ePortfolio: Assignment Examples

Introduction

This tutorial provides examples of assignments created and used by Pace instructors who have incorporated ePortfolio into their courses.

This article is divided into different sections. Please click on the desired link to jump to that section:

Explanation

Professor Stephanie Jeanjean

Course: ART 480: Seminar 1

Instructions and rubric for Assignment #1

Museum careers

For this assignment, I would like you to reflect on your understanding of a diversity of possible museum careers associated with making exhibitions in a museum setting.

  • Watch all the short videos/interviews available on the MoMA webiste about the Bauhaus exhibition. They present different positions in a museum (curator, curator assistant, educator, editor…).
  • Select two videos that reflect you own interest regarding museum careers and write for each a one-page (approx. 300 words) an informed reflective response, (to take a critical position that reflects your personal opinions and evaluation)
  • Present this material on an ePortfolio’s page (video + text).

For your reflection you should consider the following questions:

  • What is the role of a … in a museum setting?
  • What is the importance of this position in the overall museum activities and/or in the creation of an exhibition?
  • Why would you like to be a… ?
  • What are the main activities of a… ?
  • What are the aspects of the profession that you find the most and the least exciting?
  • Formulate at least 3 questions that remain about this profession after watching the video.

Your reflections will be used in class for short class presentation and class discussion on museum career.

Find below the rubric that I will be using to grade this assignment:

Art 480/ ePortfolio Presentation Excellent Good Fair Poor Need Much Work
Completion of ePortfolio Page           
Quality of the reflection            
Ability to clearly present material             
Ability to follow instructions          

This assignment will weight 10% toward your final grade.

Email me or use the Discussion Board on Blackboard if you have any questions regarding this assignment.

 

Course: Museum Education

MUSEUM EDUCATION

Assignment due on November 2nd (at the beginning of the class)

Write a 500 words reflection explaining:

  • What was your understanding of what constituted museum education before our meeting with Georgia Krantz at the Guggenheim museum?
  • What is now your overall understanding of what museum education is?
  • What did you find the most interesting/surprising/challenging/provocative in today’s discussions?
  • What evolution do you think museum education could/should take?

Illustrate your answer using material or links from http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/education and/or www.artbeyondsight.org

These are simple questions for which there is no right answer, so I want you to push your thought process as much as you can to come up with interesting ideas and suggestions. Also formulate your ideas clearly and concisely.

Ideally, you would submit this assignment as an ePortfolio page (make sure you give access to the page). However, if you anticipate considerable technical difficulties you could also complete this assignment as a word document submitted by email.

This assignment will weight 10% toward your final grade.

Email me if you have any questions.


Professor Paul Kurnit

Course: MAR 321

FUNDAMENTALS OF ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION

The requirement — included in my syllabus — was for every student to post three pieces of relevant work on their ePortfolio by the end of the semester (second to last week).

  • The work could be assignments submitted for class during the semester and/or other relevant marketing or advertising work the student deemed to be of sufficient quality. Most students submitted a mix of papers, presentations, creative work and web related initiatives.
  • It forced / motivated students to think about excellence — what would qualify to be posted and to be reviewed by me. It inspired some (not enough) to revisit work previously completed to edit, amend, improve it to a higher standard most appropriate to be included in a portfolio.


I teach MAR 321 with a number of assignments — short papers, thought pieces, presentations, strategy work etc. So, there was/is a lot of “fuel” for ePortfolio posting consideration.


Professor Shannon Young

Course: ENG 201

WRITING IN THE DISCIPLINES

What I want you to complete for the ePortfolio assignment, which will be due at the end of the semester:  

  1. Under Introduction:  Post a picture of yourself.
  2. Under Introduction:  Input an introduction about yourself.  
  3. Under Academics:  Post your critique document.
  4. Under Academics:  Post a Wordle created out of the text of your critique (see instructions below).  
  5. Under Academics:  Post a blog that reflects on the writing of the critique paper by responding to the following questions:
    • What most intrigued you about your chosen topic for your critique?
    • What was the greatest challenge you faced in the writing of the critique?
    • How did you overcome the challenge?
    • How to create the blog is explained at this site: www.pace.edu/eportfolios. Go to the tutorials link on the left hand side and click on the one about blogs.
  6. Under Academics: Post a document related to your major. This can be your research paper that you are now working on for this class.
  7. Under Resume:  Post your resume.
    • Note:  Make sure, under permissions, for each of the areas indicated above:  Introduction, Academics, and Resume, to make your portfolio available for me to view, either by adding me as a friend, or by indicating all logged in users can view your portfolio, which would be all people from the Pace community who are logged in.  


