Quentin's e-Portfolio
ETEC 590: GRADUATING PROJECT
Once you have cooked your dish, it is important to taste and enjoy the fruit of one’s labour. Other times, you need to taste and you see that a few changes were necessary to improve the recipe. This was the process and focus of ETEC 590.
The MET journey and now this ePortfolio was a lot like cooking a multi-course meal using a variety of techniques, skills and recipes. And, like most meals, it is best if shared. And so, as I wrap up the MET journey, I reflect and enjoy with so many that I have met on the journey.
General Reflections on ETEC 590
Brandes and Boskic (2008) note that students want their eportfolios to be “informative and engaging, and at the same time showcase their individualities and their cognitive and emotional involvement in the process of their learning” (p.9). This was the challenge I faced during the course and in the design of this ePortfolio. Obviously, I wanted to fulfill the core requirements but I also wanted this to be a meaningful space for myself and others as well. As I look at my overall project, I feel that I have met both ends that Brandes and Boskic (2008) noted as well as my own goals for this project.
Moreover, Brandes and Boskic (2008) state that “when students understand technological tools and how to use them, their ePortfolios are richer, more complex in the ways in which they illustrate learning. Metaphors and hypertexts become useful vehicles to move away from linearity and chronology towards new organizational modes that better illustrate students’ cognitive processes” (p.14). As I ventured through this process, I kept this idea in mind in the design and layout of my ePortfolio. As such, I have set the design of my ePortfolio in a way that showcases more of the metaphor as well as my own projects that stand out to me. Within each page, I have included many hyperlinks to content both within and beyond the ePortfolio to indicate the interconnectedness of the learning process within and beyond MET.
Artifact 1: e-Portfolio site
As Brandes and Boskic (2008) noted in their observations of a particular cohort of ETEC 590 students, students need to make critical decisions about not only the content and reflections within the ePortfolio, but also the tools to present the ePortfolio. This was an important decision for me as I needed a site that I could easily use and that could embed multimedia within the web pages. Ideally, the platform would have a ready-to-use theme to match my metaphor.
After a bit of searching and trying a variety of platforms, I decided to use a new platform for this website, namely Wix. This was a new challenge and meant I spent extra time learning how to tweak the functionality of various pages in order to get the look and feel I desired. However, I believe that challenges are opportunities for learning as was my experience in designing in Moodle. Each design space has its own unique set of affordance and limitations. This process was no different. Sometimes it required a bit of creative searching on Google to find some ideas to make things work. Other times it required relying on my PLN via Twitter to brainstorm solutions. Other times it meant relying on a few good peers with whom I collaborated with on this project. (See my reflection below for more on that)
Overall, I am pleased with the features that are available with Wix. I enjoyed the ease with which I could embed websites and videos directly into the website. However, embedding documents into the website was a bit more tricky and time-consuming than I would have liked. However, eventually I was able to embed the documents directly into the pages. I believe by having these various artifacts embedded directly into the page gives the ePortfolio a professional look while being able to use hypertexts/hyperlinks in a meaningful way as envisioned by Brandes and Boskic (2008).
Artifact 2: e-Portfolio Proposal
Early on in this course, I had the task of writing out a proposal which needed to include the following:
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a statement of purpose or problem and why it is important
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objective(s) or question(s) that relate to the statement of purpose and problem defined above
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key references or resources to be used
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the procedure to be followed in achieving objective(s) or exploring question(s),
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expected outcomes of project
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time plan for completion and assessment rubric
The proposal should include answers to the following questions:
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What is the purpose of the ePortfolio?
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What / Who is the audience?
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What is the evidence? What will be included?
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How are the media / tools chosen used to effectively enhance the purpose?
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What is the significance in constructing the ePortfolio?
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What can you learn in this process?
Interestingly enough, these proposals were supposed to be no longer than 1000 words. Looking at the six aspects and the six key questions, I could not see how I would accomplish this. My proposal was much longer than 1000 words.
However, to aid my peers, I provided a condensed version of the proposal here. This allowed me to receive valuable feedback on the core essentials, while I was also able to send my full version of my proposal to the course instructor, Dr. Feng.
After some initial feedback, I reworked my proposal and submitted it for final review by Dr. Feng. He provided a few suggestions which have manifested themselves in this website.. I have opted not to re-write my proposal as any and all suggestions are now pertinent to the actual ePortfolio. So, my second version of the proposal stands as the artifact.
I found that by spending an extensive amount of time planning out and writing my proposal helped me in the design and layout of my actual ePortfolio. I was able to break down the key components of my proposal into various sections into a Google Doc that I used to plan my overall ePortfolio.
Artifact 3: Collaborative Efforts
Collaboration has been foundational to my MET experience, and this course was no different. I am glad for supportive colleagues who are available synchronously and asynchronously. Their feedback was invaluable and I am glad to have shared and to presently share the fruits of my labour with them.
I benefited from an ongoing dialogue with a few peers via Google Docs and Twitter. The ongoing feedback to my ePortfolio was timely and encouraging. I also received formal feedback from peers within the ETEC 590 course which was also very beneficial. Their specific feedback on my artifacts and page layouts and designs was very helpful. This encouraged me to consider new page designs and menu options which I decided to incorporate. Of course, Dr. Feng also provided timely advice to ensure that I was on the right track.
I also put out a link of my work in progress on Twitter. A MET graduate and a peer in one of my previous courses was very encouraging and also re-tweeted my link to give me a new connection to my PLN and further feedback. Again, this shows the power of Twitter and how it is a useful tool!
As I reflect on the process of completing this project, I can see the progress that I've made and the collaborative efforts that have made this possible and I am thankful to each one that provided feedback on my final project.
(Below are some screenshots of the feedback I received during the making of this project)
Feedback on my eP proposal of my condensed verson on Google Docs.
Feedback on my eP via Twitter
Snapshot of conversation between myself and D'Alice Marsh on my eP Planning document
Feedback on my eP via Twitter
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