Using an e-portfolio to assist first year students through their transition into higher education

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The Cloudworks Team
26 August 2009

ALT-C 2009 Session: This Cloud has been set up to aggregate live blogs, comments, discussion and links for this session.

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Phil Alberts, Brunel
Funded by West London Lifelong Learning Network
To east transition of non-traditional & mature students into first year studies
E-learning experience extending the notion of a bridging course
Students invited at end of July 2008, initially West London but extended to all UK
125 responses, participation entirely voluntary. Some students had conditional acceptances so did not all end up at Brunel
Mailed complimentary memory sticky containing tutorials and log-on details
Three intervention - 1) ‘Getting started with u-LINK (VLE)’ - students said gave them confidence, useful to work at own pace 2) Higher Education Preparation - core skills e.g. ‘Note-making strategies’ most popular 3) ‘Personal Development Programme with e-portfolio’
Showed example of introductory message and home page
Weekly activities from the advisor team, discussion tools and topics, way to make suggestions, creative and strategic thinking tools, etc.
Participation in GetPROGRESSive.
Quantitative evidence of engagement constantly reviewed - participation rates and size of e-portfoilio
Students quite involved in demands of academic programmes, but project team continued to organise events to keep people on board
Participation couldn’t be supported by lecturers as not everybody partipating
Project evaluation: Used life grid technique to create retrospective data
Indications retention positively affected by comparison of participating and non-participating students
Also compared first year performance and progression between the participating and non-participating groups
Students need encouragement - don’t always realise value of e-portfolio
Pattern - students explored everything came back when remembered something useful
Comment from audience: Were patterns dues to self-selection or to the e-portfolios?