An e-mail comment from one reviewer:
“In reviewing about 100-some-odd accreditation reports in the last few months, it has been useful in our work here at Washington State University to distinguish ‘stuff’ from evidence. We have adopted an understanding that evidence is material or data that has been analyzed and that can be used, as dictionary definitions state, as ‘proof.’ A student gathers ‘stuff’ in the ePortfolio, selects, reflects, etc., and presents evidence that makes a case (or not)… The use of this distinction has been indispensable here. An embarrassing amount of academic assessment work culminates in the presentation of ‘stuff’ that has not been analyzed--student evaluations, grades, pass rates, retention, etc. After reading these ‘self studies,’ we ask the stumping question--fine, but what have you learned? Much of the ‘evidence’ we review has been presented without thought or with the general assumption that it is somehow self-evident… But too often that kind of evidence has not focused on an issue or problem or question. It is evidence that provides proof of nothing.
Theron DesRosier on 18 Mar 09irst, ePortfolios can integrate student learning in an expanded range of media, literacies, and viable intellectual work. As the robust ePortfolio projects at Washington State, Clemson, and Pennsylvania State Universities illustrate, ePortfolios enable students to collect work and reflections on their learning through text, imagery, and multimedia artifacts. Given that we are already living in a culture where visual communication is as influential as written text, the ability to represent learning through integrated media will be essential.