Professor Linda Anstendig

Course: LIT 132

First ePortfolio assignment for LIT 132—second week:

  1. If possible, have a photo of yourself accessible (via email, travel drive, web) that you can upload to your ePortfolio.  You will work on your Introduction page, and Academic Materials page:
    • Introduction page --list your goals and skills in the text boxes and upload any quotes that are significant to you;  create a “wordle” (word cloud) that can enhance your introduction and ePortfolio presence.  
    • Academic Materials page -- create a blog, where you can introduce yourself as a writer, reader, and/or learner (using a metaphor, simile, or analogy, and your literary tag line).  You may also want to write about why you think study of literature is worthwhile (per our discussion Monday)
  2. Reflective blogs – when essays are due, post a blog on ePortfolio about your writing process and what you learned (questions will be distributed to help prompt your reflections); 4 blog posts are required – as part of your ePortfolio (3 postwrites and one final reflective statement).
  3. Here are instructions for your final LIT 132 ePortfolio:
    • Complete an inviting introduction that lists your goals and skills (developed in this class and others you have taken), and any other text or image that expresses your individuality
    • Complete a Final Reflective Blog that is a summing up of the other blogs you have written and addresses these questions:   what have you learned about literature and literary criticism this semester;?  What reading did you enjoy the most and why? Which reading did you learn the most from? What did you learn about research? What did you learn from writing and revising your essays?    
    • Upload your Papers and Projects under Academic Materials—Each uploaded paper  (fully revised for “publication” should be accompanied by a brief description;   include 2 revised essays;  
    • Include in your ePortfolio some kind of creative response to literature—it may be in form of a Wordle,  creative response to one of works read, or  use of other medium that illustrates work (photo, video, art work)
    • ePortfolio should be completed by Dec. 15th (earlier is fine, but not later than 10pm).


Course: ENG 201
Instructions for ENG 201 ePortfolio:

Final ePortfolio—please complete it any time before Thurs. Dec 16.  If you finish it before that time, please email me and let me know.    Please see the ePortfolio Evaluation Guide.

The ePortfolio should include:

  • Introduction—goals and skills; about me statement
  • Reflection blogs—Final Reflection and Midterm Reflection – your Final Reflection blog on your ePortfolio can combine some of your previous reflections (you can combine and remove past postwrites that may prove redundant, but keep your midterm reflection up on your ePortfolio).  Please address the following points:
    • What have you learned about writing, reading, and research in this course?
    • What have you accomplished as a writer and learner?  
    • What activities, kinds of feedback, and other support have helped you the most?
    • How have your writing and research skills changed and improved?
    • What kinds of research and revision strategies did you learn and use?  
    • What does this portfolio demonstrate about you as a writer, researcher, and learner?
    • Use an analogy, simile, and/or metaphor to describe yourself as one of these….
    • What are your future goals as a writer, researcher, and learner in your discipline and beyond?     
  • Papers and Projects—essay 2 (revised) and  essay 4 (polished and in publishable form and with descriptive tag); case study reflection and synthesis; work from other class that you are proud of—can be posted where you think is appropriate
  • Resume and cover letter (or summary of qualifications)
  • Example of extra-curricular /co-curricular activity
  • Any creative or other relevant artifact  to show who you are as a student and person
     

Professor Dr. Bette Kirschstein

Course: LIT 373

Digital Story Assignment: Digital Stories: students created 10-15 minute mini-documentaries on a particular aspect of English culture in the early 20th century (the period of literature we studied). These digital stories provided background for the works we read and broadened students’ knowledge of the era.

Student Samples:


Professor Dr. Michelle M. Pulaski Behling

Course: MCA 601

ePortfolio Assignment: Graduate students create an eportfolio showcasing their work and personal interests.  This semester-long project is a requirement for students in the Master's in Communication Arts program.  Students are also required to present their ePortfolios to the class and provide feedback on their peers' work through ePortfolio

Student Samples:

Professor Heather Bryant / Dr. Karen Berger

Course: ENG 201 / MAR 250

ePortfolio Assignment: One assignment that involved many of the ePortfolio features was the ePortfolio "Brand" assignment, in which students had to create their own personal brand and market themselves on ePortfolio.

Digital Storytelling Assignment: Research an industry issue and create a marketing strategy that addresses the issue in a short video.

Student Sample:

Professor Dr. Maria L. Plochocki

Course: ENG 201

Digital Story Assignment: 5-minute digital narrative of significant turning point or event in the student's life, something that taught him/ her an important lesson to be shared with others;

Student samples:

  • “Trip With PTP”
  • “Digital narrative English 110 John Rustemian” (Video no longer available)
  • “Composition Project” (Video no longer available)
     

Professor Dr. Andrew Wier

Course: BIO 264

ePortfolio Assignment: Students choose a bacterial phylum and build an ePortfolio page over eight weeks. Page components include:

  • Introduction: Written for high school-college-age students, includes important genera, close relatives, ecology, energy-carbon source and typical mode of nutrition, relevance to humans and the Earth, role in nutrient cycling and other important facets. Includes references and is 3-5 pages in length.
  • News Blog: Includes news from both print and online sources relevant to the phylum. Eight entries are required. Each post includes: title, commentary regarding the article (why it is relevant, interesting and worthy of posting), link to the article or uploaded copy, appropriate credit/acknowledgements to the source and author of article
  • Multimedia: Photographs (displayed in image gallery, includes captions and acknowledgements), videos (cited) and scientific publications (links and PDFs)

Students are required to make their page accessible to all logged-in users and view their classmates’ pages.

