PRONOUNS: She/Her/Hers
University of Cincinnati, Blue Ash College
Special Issue of Journal of Research and Practice in College Teaching: ePortfolio Case Studies
UC's General Education: key competencies in Written Communication, Information Literacy, Critical Thinking, Civic Engagement, and Integrative Learning
The portfolios came from different disciplines, at different stages in students' careers, and were on a variety of eportfolio platforms.
A team of researchers from different departments using eportfolios conducted this assessment as a pilot to determine whether the AAC&U Value Rubrics could be applied by others at the University to assess general education outcomes.
We found that eportfolio assignments curated in the portfolio must address the learning outcomes that will be assessed, but they don't have to be the same type of assignment or address the same content to be assessed.
Instructors need to provide guidance on how to demonstrate learning in the eportfolio and provide reflective assignments on their learning to inform the assessment process.
Reflection is a threshold concept for effective eportfolio implementation.
RUBRIC DEVELOPMENT BACKGROUND
From 2007 to 2009, teams of faculty experts representing colleges and universities across the United States worked together to develop 16 VALUE rubrics. The rubrics articulate fundamental criteria for the related learning outcomes and include performance descriptors demonstrating progressively more sophisticated levels of attainment. Utilized by more than 5,600 discrete organizations across 142 countries, the VALUE rubrics have made an essential contribution to the dialogue on the assessment of college learning. (AAC&U, 2023)
The AAC&U Value Rubrics worked well in this pilot and are being recommended for a new institution-wide assessment of general education.
2,902 Colleges and universities have downloaded these rubrics as of September 2023 (AAC&U)
Faculty cannot edit the Value Rubrics, but there are resources to tailor assignment rubrics so they align with the Value Rubrics.
There is an opportunity to participate in AAC&U calibration training.
Students did not have access to the rubrics prior to submitting their work as this was a pilot of an institution-wide assessment process.
We believe students should have access to the rubrics prior to documenting their learning, which would require instructors to add general education expectations to their specific courses.
The ePortfolio rubric is an important tool to assist instructors in thinking through how to help students document their learning. The rubric criteria need to be clearly limited in scope so they can be identified within the variability of portfolio artifacts. A rubric that is too broad does not help because it relies too much on individual interpretation, which leads to an ineffective assessment.
Benefits include creating a context for colleagues to come together to view the range of student work being assessed, gaining a programmatic view of the student experience, and discussing student learning.
Limitations include a lack of reflection to contextualize student work and a lack of student work that addresses the outcomes being assessed.
Assessors need to be able to discuss the application of the rubric with each other from creation to application, to analysis of the results. Assessment done individually, in isolation, is less effective in assessing the interpretation of the rubric in the context of student work and assessment of student needs as evidenced by the portfolio.
Brenda is working with the University's General Education Committee to suggest using the AAC&U's Value Rubrics as a means of assessment across the institution.
Ruth is working with professional development groups at the university to address the technology learning bottleneck of the "e" in eportfolios as well as the threshold concept of reflection in the eportfolio process.
