e-Portfolio

The book takes a reflective critical look at the idea presented in many countries in Europe and elsewhere that electronic portfolios have the capacity to make a major contribution to supporting education and lifelong learning. The authors analyze and draw together the findings and experiences of practical and well-designed e-portfolio practices. The book's main purpose is to give an idea of the power and range of e-portfolio applications for self-development, individual as well as collaborative learning, and their capacity to make a major contribution to organizational learning. The content of the book is multifaceted and represents quite different perspectives of the field.

The book analyses a number of different electronic portfolio projects in Australia, Belgium, Finland, Norway, UK, and US. While demonstrating the power of e-portfolio applications for self development, and individual and collaborative learning, it also highlights the challenges ahead if the e-portfolio technology is to serve all citizens.

The book covers e-portfolio use in schools, in further and higher education, in professional development, and in transitions between these contexts. It also discusses its use in adult basic skills certification, and with people experiencing phenomena associated with social exclusion, for example learning difficulties or unemployment. The book considers a wide variety of ICT tools, including specific e-portfolio systems, social software such as wikis and blogs, and mobile devices enabling multimodal content and collaborative knowledge creation. The common thread spanning the chapters is the exploration of established and potential future uses of such technologies in service of learning in all its guises.