of handouts relating to Adult Learning in Australia. The blog and associated links by ALA give a very clear and up-to-date picture of many of the aspects of an e-Portfolio and is well worth reading through carefully.

The 'Concept Guides' are the recent outcome of a report completed in August 2008, 'The Australian ePortfolio Project'. The encouraging thing, for me, is that two of the members represented on the Australian board are from the UK: Rob Ward, Director of the Centre for Recording Achievement, UK, and Associate Professor Angela Smallwood, Director International Centre for ePortfolio Research, UK . The leaflets also refer to JISC materials elsewhere referenced in their research. Support for the original work was provided by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council, an initiative of the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.

Also see the AFLF e-Portfolios blog

However, yet again, the emphasis appears to be just on Higher Education, I quote, "The overarching aim of the research project, which was given the working title of the Australian ePortfolio Project, was to examine the current levels of ePortfolio practice in Australian higher education. " This has been my complaint all along with the UK Higher Ed scenario. There the traditional teaching and learning styles are generally still the de facto delivery system of 'I teach, you learn'. We really need to understand how e-Portfolios can dramatically enhance, if not actually revolutionise, teaching and learning in HE. It's beginning to happen in our Primary and Secondary schools - so why not in HE?

Another concern raised by these documents is that of defining 'adult'. The very attractive 'Concept Guides' portray near-teenage students and young executives. But what of those who might be called 'Middle Aged' or even the 'Grey Brigade'. As one belonging to the latter group I just wonder if those who dwell in the luxury of academia are actually thinking of 'real' adults when discussing e-Portfolio implementations. The real world is full of those who are fearing the next job-cut, the less able, those recently made redundant, the long-term unemployed, those frustratedly seeking alternative employment or actually trying to better themselves.

However, offsetting the above criticisms, there is also another Australian report well worth reading 'E-portfolios beyond education and training' As Jen Miller reports, 'the report provides case studies of a number of international examples of the use of e-portfolios to assist people in the workforce and in career development. It makes recommendations that include enhancing current national infrastructure to enable Australians to use an e-portfolio to enhance career development, lifelong learning, and workforce participation.' Well - this looks better, but it is still primarily research - what we now need to do is translate aspiration into inspiration!

Some nice examples and quotations referring to the work of eFolio in Minnesota - Next year, let's hope that they can include the all-age approach of the work of eFolio in the UK!

Social Sites & e-Portfolios

Most schools now have a good 'Acceptable Use Policy' (or AUP)concerning the use of VLEs and e-mail etiquette etc. Many of us have had these policies in place for years!

But for many, the thought of laying down guidance concerning social networking appears to have come a bit late - most kids are already doing it!

It therefore came as a pleasant discovery to me, to see someone actually taking the trouble to think things through and to share her thoughts, in true collaborative spirit, requesting responses from her readers. Jen Hegna's article can be seen in full in Doug Johnson's blog.

My only concern, as I commented, is that I would like to see some more positive suggestions and less of the negativity if young people are to accept these guidelines in schools.

As far as eFolio is concerned we have a strong view of e-safety (we call it 'the sanctity of eFolio security') and thus an internal mailing system, feedback, polls etc can all be safely managed within the privacy that eFolio affords.

So, let's see more suggestions about the positive outcomes of social connections within any e-Portfolio, including eFolio!

Getting started with eFolio

I was recently going through the eFolio on-line support materials and the thought suddenly came to me, "Wow! isn't this easy!"

What I was thinking, of course, is how the new beginner in e-Portfolio thinking comes to terms with this possibly strange environment. But then, I thought to myself, "Why is it that other systems have to be so darn difficult?"

Take, for instance the whole issue of interoperability. This can be an absolute minefield for anyone - the top brains in this subject are still only getting part-way there, so what chance us mere mortals? The 'brains' at eFolioWorld and Avenet have put together the best set of templates for exporting data in IMS format - and as a user one wouldn't know that anything special was happening.

Where data needs to be exported in the IMS format everything that the learner has placed in the pre-formed templates is there in place and ready to process without any effort to collate or reorganise data sets at all!

But more generally, as one browses over the various help-sheets the reader soon discovers that the icons and layout are logical and with intuitively interactive help always available.

So, the question that I ask myself is, 'Why, if this is so easy in eFolio, do people want to go into the complexities of managing less-secure and cloud-based systems where artefacts cannot always be safely managed or withdrawn?

Ethics or Common Sense?

I recently came across a very sensible question on a NZ forum which needs a response. The original question I quote:

May I start a new discussion on the ethics of digital media and how we deal with it currently in our schools?
What are some of your guidelines on student-teacher confidentiality and rights in your school handbooks?
I am concerned on the behalf of students who have 100's of photo's from school camps, balls and sports days placed on a shared network drive for the whole school to access, or even worse, on a webpage.
Has the permission of the students or the caregivers of these students been sought for this exposure and is it any different to displaying the pictures on the school notice board?
Another ethical issue that concerns me about Eportfolios is the hosting and integrity of the host sites on the cloud, for example, there are rumours that Facebook is
selling your public profile pictures to advertisers to use without your expressed permission.
Could this happen to other information on the cloud? I suggest not, if it was hosted by the MOE.
What other ethical views are there on this?
* Video Evidence
* Photo Storage
* Blogs - Access levels
* Cloud Data integrity

One answer came back fairly promptly:

It's all very well suggesting that people should store their data in the cloud, but when you do this you partially lose control over them, in ways that aren't necessarily in your interest.

