Dennis AndersonChristelle Scharff

Susan Feather-Gannon

Copyright © 2003

Enhancing Academic Achievement: Facilitating E-

Portfolio DevelopmentLearning Conference

July 17, 2003 London, UK

Acknowledgments

National Science Foundation

Overview

1. What is CSEMS?

2. Assessment

3. The E-Portfolio as an Assessment Tool

4. Findings

5. Model We Developed – Step by Step

6. Develop a Model for Your Own Community

1. What is CSEMS?• National Science Foundation, http://www.nsf.gov• Computer Science, Engineering, and

Mathematics Scholarships (CSEMS) http://www.ehr.nsf.gov/ehr/due/programs/csems/

• Overview“This program supports scholarships for academically talented, financially needy students, enabling them to enter the high-technology workforce following completion of an associate, baccalaureate, or graduate-level degree in computer science, computer technology, engineering, engineering technology, or mathematics. Academic institutions apply for awards to support scholarship activities and are responsible for selecting scholarship recipients.” NSF

Pace UniversitySchool of Computer Science and Information

Systems

• NSF awarded a grant of approximately $200,000 for CSEMS in 2001.

• Project - Selection Committee, Recruitment, Application Procedure, Support Services, and Assessment

2. Assessment

• Major initiative and mission at Pace University

• Assessment of student learning and development“A systematic process of setting goals for or asking questions about student learning, gathering evidence, interpreting it, and using it to improve the effects of college on students’ learning and development.”

American Association of Higher Education

The Teaching Improvement Loop

Framework for Outcomes Assessment, Commission on Higher Education, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.

3. The E-portfolio as an Assessment Tool

• An E-portfolio is an online collection of student work available for a wide audience: students, professors, parents, administrators, employers and other evaluators.

• “The portfolio materials are created and stored in a digitized form (e.g. floppy disk, compact disk, computer network) with students often collaborating electronically on projects and sharing their work with other students and the instructor during the course of a semester."

Gail Hawisher and Cynthia Selfe in "Wedding the Technologies of Writing Portfolios and Computers: The Challenges of Electronic Classrooms" in Situating Portfolios ed. by Kathleen Blake Yancey and Irwin Weiner, Utah State University Press, 1997.

Pilot

• Group of 29 full-time students in computing majors.

• Components of the E-portfolio• Resume• Projects related to coursework• Hobbies and extra-curricular activities• Reflective logs

• Example of an E-portfolio:

http://matrix.csis.pace.edu/~csems-s028/

E-PORTFOLIO ASSESSMENT RUBRIC

Category Beginning(1)

Developing(2)

Exemplary(3)

 

Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting a beginning level of performance

Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting development and movement toward mastery of performance.

Description of identifiable performance characteristics reflecting the highest level of performance.

Content Partial inclusion of E-portfolio components included, but missing and/or inaccurate samples.

Almost complete representation of E-portfolio components with minor revisions to complete the document.

Thorough representation of error-free components of E-portfolio.

Presentation Some Web design techniques applied, but some Web pages need to be revised (color, font, etc.).

Most pages in E-portfolio follow good Web design techniques with some improvement needed.

All pages of E-portfolio adhere to Web design guidelines.

Organization Rearrangement of links to pages needs to be done, not all pages easily navigated and presented in logical order.

Minor changes in organization need to be made.

All pages of E-portfolio are logically organized and site is easily navigated.

4. Findings

• E-Portfolio assessment seemed appropriate based on expected outcomes: timely graduation, retention (100%), and professional and academic achievements.

Additional hours that would be worked without the CSEMSGPA improvementInternshipsGraduate program applicationsImproved self-esteem (student feedback)

Additional hours that would be worked without the NSF

CSEMS

GPA Improvement

• Before projectAverage: 3.36

• After projectAverage: 3.51

8

1011

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

2.6-3.1 3.2-3.4 3.5-4.0

9

7

13

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

2.6-3.1 3.2-3.4 3.5-4.0

Internships

• 12 students have internships• Companies: Axa Financial, Sun

Microsystems, Barnes and Noble, etc.

Graduate Program Applications

• Five (5) students applied to graduate school.

Student Feedback• “The E-Portfolio project is a great opportunity to

summarize what kind of progress you have done in life and what would you like to achieve in the future.”

• “This project is a great opportunity to show my skills in web development as well as provide information about myself which might be valuable for potential employers.”

• “I believe that this project will continue and help many new students in their path to success in the Computer Science world.”

• “Participating in the E-portfolio project has, more than anything else, allowed me to see myself as a valued asset in today's job market. It helped me organize my skills and achievements in a manner most representative of real world demands. Not only that, the E-portfolio project has also left a permanent mark, more powerful than a mere resume, that I can use in my career development.”

Student Feedback (cont’d.)

Student Feedback (cont’d.)

• “Being part of the E-portfolio project was a great opportunity for me, because it allows [sic] me to consolidate all of my accomplishments onto one Website.  I am allowed to show to the world my capabilities directly from the public Internet.  Furthermore, I can look back on it and know what I have accomplished and think about what I want to accomplish next.”

5. Designing E-Portfolios for Your Students

Step 1: Research E-portfolio projects that have already been done—components, etc.

Step 2: Work in a faculty team.Step 3: Seek additional assistance—project

assistant and technical support team. Step 4: Advertise the project, explain the

purpose of an E-portfolio and its potential outcomes, and find volunteers.

Step 5: Limit the student:mentor ratio to permit individual attention (6-8 students for each faculty member).

Step 6: Know your students’ backgrounds (education, extra-curricular activities, etc.) by collecting information (administrative forms, individual interviews . . .).

Step 7: Set up goals for each student (including academic performance and individual program goals).

Step 8: Identify areas in which students need improvement.

5. Designing E-Portfolios for Your Students

Step 9: Guide students in resume writing and Web design issues.

Step 10: Motivate students to begin creating their E-portfolios (HTML skeleton and resume). (Explain that their E-portfolio is a work-in-progress!)

Step 11: Organize extracurricular activities for the students (seminars, tutorials, information sessions).

5. Designing E-Portfolios for Your Students

Step 12: Bring students in for feedback on their E-portfolios.

Step 13: Confirm E-portfolio improvement (follow-through on feedback in Step 12).

5. Designing E-Portfolios for Your Students

Step 14: Conduct exit interviews.

Questions?

Your Task: Develop a Model for Your Own Community

Team formationDescription of student populationCriteria for assessmentComponents of the E-portfolioShare your findings