What kind of e portfolio experiences do beginning teachers need?Ali Messer & John Lodge

Email: a.messer@roehampton.ac.uk

ContextUse of an e-portfolio with Secondary PGCE students.

An opportunity to learn from previous projects to explore ways in which e-portfolios enable professional learning.

TDA-funded project (2010-11).

AimsTo explore the perceptions of:

• colleagues teaching on the PGCE;• students undertaking the course; and• an e-learning adviser at Roehampton.

DataMethodology to explore the perceptions of all PGCE teaching staff, the university e-learning adviser and a single student through:

• semi structured interviews;• artefacts created, selected and reflected upon

by students and added to their e-portfolio; and• a student questionnaire posted on Moodle.

Student A sound recording Student B PowerPoint presentation

Findings1. The software struggled to achieve the project’s aims.2. An e-portfolio needs to offer:

• student control of e-portfolio views; • reflection as well as resource selection;• support for a community of practice; and• ease of use for tutors when guiding students in

resource selection and reflection.

Further questions1. Is the decision-making of beginning teachers

revealed in their resource selection and reflection?

2. What is the correlation between employability and use of e-portfolios? Might there be a causal link?

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