For example, data stored in a foreign country is subject to the data protection laws of that country. I'm pretty sure the NZ government doesn't allow its data to be stored overseas for this reason.

Also, you can't just count on the good will of these "cloud services" to keep on running - or even working in your interest. For example, Facebook has absolutely no incentive to help you extract your data from it - "why would we let you do that, are you thinking of leaving Facebook?" This even applies to the Google's of this world. At the end of the day, they exist to make money - not store your data for you forever.

To me, it would make sense if a user's portfolio data was stored somewhere that at least has a partial interest in it staying around.

The answers make good sense but, as far as I am concerned, there are four very simple answers to all of this:

1. An e-Portfolio is not very different to any other website or school intranet or VLE. There are usually clearly stated policies about the disclosure of personal data - in particular that photographs should not identify named individuals. Children should be encouraged to use avatars or pseudonyms on any public pages of their e-Portfolio. However, in encouraging children to feel that they 'own' their e-Portfolio they need to be more aware of these issues, or of revealing private family matters. Teachers, parents and carers need therefore to help their charges in these responsibilities.
   
   
2. We do not know how information about us might be used in the future. The skills of target advertising, for instance, are not going to get blunted. In years to come it might be quite possible for an automated process to access an old photograph placed on a repository to identify that we are an animal lover for instance. My simple solution is not to risk the placing of anything of a personal nature in the hands of unknown or unvetted 'guardians'.
   
   
3. The functionality of an e-Portfolio can get seriously confusing if different artefacts are stored in a variety of different repositories. Grown intelligent adults might be able to manage a whole set of artefacts 'scattered around the universe' - but this is not the case for most of our children in schools, the slow learner, the elderly or even those who just don't want the hassle of keeping a log of where everything is. The solution, keep everything to be used in the e-Portfolio in one place where links can easily be established and where the same artefacts can be used possibly several times for different purposes.
   
   
4. Having said keep everything together - that is with one reservation. The e-Portfolio is not a substitute for a VLE - or even one's own PC. The e-Portfolio is not a pantechnicon to move around every single jotting, practice exercise or classroom test. From one's PLE, VLE workspace or laptop items which are of some significance can be copied to the e-Portfolio for specific e-Portfolio purposes. So again, use the e-Portfolio for the purposes for which it is intended - and not as a general dumping ground.
   

So, at whatever age or ability, I would just suggest use a bit of common sense!

Post Script:

For those wanting to further consider the ethics of ICT and in particular relation to e-Portfolios, I thoroughly commend Simon Grant's book, "Electronic Portfolios: Personal information, personal development and personal values".

Progress in NZ

For quite some time now I have been enthralled by the activities in New Zealand concerning their Digital Strategy. Perhaps it is the combination of the size of the population of the country and its scattered townships and diversity of cultures, but it seems to me that the country is peculiarly ready for digital change.

See 41 page .pdf report: ePortfolios - Celebrating Learning

Also see Milestone Report on the Otago Schools Virtualisation Project

As a 'world-watcher' in terms of e-Portfolio developments I have inevitably been a bit more 'vocal' than other observers or 'lurkers' and have more than once been known to chip in a few ideas of my own. Certainly, for some time their MLE Reference group has had some interesting conversations which are worth reading.

However, one such contribution by Peter Hills, in particular, is worth relaying here and, with his permission, I have interspersed a few observations of my own:

"We are part of a Collaborative schools project involving ALL year 7 - 10 schools in our city (all 4 intermediates and all 10 High Schools). 3 years ago all city schools shared the desire to make it easier for a student to go from Year 8 to Year 9 - wherever that might be. Real Collaboration in a tomorrows schools context!! Quite a coup to get all schools to agree on that as a project - and actively commit to it.

Yes, this certainly seems to be the best way to get things going - a 'shared desire' is something that I have not yet heard of in the UK!

"One of the first things bought up by the leadership group was to investigate a method to allow a student to take with them a portable set of data - so that a student could capture what they wanted from their year 8 environment (and before) and therefore go from any contributing school to any of the high schools in the city - and take the relevant information with them - eg their class books, as TTle results, samples of work, qualifications (yes some had them), videos etc etc

Sounds like the Middle School to High School transition issues we have in some parts of the UK, but Great! This is just the vision that that we need - not so much about 'data', that is already cared for by our Local Authorities - but the portability of artefacts and supporting narrative etc.

"This project has continued on for 2 years - with all schools meeting regularly to share the focus areas each is taking.

Yes, 'Rome was not built in a day' and neither can an e-Portfolio be bought in 'Just like that!'

