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Portfolio Types
For a long time one made the difference between developmental, assessment and showcase ePortfolios. Although there is still some valididy in these categories, the frontiers have now blurred and expanded with the lifelong and lifewide ePortfolio as well as the concept of personal and organisaltional learning environments (POLE).
"a portfolio without standards, goals and/or reflection is just a fancy resume, not an electronic portfolio." Helen Barrett
Developmental Portfolios: they are work in progress portfolios, supporting the development of knowledge and competencies over a period of time that could/should be lifelong. The audience is the author as well as the people supporting the developmental process that can be peers, colleagues or educational staff. Learning portfolios as well as personal development and continuing professional development portfolios are in this category.
Assessment Portfolios: they can be of very different nature depending on the vision of assessment - assessment of learning, assessment for learning or assessment as learning. In the first instance, assessment of learning, this can be a simple snapshot portfolio demonstrating the knowledge and competencies acquired by a person at a certain period in time. In a system or institution that values assessment as a way to learn, then this could be closer to a work in progress.
Showcase Portfolios: they are snapshot portfolios, demonstrating exemplary work to gain recognition by peers or employers. A résumé could be the frontpage of a showcase portfolio.
One should remark that these definitions apply to paper-based portfolios as well as electronic portfolios. Development, assessment and showcase ePortfolios could simply be done with paperless portfolios. So one should ask whether the use of technology can lead to the creation of different types of portfolios that are not simply the reproduction with digital technology of what we were able to do before without it?
Digital identity might be the response to this question, i.e. the use of technology to support the construction and expression of one's identity. Education and learning is about the construction of one's identity and this construction is a social process - hence the role of social networks in modern ePortfolios.
While the previous definitions focus on individual learning one should explore other types of ePortfolios for different kinds of learning entities such as learning communities, learning organisations or even learning regions and cities. What do
look like? This is the objective of this site to explore those challenges.
