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Personal Development Planning for Lifelong Learning

Lead Contact: Janet Hanson (jhanson@bournemouth.ac.uk)

JISC Programme: Distributed e-Learning programme

Lead Institution and Partners: Bournemouth University (L), Arts Institute at Bournemouth, College of St Mark & St John (Marjon), Dartington College of Arts, Open University, University of Bristol, University of Gloucestershire, University of Plymouth, Weymouth College, Falmouth University, University Centre Yeovil

Project Dates: March 2005 - April 2007

Case study tags: e-portfolios, bournemouth university, e-portfolios for application, e-portfolios considerations - defining requirements, learner perspectives on e-portfolios, e-portfolios for cpd and pdp, e-portfolios for planning, practitioner perspectives on e-portfolios, e-portfolios considerations - web 2.0

Background & Context

What is the background to the e-portfolio initiative?

The context for PDP4Life is the requirement for Progress Files and Personal Development Planning (PDP) in higher education and the development of the regional Lifelong Learning Networks (LLN) in support of learner progression between and through learning stages. Many HEIs have developed e-PDP systems that support the student through the processes of personal development planning at their own site. However, little work appeared to have been done on developing frameworks within e-PDP systems to enable learners to merge formal and informal records of learning into a single database, to transfer these records from one institutional learning environment to another, or to access and manipulate their learner records when not registered within a place of study.

The project partners sought to address these issues by building on the outputs of the SHELL project. SHELL had established the specification for formal learner records and data transfer protocols and the transfer of learner records between sites had been achieved through the ioNode technology. A database holding the learner records could be accessed through a generic learner portal. SHELL had also begun to develop the structure and specification for the core elements of the informal learning record in the PDP.

Many of the PDP4Life partners had developed localised frameworks for PDPs and began to realise that interoperability must have a much higher priority if the regional priorities for progression and lifelong learning are to be achieved.

The creative industries (CI) sector is a regional economic priority sector for the South West region, and since several of the PDP4Life partners have high profiles in this area, the project decided to focus on PDP for learners in the creative industries as well as more generically.

What are the aims and objectives of the initiative?

The aims of the project were to:

Work towards the extension of the existing specification for an Individual Learner Record that currently records formal qualifications, in order for it to accept learner generated records of informal learning from local PDP systems. An extension of this was to further investigate creative industries employers' views about PDP and lifelong learning records
Compare the nature of the formal learner records of PDP4Life partners with those generated by SHELL and work towards establishing common data export and transfer protocols for a CSV file for import into the ioNode system. This would enable PDP4Life institutions to link into the ioNode/database framework when appropriate hardware and software was available
Pilot the ioNode technology through the installation of ioNode at Bournemouth to enable comparison of data transfer between sites. This included an evaluation of the revised ioPortal
Establish the extent of local ePDP systems within the PDP4Life partners and encourage further development and sharing of good practice
Raise awareness within the PDP4Life partners of the availability of IMS LIP/UK LeaP compatible ePDP/ePortfolio systems that have been or are being developed within the JISC community and pilot appropriate tools if feasible as well as raise awareness of best practice in PDP across the regional HEIs

The overall approach of the project was to encourage networking between the partners in the South West region to share experiences and practice in PDP and to develop an extended specification for a learner record that merged formal and informal records of learning, with a specific focus on the creative industries (CI) sector.

How was the initiative implemented?

As a region-wide project, the overall methodology was designed to engage all the partners as fully as possible and enable them to contribute their own expertise to the development of project outcomes that would be of value to themselves and the region. However, the focus was on learning from partners and providing them with an opportunity to contribute rather than expecting them to implement a standard system within their institutions.

All partners were invited to contribute to the extension of the learner record (LR) specification, to compare their formal learner records with those generated by SHELL and to contribute to the review of existing PDP activity and ePDP/e-portfolio tools. Subject to this review, and depending on their institutional context for PDP, some partners took part in the piloting of the JISC e-portfolio tools.

The implementation of the project involved:

Setting up the consortium and securing engagement of other regional HEIs at the bidding stage. This involved building on existing collaborative partnerships and networks
Minimising the risk to project outcomes by writing objectives that could be enacted independently of each other and using dummy student data to test the ioNodes to avoid any legal issues associated with using live data
The development of the extended learner record specification by identifying the current outputs from partners' local PDP systems with a view to adding fields to the SHELL specification and mapping them to the draft UKLeaP standards
Testing data transfer through the ioNode and unanticipated developments with the ioPortal
Bringing people together to engage and maintain enthusiasm and share best practice through a number of regional events
Identifying the issues relating to the use of PDP and the potential for lifelong learning records in creative industries by working through focus groups with students, staff and employers from various subject areas. 10 focus groups in all were held, involving 56 participants
Enhancements to the ioPortal prototype for PDP4Life and the evaluation of these with a series of focus groups with a number of partner institutions

Technology Used

What technologies and/or e-tools were available to you or did you seek to develop?

