Innovation in Language Learning

   This session will discuss how the American College of Education utilizes Capstone Portfolios in Taskstream as a tool for graduate students to demonstrate proficiency in their program outcomes.

Framework: The use of the online portfolio is an effective tool to allow students to demonstrate competency of the program outcomes in addition to demonstrating their proficiency of a variety technology based resources relevant to the modern classroom student.

Description of Practical Application: The purpose of this presentation will be to address the graduate level degree completion requirement used by American College of Education. As an online graduate program, the ACE seeks to utilize technology and assessments that are applicable to modern students who are currently working in educational settings.

Outcomes: American college of education offers an M. Ed. in three different professional fields. As part of the degree completion requirements students complete an online portfolio that demonstrates their mastery of the seven key foundations of the program. In addition, students create additional work samples to highlight their skills of leadership and mastery of graduate level course work and knowledge.  The development of the online portfolio provides the college a method to evaluate student’s mastery of the program outcomes as well as provides students with a professional portfolio that they are able to use in their current and future careers.

Implications: While many graduate programs require graduate students to complete and exit piece; the approach used by ACE allows for students to have a final product that can be used outside of higher education.