ERIC Number: ED504846
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2009-Apr-16
Pages: 32
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Experiential Learning E-Portfolios: Promoting Connections between Academic and Workplace Learning Utilizing Information and Communication Technologies
Brown, Judith O.
Online Submission, Paper presented at the American Educational Research Association (AERA) Meeting (Annual, San Diego, CA, Apr 13-17, 2009)
The purpose of this paper is to examine the experiential learning e-portfolio's potential to promote connections between academic and workplace learning (Brown, 2000, 2002). Sometimes referred to as the Digital Notebook, the e-portfolio allows learners to trace the development of their thinking and learning over time and to show their competencies to the university and to employers (Maloney, 2007). The paper focuses on the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in experiential or career-based e-portfolios developed by adult learners to connect learning in educational institutions to that of the workplace. Two case studies of e-portfolio pilot programs are described by the author to support the value of e-portfolios in demonstrating and articulating on-the-job knowledge acquisition equitable to college-level learning. Surveys of the study participants and a focus group of the first group were used to gain an understanding of e-portfolio development from the adult learners' perspective. The results indicate that participants increased their technical skills and demonstration of learning in a high tech format and more fully recognized the connection between academic and professional competencies. Thus, the recognition of the workplace as an important site of learning and theory building may be enhanced by the creation of work-based e-portfolios for the benefit of the individual, the academy and the workplace. In the case of the experiential learning e-portfolio, the utilization of photos, videos, hyperlinks and other information and communication technologies has the potential to present a different dynamic to the process of assessing college-level no matter where it occurs (Pre- and Post-ELEP surveys are appended. Contains 2 tables.)
Descriptors: Portfolios (Background Materials), Pilot Projects, Focus Groups, Experiential Learning, Adult Learning, Adult Students, Education Work Relationship, Student Attitudes, Student Surveys, On the Job Training, Undergraduate Students, Technology Uses in Education, Electronic Publishing, Information Technology, Educational Technology, Computer Mediated Communication
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive; Speeches/Meeting Papers; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A