At the start of the project, the final acceptance testing of the iNodes was required and negotiations with the University of Plymouth took place over continuing access to the SHELL server and database during the life period of PDP4Life.

The feasibility of transferring learner records data securely between institutions and from institutions to a repository was tested by piloting the ioNode technology and comparing it with the use of VPN architecture.

The three other projects in the DeL programme using ioNode were each responsible for developing an additional tool in the original portal developed for SHELL. By the time the project had developed its specification, the potential for building on the partners' experience of articulating PDP processes and incorporating a PDP process tool with the ioPortal concept was feasible.

The main activities undertaken through the project's extension periods were the enhancements to the ioPortal prototype and the evaluation of these with a series of focus groups with a number of partner institutions.

By the end of the first phase of the DeL projects, PhosphoriX (ioNodes supplier) had developed several aspects of ioPortal functionality through work with other projects such as EELLS and the iceBox that became available for PDP4Life to take advantage of during its extension phase. It was agreed that a prototype ioPortal would be developed that had a PDP4Life 'skin' and featured systems that would:

enable data inputs relevant to PDP to be loaded into an inbox as a trigger for personal learning and development activities by the learner using the PDP guidance located within it
provide a facility for locked categories of information and read-only documents that cannot be altered by the learner

This prototype was evaluated using 5 focus groups that included about 120 participants drawn from academic staff and students at 4 of the partner institutions. They were all attended by a representative from Phosphorix, enabling direct input to the company as part of the upgrading of the ioPortal.

Success Factors

What are the key outcomes of the initiative?

PDP4Life has made a significant contribution to the body of knowledge on PDP through the development of the draft specification mapped to UKLeaP. Although no clear agreement in the field of interoperability has yet been reached, it has been suggested that PDP4Life and other similar projects should work together to develop consensus on how to work together towards interoperability.

The project has enabled the partners to review their PDP systems and contribute to a specification that has the potential to underpin their local development without the need to impose a one-size-fits-all template on individual institutions.

The project demonstrated that the use of ioNode for secure data transfer of learner records from one location to another is replicable. The project has not yet demonstrated that it is possible to export locally derived e-PDP data and transfer it to the lifelong learner record. The project has also enabled the development of the ioPortal prototype as a mechanism for the testing of attitudes to e-portfolios and e-PDP. The outcomes of PDP4Life are being taken forward through the work being undertaken for PDP4XL2 between October 2006 and September 2008 which will see further development of the ioPortal prototype.

The project has raised the profile of PDP processes and approaches in the creative industries and contributed the findings about PDP for this domain into the debate about the value of PDP through extensive dissemination activities in the South West region. Specific benefit for the education community has been achieved by highlighting the perceptions of stakeholders in creative industries towards PDP. This can inform curriculum development and careers guidance within HE programmes that support students' progression into employment in this sector.

Important links have been made between the project and the Lifelong Learning Networks in the South West. This project has been a useful vehicle for raising the profile of PDP approaches among the Higher Education Institutions in the South West. It has been interesting to note the diversity of these approaches and the different stages of development across the partners, from single departmental initiatives to institute-wide implementation. This has obviously had an impact on each partner's engagement with a project like this. The project has also encouraged closer collaboration between information management and learning and teaching professionals.

All the partners gained greater understanding of current ePDP/ePortfolio systems, but their readiness to adopt any of the systems was limited by their institutional contexts. This restricted the opportunities for partners to trial open source products with user groups but case studies on the use of PebblePAD and PROFILE have been developed.

What follow-up activity will be/has been carried out as a result of the project?

The project's dissemination activities have been numerous and widespread. In addition to the project website and project conferences details about the project have been disseminated through conference presentations and publications.

The outcomes of PDP4Life were taken forward through work undertaken for the PDP4XL2 project which saw further development of the ioPortal prototype.

Lessons Learned

What are the lessons learned from the project?

Student Perceptions

The results of the focus groups showed that students found it difficult to project into the future regarding their lifelong learning needs. They were very focused on their CV for their first job and only wanted to present their best work. They did not see the point in retaining past work, especially from school. The Creative Industry students reported that hard copy and a physical portfolio are very important to them. These students were more familiar with the concept of self-evaluation and reflective practice than students generally, since it was often an important element of their course. None of them really grasped the concept that the learner record was in their control, to choose to share with others or not. There was concern expressed at the idea of a state-controlled 'big brother' style lifelong learning e-portfolio.

Employer Perceptions

The employers surveyed reported that they would not be interested in the detail in the PDP record, since they would not have time to read more than one side of A4. Academic staff still needed to be convinced of the value of PDP more broadly, since it appeared to involve additional work for both tutors and students.

Transition from FE to HE

The project has demonstrated that more work needs to be done to explore the issues relating to PDP and its support for learners' transition between FE and HE in the region. Further work on this has been identified that could be carried forward through the Lifelong Learning Networks as they begin to consider and develop their systems for PDP.