New Perspectives in Science Education

Portfolios have long been the showcase tools for artists; expressions of competencies, to showcase work in progress and work finished. Portfolios are collections of work designed for a specific purpose i.e. to provide a record of accomplishments. An electronic portfolio (e-portfolio) can be defined as a digital enactment of a portfolio. Portfolios can be viewed online through an intranet or internet connection depending on the level of privacy desired by the stakeholder.

Portfolio implementations are best viewed as a continuum; they are work in progress.  They evolve over a period of time through group interaction and discourse. The expressions of learning in an e-portfolio can range from lower order thinking skills such as a PowerPoint presentation or a written report to higher order thinking skills as seen in a wiki, a reflective journal or a podcast.

To align with learning, e-portfolios should offer students the opportunity to self- assess and record their learning experiences from a life long learning perspective. As colleges implement e-portfolios it will be important to do more than just replicate their paper based predecessors or adopt a system where a folder is created to store copies of static non-evolving papers. E-portfolios align with constructivist theories in that students construct their own portfolio, take charge of what it contains, reflect on what makes an entry good or better than others and use this information to make improvements or changes. As lecturers or mentors /supervisors advise on content, the student takes on the responsibility of collecting materials, selecting what is relevant and reflecting on the content.

Under the Programme for Research in Third Level Institutes (PRTLI) Cycle V, CIT received funding to establish and develop structured PhD education for Life Sciences. This programme called Ed4Life, aims to strengthen existing PhD education in the area of life sciences and develops industrial interaction and collaboration which is particularly relevant for the biomedical device and biopharmaceutical industries. In addition to research, which is the fundamental part of PhD training, students take modules on transferable skills such as academic writing, career planning, teambuilding and networking, communication in addition to subject specific modules such as for example  entrepreneurship and research ethics.

This paper reviews and explores the potential use of e-portfolios in both undergraduate courses and postgraduate research training. We examine the infrastructure of the portfolio and examine whether the goal of the portfolio is reached i.e. student engagement. We also examine the student experience and feedback of the process. We question the effective use of e portfolios in graduate education and review how graduate attributes (e.g. communication skills, thinking, learning to learn and professional skills) can be documented in an e-portfolio and  how these skills can be measured and assessed.