Implementing Electronic Portfolios: Benefits, Challenges, and Suggestions

Many universities use electronic portfolios (e-folios) to collect student work and assessment data for accreditation purposes at either the program or unit level. Programs within teacher education can include early childhood, elementary, middle level, and secondary education. For accreditation, each program is responsible for meeting a specific standard set for that program. Teacher-education programs must align their curricula and student outcomes with state and national teacher-education standards. These standards provide direction for the selection and inclusion of artifacts in the e-folio and affect its organization. With e-folios, students can enter evidence such as lesson plans, parent communication samples, and implemented assessment strategies. Evaluation data are aggregated and disaggregated to demonstrate that a program meets the necessary standards and to highlight the program's strengths and weaknesses. Colleges of education can use the data to guide changes in their curricula. This research describes the lessons learned during initial implementation of e-folios at four teacher education programs. (Contains 2 tables and 26 endnotes.)