Beth Gordon Klingner and Samantha Egan used this PowerPoint during their presentation at the Sloan-C International Conference on Online Learning in November 2011.

1. Shrinking the Distance
in Distance Learning:
Using ePortfolios to Close
the Gap in Online Courses
Beth Gordon Klingner
Samantha Egan

2. Tweet about this session!
#aln2011

3. A familiar conversation?

4. “Critics say online education is really driven by a
desire to spend less on teachers and buildings,
especially as state and local budget crises force
deep cuts to education.”
Gabriel, Trip. "More Pupils Are Learning Online, Fueling Debate on Quality”. The New York
Times. 5 April 2011. Web

5. Obstacles of the Online Classroom
• Verifying authenticity of student work
• Building a community between
instructors and students, and among
other students

6. How can we ensure a quality
online learning experience for
students?

7. The Solution? ePortfolios!

8. What is an ePortfolio?
• online collection of work designed for an
audience
• Incorporates various forms of media: files,
images, videos, RSS feeds, blogs and more!
• Collect, select, reflect

9. The ePortfolio Solution
• Provide a way to get to
know a student’s
“voice”, thus enabling
the instructor to better
detect plagiarism
• Reflections and
artifacts give a deeper
look into the student
as a whole

10. Case Study 1
Course Goals:
– To increase technological literacy in terms
of applications to the counseling
profession.
– To learn about emerging technologies and
the usefulness to counseling clients, as well
as potential ethical and legal challenges
such as privacy and identity.
– To create a technology plan for a
counseling practice in the student's area of
interest.

11. Counseling 2.0 ePortfolio
Application
Students posted their technology plans
on ePortfolio as part of their final grades
(20% of overall grade)

12. Case Study 2: Homeland
Security Masters Project
• An assessment of the student learning
experience
• Consists of 12 chapters, one for each course
• Collection of lessons learned during the
program
• Reflects new knowledge as it relates to
leading/managing

13. Homeland Security ePortfolio
Application
• Created customized
template for students to
post their chapters, and
ultimately, their final
thesis

14. Why Should Faculty Develop
ePortfolios
• Collect their own Artifacts to share with selected
audiences – students, peers, etc.
• Allow students to learn and appreciate their
background, research and/or professional
practices

15. Faculty ePortfolios

16. Questions?