"We used ePortfolios (part of the Editure suite) - at our high school. But students came with a mixture of stuff - some with huge amounts - some with none or little - of which most was unuseable or able to be imported. Too hard. The idea of gathering what students wanted to bring electronically was way too hard. We immediately went back to paper and dropped the formal ePortfolio idea. This was never going to work fast enough for us or effectively or equitably. Dreamers we thought.

I cannot dare to criticize the vendors of this particular MLE or VLE but is this not the sort of experience that many schools around the world have gone through? Salesmen telling us one thing but we assuming that they meant something else?

"Not wanting to be quitters we started gazing forward. Google Education Apps (documents/websites) in combination with Moodle was our winner - and we can sync them all in with our SMS/AD/LDAP etc etc. Simple. All schools in our city agreed to use Moodle as the preferred environment for students and teachers etc - and we are now running classes and mentoring programmes via Video Conferences from and for all high schools small subjects. It works.

Well, I have my own reasons for not going down the Google Apps route, but, as with the impressive work of Helen Barrett, we can only wait and see what the outcome will be.

"We are dealing with vendors, ECE, Year 0-6 and Year 7-8 and high schools, area schools PTE, Tertiaries ....and the students, whanau, families... not to mention an ageing workforce.

A class book in my day was bound blank pages - that later developed into lined pages.

Yes, I remember it well! School is just not about teaching and learning but about so many other stakeholders who need to be considered all at the same time. I just wonder how many UK institutions have considered the whole host of their stakeholders - and even involved them - when considering the introduction of an e-Portfolio system.

BUT, as Peter remarks, will the e-Portfolio be just an improvement on the blank exercise-book or will the e-Portfolio actually change how we teach and learn?

Thanks Peter!

The Forgotten Learners

Last Friday, July 24th, I attended the NIACE meeting in Leicester. It was only supposed to be a half-day seminar but wow! the amount of detail covered could have easily been spread over a two-day residential course.

Of late we have been considering the case for helping digitally deprived children in the UK. But Rachel Thompson's presentation really set me thinking. One of her slides in particular raised the issue of who are not as yet included in a 'Digital Britain'. So, apart from disadvantaged kids, who else should we be considering as 'digitally deprived'?

1. Adults aged 55+
   
2. People in rural areas
   
3. People in areas of multiple deprivation
   
4. C2DEs (ie lower potential employability)
   
5. The disabled and those with learning difficulties
   
6. The unemployed and low-income households
   
7. People affected by mental ill-health
   
8. Homeless/vulnerably housed adults
   
9. Itinerant workers and services personnel
   
10. 'Delegators' (ie those who pass on any ICT work to others)
    
11. Those detained in Prison (both staff and inmates)

It soon became obvious that we need a wide variety of approaches to meet the needs of such people, all 17 million of them. But, consistent with all of these groups is the potential that an appropriately scaffolded eFolio would be of exceptional help to them.

Another point that came across, most strongly, was that of motivation. Where a person sees little need to log on and communicate with others, where they can see no practical purpose for using many of our common applications, when they see no need to save time or money we have a problem.

Those of us who provide support and training really need to advertise and communicate the ways in which ICT can improve the quality of life of each of the groups listed above. We need to identify how best to reach out to each of those groups and to design materials which they can understand and respond to. We need to invest time and effort in order to attract these people to the services we want to provide. Perhaps, also, we need to look at our delivery styles and provide attractive and challenging materials which are more relevant to the learners' needs.

This goes for eFolio as much as any other product. For each group as listed above, the eFolio can be that means of communication, of involvement of ownership and motivation which is the basis of any learning environment.

If people reading this have any desire to reach out to any of the above groups then please let me help by providing a simple, low-cost, eFolio tool, appropriate to their needs.

contact at: support@maximise-ict.co.uk

Institutional Documentation?

My reading of the Summer edition of the eFolioWorld newsletter set me thinking.

Some years ago I studied for the Diploma in Total Quality Management (TQM) and with special reference to the place of the Investors In People award to schools. At that time I was also awarded a certificate as an Internal Quality Auditor and became a member of the Chartered Quality Institute. I say this, not because of any wish to 'blow my own trumpet' but rather to indicate some real passion and understanding of the subject of Quality Assurance in schools and colleges.

So, perhaps, my title could have been 'e-Portfolios - not just for students'. The fact that an e-Portfolio can equally be used for students, teachers, institutions or even whole Districts or Local Authorities needs to be understood. My 8-Page Brochure is worth looking at in this context.

Within TQM circles, one of the Prime Directives is that documentation should be easy to find and appropriate to the reader's needs. It is my belief that a well laid-out e-Portfolio is by far the best means of doing this. See the Ridgwater College site, which is no more than a collaborative e-Portfolio where others can read and respond to articles and submit new artefacts.

The point that I am making is that e-Portfolios are not just for children or students searching for their first job or even for PDP. The same tool, used by the Principal of a college or an 8 yr-old will serve their needs equally well