(Page 1 of 4) - Connection and Reflection: Using Electronic Portfolios to Support Comprehensive Teacher Education Programs authored by Wereley, Megan. and Schmidt, Alison.

AACTE 2006 Annual Conference- Creating New Visions for Teacher Education
Presentation Proposal

Strand V: Discerning Quality
Section I: Content
a. Statement of the Issue:
Teacher educations programs, by their very nature, are complex and there is a need to develop an
assessment system that reflects this complexity by documenting teaching candidates’ ongoing
development as reflective educators. Electronic Portfolios allow students to demonstrate their
ongoing acquisition of knowledge and teaching proficiency as well as see connections among
various teaching experiences in field student teaching, college coursework in both content areas
and in pedagogy, and professional standards. This roundtable session will consider the way that
electronic portfolios can showcase the value-added benefits of obtaining licensure from
traditional teacher education programs by allowing students to systematically engage in their own
reflective assessment over an extended period of time. E-Portfolios offer an authentic, broad-
based approach to evaluating knowledge, skills (including ability to use technology), and
dispositions beyond that which is measurable through other means of assessment, such as testing
alone. The public nature of online portfolios allow members of the P-12 community to observe
the teaching candidate’s development as an educator by reviewing e-portfolios, offering
feedback, and observing how the teaching candidate reflects upon and refines their work with P-
12 students.

b. Literature Review:
Teacher education programs have integrated portfolios into their curriculum as a means of
documenting and assessing student work for many years. Portfolios allow students to document
their acquisition of knowledge and proficiency in teaching over an extended period of time
(Campbell, Cignetti, Melenyzer, Nettles & Wyman, 1997; Holland and Lindsey, 2004). The use
of portfolios addresses the concern that transcripts and test scores are not sufficient in assessing a
student’s abilities in the teaching field. Portfolios provide a “more authentic, broad-based and
holistic” means for demonstrating student growth, understanding, and competence (Campbell, et
al, 1997, p.v111).

Recent advancements in technology, along with the development of the National Education
Technology Standards for Students and Teachers (NETS) as well as the inclusion of technology
standards by many state Departments of Education have encouraged the movement towards
electronic versions of portfolios (as opposed to hard copies). Electronic portfolios have taken
different forms in their implementation. In some cases, the portfolio is developed within a series
of courses over time. In other cases, the portfolio project is embedded within one course (Holland
and Lindsey, 2004.).

Current research has shown that there are several advantages in creating electronic portfolios.
They provide a viable solution to the easy storage and recall of the volume of work samples that a
student may choose to showcase. “E-Portfolios make the learner’s work accessible, portable, and
easily distributed” (Hill, 2003). In addition to the materials included in traditional portfolios, such
as essays and lesson plans, electronic portfolios allow students to select a wider range of artifacts.
Student can include digitally edited video of themselves teaching, photo albums, power point
presentations, and audio clips (Berg & Lind, 2003; Wilson et al, 2003). The addition of videos
has allowed students to critique and reflect on their own teaching (Wilson et al., 2003).

Electronic portfolios also permit preservice students to take part in their assessment, engage in
critical and reflective thinking, and gain experience using a variety of forms of technology.
Portfolio projects are drawn from a constructivist approach to learning by allowing students to
construct their own understanding of educational theory and practice. Students actively choose