Week 2 Reflection - Applying Educational Technology

The readings for this week were another reminder of how important it is that we embrace, as learners, what we expect our students to embrace as learners. However, when Dr. Harapunik said, "Grades simply do not reveal skills, knowledge and abilities. Students need to be able to show potential schools or employers what they can do and an eportfolio is one of the tools that many organizations will be looking for to see this evidence of learning and abilities" (Harapnuik, 2015), it also brought to mind the fact that ePortfolios in the world of standardized testing is novel. I love the idea of an ePortfolio and have truly valued being able to build it as I have moved through my graduate work. However, when I think about applying the concept of an ePortfolio in a classroom I struggle to think outside the box. I know that the COVA learning approach has been valuable to me and I know my students gave me their best work in the classroom when I gave them voice and choice in their own learning. But I want to crack the code for how to make this work in a K-12 setting. Our students deserve to have the knowledge and value of a good ePortfolio to showcase themselves beyond high school.

The idea of students being able to answer the questions Harapnuik poses is amazing! "If somebody asked me “What did you do in the laboratory? What did you learn in your education?What did you do?” When I go back to my country, somebody can ask me “What did you do in the US?” This is the only thing I can show them, “This is what I have done. These are my grades, these are my projects, assignments…” They can see everything. It’s me. This is the best thing that I saw through the ePortfolio…(Provezis, 2012)" (Harapnuik, 2015). What if our students were actually able to articulate these things in a unique way through their ePortfolio. I am determined to find the answers and figure out what it will take to make the idea of an ePortfolio happen in public schools. 

Harapnuik, D. (2015). Why Use an ePortfolio [Web log post]. Retrieved November 25, 2020, from http://www.harapnuik.org/?page_id=6063

Harapnuik, D. (2015). Making Meaningful Connections in an ePortfolio [Web log post]. Retrieved November 25, 2020, from http://www.harapnuik.org/?p=5790