e-Portfolio Case Study ePPSME (An e-portfolio based Pedagogy for Small to Medium-sized Enterprises)
Lead Contact: Alison Felce
JISC Programme: Institutional Innovation Programme, Lifelong Learning and Workforce Development
Lead Institution and Partners: University of Wolverhampton (later Benefits Realisation project ePCoP) linked with Universities of Nottingham, Aston, Gloucestershire, UCLAN, plus CRA and JISC infoNet.
Project Dates: April 2009 - March 2011
Case study tags: online learning, e-portfolios,university of wolverhampton, e-portfolios for application, e-portfolios for assessment,employer perspectives on e-portfolios,lifelong learning drivers for e-portfolios, e-portfolios for supporting learning processes
Background & Context
What is the background to the e-portfolio initiative?
ePPSME, was a project of the LLLWFD programme, phase 3 of the JISC Institutional Innovation Programme.
Project
The University of Wolverhampton had long been committed to employer engagement and delivering Continuing Professional Development (CPD) to local, regional national and international markets. A key provider of Knowledge Transfer Partnerships (KTPs) it has annually received Lord Stafford Awards for innovative work with businesses.
The University had established a subsidiary company to build employer links, and appointed a work-based learning specialist to work in the Institute for Learning Enhancement collaborating with the company, the Blended Learning Unit and a 'work-based learning network' from the eight academic Schools. The University's considerable experience of e-portfolio uses within the undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum was demonstrated through the successful HEA Pathfinders project, implementing e-portfolio use across the Level 1 curriculum, through the nationally recognised pool of e-portfolio expertise in the University and through receipt of a platinum award for global learning impact.
Many of the university's Schools had strong employer engagement connections, particularly the Schools of Health and Wellbeing, Education, and Technology. Widespread use of e-portfolio in the undergraduate and postgraduate curriculum in all the Schools, was systematically embedded across the HE Level 4 curriculum from 2008. A review of the undergraduate curriculum in 2009 ensured full, engagement with e-portfolios across all HE levels from 2010.
A later JISC funded Benefits Realisation project extended the ePPSME work to a wider community through development of an e-portfolio-based Pedagogies Community of Practice (ePCoP), linked with other institutions including, Nottingham, Aston, Gloucestershire, UCLAN, CRA and JISC infoNet.
What were the aims and objectives of the initiative?
The aim of this project was to provide the HE sector with reusable models and resources for an e-portfolio based pedagogy to address the needs of small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) based learners.
To do this by developing processes to:
Address the needs of SME based learners linked to the performance needs of the enterprise and individual learners; enable academic teachers to develop responsive, context sensitive, bespoke e-portfolio based curricula; negotiate e-portfolio based learning experiences ; the speedy passage from learner needs' analysis to deliverable, quality assured curricula; generating a range of work-based learning modules within a flexible accreditation framework.
How was the initiative implemented?
Give details here of the roll-out of the initiative including
- Methodologies
- Key tasks/activities
- Issues and challenges which emerged and how you addressed/overcame these
- Evaluation
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The project aimed to work with SMEs within the West Midlands area i.e. organisations with fewer than 250 employees and within approximately 20 mile radius of the University of Wolverhampton. This project was intended as a pilot to include 3 or 4 employers from within the private sector and covering a range of business sectors such as construction, engineering and IT.
The project adopted a participative action research approach through a series of design workshops and consecutive pilot study units to develop the use of an e-portfolio tool as a virtual learning environment and personal learning space to introduce and develop the learners' reflective practice around targeted learning content. Market research was undertaken to determine common themes in business and learner needs leading to the setting of learning outcomes and content for the study units, each of which equates to 50 notional hours of learner effort (5 HE credits). Learners can combine units of study and submit summative assessment to achieve 20 HE credits.
Initial study units in the pilot subjects were based around a webfolio structure using three types of blog-based engagement: individual activity responses, group collaborative discussions, personal critical reflections. Ease of use was achieved through targeting typical skills required for activities such as web-browsing and simple word-processing to avoid deterring learners who lack confidence in their IT competencies.
In addition to some incompatibility between Pebble pad and early version webfolios which were resolved there was reference to early non-engagement that was also resolved as the project gained momentum. On-going project formative interim evaluation culminated in an external evaluator's final report.
Technology Used
What technologies and/or e-tools were available to you or did you seek to develop?
Webfolios and Pebblepad
With Pebble Learning Ltd developed auto-download and auto-publish functions to overcome problems students were encountering in accessing their learning materials. These functions have now been rolled out across all PebblePad users (with version 2.4.1 or above) in both the UK and international markets. They are being used for traditional taught programmes in Higher Education and Further Education as well as for Continuing Professional Development and our original target group, work-based learners.
