1. AAEEBL ePortfolio World Summit 2011 Choosing ePortfolio Software Lynn Ward Indiana University July 26, 2011

2. Put User Needs First Identify primary and secondary purposes Who are your users and stakeholders? What is the value proposition for each? What are their needs and expectations? Focus on functional needs (what they need to do), not technical (how they need/want to do it) Create a needs matrix and prioritize (must have, should have, nice to have) and use it to evaluate solutions

3. Requirements Matrix Owner Instructor Advisor Assess Coord Evaluator Reviewer App Admin 5. Outcomes/Standards/Competencies Tracking and Assessment 5.01Create and publish sets of learning outcomes/standards/competencies (institution-level outcomes [e.g., the PULs] as well as outcomes for specific programs, disciplines, organizations, and/or courses] 5.02Define a numeric rating scale (with descriptive labels) for each set of outcomes 5.03Define the number of developmental/proficiency levels that will be tracked for each set of outcomes 5.04Define equivalencies (goal, proficiency level, rating scale) between programmatic and institutional outcomes (for example, PTE1=PUL1, PTE Block III and IV=PUL Advanced, PTE rating of 2 or 3 = PUL rating 2) for purposes of institutional reporting 5.05View a list of relevant institutional and/or programmatic/discipline-based learning outcomes 5.06Link course assignments and other forms of student work to one or more course, program, and/or institutional outcomes (instructor makes the link). 5.07Select and reflect on representative work and link that work to one or more course, program, or institutional outcomes (student makes the link) 5.08Track progress of individual students and/or groups of students via text summary and dashboard representation. 5.09Track one's own progress via a visual dashboard in relation to external, institutional, program, course, co-curricular, and personal goals. 5.10Map the curriculum of a given program to programmatic and/or institutional goals. 5.11Control access to a specific set of competencies based on demographic criteria, course or program membership, and/or other institutional variables 5.12Self-evaluation 6. Guided Assessment and Learning Portfolios 6.01Create and publish a custom, multipart assessment or learning portfolio template (scaffolding) with detailed guidance, prompts, and rubrics 6.02Link one or more parts of the guided portfolio to specific learning outcomes 6.03Participate in guided portfolio activities prepared by instructors and/or program administrators

4. Acquisition Options BUY: commercial packages TaskStream, LiveText, Chalk&Wire, etc. BORROW: open/community source OSP, Mahara, Elgg BUILD: develop a custom application Career Portfolio (Florida State University) STEPS for Assessment (CSU Chico State) Career Portfolio STEPS for Assessment ADAPT: use and combine generic tools Google sites, Blogs, Wikis, survey software

5. BUY: Commercial Software ProsCons Rapid development; matureHigh costs for licensing and maintenance Feature RichComplex MultipurposeDuplication of other campus applications and services (CMS/ LMS, admissions, advisement, etc.) Documentation and support (including system integration services) Works out of the boxCan’t easily modify/customize Some offer hosting (SaaS) and/or on-premise hosting options Some hosted by vendor only

6. TaskStream

7. PebblePad

8. BORROW: Open/Community Source ProsCons No licensing costsMay require investments in developers, tech writers, user support, etc. Code can be modifiedDocumentation and testing may not be as thorough Opportunities to influence and participate in product direction and development Fewer features and functions than commercial products Emphasis on interoperability and open standards No guarantees or service level agreements Dependence on community for support and continued development/ maintenance of product

9. Mahara

10. Sakai Open Source Portfolio

11. BUILD: Develop Custom Application ProsCons Better fit with institutional or programmatic needs and processes Development and deployment costs are difficult to predict Implement a completely new vision or approach Longer time to deployment Control over future development and rate of change Complete dependence on internal expertise

12. Florida State University Career Portfolio

13. Chico State STEPS for Assessment

14. ADAPT: Generic Web Authoring or Web 2.0 Tools ProsCons Free or very low-cost (Google sites, hosted blogs or wikis) No support for assessment processes or reporting Gives portfolio owner creative controlUncertain future of hosted services Available to students after graduation

15. Blogfolios (Penn State)Penn State

16. Google Sites

17. Wikifolios

18. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

19. Scope and Scale of Initiative University-wide, centrally designed and managed University-wide, distributed design and management Specific colleges and programs only Specific courses only

20. Integration with Other Campus Systems Single Sign On Student Information System Learning/Course Management System

21. Cost/Pricing/Payment Models Commercial Site license (fixed annual cost, usually based on campus, college, department FTE) Individual user licensing Volume discounts Duration discounts Student or institution pays Open source Local support and maintenance Outsource to service provider

22. Other Considerations Compliance with federal, state, campus and program specific security and privacy policies Storage quota per user Video support: upload, conversion, editing, streaming Support for external users (evaluators, reviewers, etc.) Student access after graduation Portability and interoperability Longevity and solvency of vendor

23. Words of Wisdom Talk to vendors Live demos Test account (try before you buy) Talk to real users Satisfaction with product (strengths, shortcomings) Satisfaction with support Consider piloting more than one product before committing Software is just a tool; it’s what you do with it that matters

24. Questions?