Switch Portfolio is a fully featured portfolio system that works either as a stand alone platform, or as an integral part of Moodle.
Why use an e-portfolio?
An e-portfolio can be used to encourage students to engage in collaborative working, for example in project work, or in formative evaluation. It can be a great tool when you would like to switch to a flipped classroom approach to teaching.
It encourages students to take responsibility for their own learning, and can be a great tool to ask your students to engage in reflective learning.
An example where I use it is in our English E3 courses where students have to make a structured talk/presentation about a topic. After the talk students have to give peer feedback, and also reflect on their own performance.
The talks are recorded and then uploaded to SwitchTube. Each student has to embed a copy of the presentation in their work so: Student A makes the presentation. The student giving feedback embeds the video into their feedback, and then writes their opion. The page is then shared with student A. Student A should read the feedback and then reflect on what has been said.
Student A then writes their reflection also including the video in their work. Their reflection should include personal thoughts about how the talk went, but include elements from the peer’s feedback.
I provide the students with a template of how I want the pages to look, but the content is all theirs. A link to the examples are here.
The students then submit their work in Moodle when they are ready for me to grade them and give them feedback.
How you want to use the portfolio is entirely up to you, but it is a great way to explore, and let students use their full fantasy. Either way, remember, the students always retain ownership for their portfolios and they can keep them for their lifetimes.
There are rules, and students should be reminded to act professionally with regard to their work.
There is a video on how to sell yourself through your portfolio here:https://youtube.com/watch?v=zcAjx51sr3U
Further information on using e-portfolios in education can be found here.
The best way to think about an e-portfolio is that it represents a student’s work and can be taken with them after they leave the university.
Switch are committed to providing the resource to students in order that they may use it for their Life Long Learning.
To access Mahara, click here.
For further information, visit Switch.