One of the reasons for choosing PebblePad as the learning environment was the wide range of in-built tools that can create a record of individual learning episodes that can later be built into a reflective narrative. We wanted our learners to be able to start to create a rich repository of their learning activities that could continue to be developed through subsequent ePPSME units, summatively assessed modules and other formal and informal learning opportunities.
Success Factors
What are the key outcomes of the initiative?
Prior to undertaking this project the University of Wolverhampton did not have a pedagogy to meet or support the needs of learners in small to medium-sized enterprises; nor was there a University-wide approach to designing learning to meet this learner group.
The ePPSME project has met its goal to provide the HE sector with reusable models and resources for an e-portfolio based pedagogy for small to medium-sized enterprise (SME)-based learners. It has enabled the University to provide HE learning opportunities to work-based learners to meet individuals' learning needs and provide cost-effective and sustainable business for the University. Academic staff have improved ability to negotiate and provide learning solutions for work-based learners and have been involved in staff development that will enable them to meet the future business of the University.
Learners are able to build their learning within a personal learning system allowing them to develop reflexive practice and include other formal and informal learning episodes. They can study a single 'taster' unit before committing to a larger course and combine units into modules to meet their personal learning needs. Employers can support employees in providing access to learning opportunities that will benefit business with minimum impact on employee absence from work.
The speedy quality assurance and validation processes developed can be used for individual units and CPD activities to ensure fast response and turn-round times required by many clients. It has piloted IT registration and support for learners enrolling on these smaller units of study.
What follow-up activity will be/has been carried out as a result of the project?
In addition to internal dissemination, and project reports, the ePPSME project contributed to the following external dissemination activities that are detailed in their final report:
- 9 conferences
- 7 journals and a book chapter
- radio interview and 5 press releases
- LLLWFD project assemblies
- Workshops
A considerable collection of resources related to the project work, outputs and outcomes is publicly available on the project website.
Alternative uses of the pedagogy identified in earlier sections e.g. their use as 'taster' units or as an introductory engagement on foundation degrees, will be the subject of further work at the University, and have the potential for development in other institutions to suit their specific needs and strategic priorities. What we have learned and the principles we have developed, along with the systems and processes now embedded within the University, will inform and support our future curriculum development in the new marketplaces in which we will seek to have an impact.
An important consideration for work-based learners is the potential for APEL. Not able to build or prove this aspect of the pedagogy within the pilot structure developed, Wolverhampton is now piloting an APL application process, within the e-portfolio tool.
All outputs from the project will be maintained within the project website, for a minimum period of three years and will be maintained by the Institute for Learning Enhancement at the University of Wolverhampton. The ePPSME project is leading a Benefits Realisation Project to develop an e-portfolio-based Pedagogies Community of Practice (ePCoP), which has set up a virtual community in Cloudworks which will act as a user group once the projects are completed. In addition, interested users can join other JISC fora and/or ELESIG; Pebble Learning Ltd run Pebble Users' Groups. Outputs and commentary on the ePCoP project will be published via the project website.
Lessons Learned
What are the lessons learned from the project?
The following twelve lessons learnt are itemised in section 3.2 of the ePPSME final report which provides details on each of:
3.2.1 An e-portfolio based pedagogy can be used for work-based learners
3.2.2 A set of key pedagogic principles for the e-portfolio based pedagogy
- Scaffold the e-portfolio
- Include reflection on learning
- Design context sensitive e-support
- Make it easy to use/intuitive
- Use to record formal/informal learning
- Use to support bite-sized learning
- Can be structured into larger awards
- Needs to be transferable and portable
3.2.3 Action research is an effective methodology to enable solutions to be developed
3.2.4 Our e-portfolio based pedagogy was accessible to work-based learners
3.2.5 Learners started to develop a reflexive approach to practice
3.2.6 Mixed opinions about on-line asynchronous learning
3.2.7 An e-portfolio can support assessment through a patchwork text methodology
3.2.8 Bite-sized units can contribute to an HE award
3.2.9 An e-portfolio based pedagogy can support accreditation of prior experiential learning (APEL)
3.2.10 We have developed processes and systems to support our target learners
3.2.11 The importance of involving key stakeholders
3.2.12 It is beneficial to use a range of evaluation techniques
Further Resources
Project website with links to all outputs, conferences, videos and reports etc
Final report of ePPSME project
ePCoP discussion fora in Cloudworks
External evaluator's final report: external evaluator's report