15% of final exam material is from student ePortfolios.


Professor Vicki deVries

Course: English 120D, Spring 2013

Pace University has set a goal for all students to participate in its e-Portfolio system.  E-Portfolio is a means of collecting, selecting and reflecting on one’s academic work and other materials that will be useful both now and later in one’s career.  

E-Portfolio enables students to post selected files, images, videos and blogs that reflect their success and progress as students while enriching their learning, preparing for their field of work, and sharpening their technological skills.

Unlike with Blackboard, students have access to all the work they post on their ePortfolio accounts after the course has ended and after graduation.

In addition to sharing your ePortfolio with your professor, you can share any or all of your ePortfolio pages with others, including family, friends, peers and potential employers.  The ePortfolio’s ability to create a polished and professional image makes it a great tool to use when searching for internships and jobs and to continue adding to throughout your college experience and beyond.  

LOGGING ON: To log on to your ePortfolio, go to http://eportfolio.pace.edu.  You can also find the ePortfolio under E as part of the A-Z index on the Pace Home Page.

Students who are new to ePortfolio will have two assignments, while students returning to ePortfolio will have only one assignment because they already did their profile, goals and skills and personal wordle.

GENERAL ASSIGNMENT: At the end of the semester, PDF your Research essay, your “best” essay and your Reflective letter and place them in Academic Materials on your ePortfolio, along with a short description of each item.

NEW STUDENTS: After doing the introductory assignment, you must also do the GENERAL ASSIGNMENT. In the Introduction section, write your goals and skills and a description of yourself. Then, create a wordle that describes you and place it in your Introduction section.

Both 10% Participation and 5% Writing credit will be given to students who do the ePortfolio assignment(s).  Note: EXTRA CREDIT will be given for participating in the ePortfolio Assessment, if your instructor participates in it.

To participate, students would give access to Logged in Users until the end of June 2013. One or two instructors in addition to Prof de Vries would have access to these materials; a Research Librarian would also be reading the materials in order to improve research assistance procedures.  Prof de Vries would inform students when to block their ePortfolio accounts from Open Access.


English 120D e-Portfolio Assignments

The following three ePortfolio Assignments will be graded as part of your Participation and Writing grades.  Be sure to set Permissions for each section/page on ePortfolio to “Logged in Users.”

ePortfolio Assignment # 1:  Due on March 20

  • Under Introduction and Goals and Skills:
    • Under Introduction, write a paragraph introducing yourself.  Under Goals and Skills, describe your goals and skills.  Try to make these sections as unique as you are.  Feel free to include a few quotes that you find meaningful.
    • Create a “wordle,” aka “word cloud,” that ties in with you who are.  Directions for creating a wordle are at: http://www.pace.edu/ctlt/eportfolios/tutorials
    • Optional: On the Professional Preparation/Resume page, post your resume.
  • Under Academic Materials:
    • Post a piece of writing in PDF format that you have done for the course so far, such as a freewrite, journal reaction, speech, homework question, or essay, along with a short description of what it is about and why you chose it.
    • Then, create a blog in which you respond to the following questions:  If you were to revise this piece of writing, what would you change/ improve?  Why?  If nothing, why not?  
    • Now, turn this piece of writing into another genre, such as an op-ed piece, a letter to the editor, newspaper article, etc, and post it.  What did you learn about writing from this exercise?  NOTE: You may access information on creating a blog at www.pace.edu/eportfolios. Click on the “tutorials” link (left-hand side of the screen) and then click on “blogs.

ePortfolio Assignment # 2:    Visual Analysis Project  Due on April 13

  • Under Academic Materials:
    • Post your Visual Analysis project in PDF format, along with any photos, cartoons or artwork (such a picture of your poster), and include a brief description of the project and why you chose the particular visual genre.
    • Create a blog in which you reflect on the project and answer the following questions:  Why did you select that topic for this project?  What did you learn about visual argumentation and analysis from working on this project?

ePortfolio Assignment # 3: Final Portfolio & Research Essay Due May 1       

  • Under Academic Materials:
    • Upload your Final Portfolio in PDF format (best graded essay, which you have revised for “publication” on ePortfolio, and your reflective letter) with a brief description of the essay topic and why you selected it.
    • Upload your Research Essay with the Works Cited page in PDF format with a brief description of what you were trying to accomplish in this paper.
       

Other Ideas for Incorporating ePortfolios

Instructor: Emilie Zaslow

  • Course: Children in Urban Society
  • Method: Had students submit journals via ePortfolio


Instructor: Sheying Chen

  • Course: Organization Theory and Management (PAA602)
  • Method: All assignments are submitted via ePortfolio in a special folder on each student’s Academic Materials page titled “Files For Dr. Chen”


Instructor: Public Administration Faculty

  • Course: Several courses in the program
  • Method: Created a group on ePortfolio to serve as a virtual “study group” for students in the Masters in Public Administration
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