JCPSLP Vol 16 no 3 2014_FINAL_WEB

An ePortfolio is time-consuming, but overall a useful experience Students in later years of the SP course were more engaged with the ePortfolio but increasingly negative about the workload required to develop and maintain it. This finding is consistent with other studies of students who have utilised ePortfolios, such as those completing communication and performance studies (Wagner & Lamoureux, 2006) and trainee doctors (Hrisos et al., 2008). The time required to complete the ePortfolio needs to be carefully and progressively increased across a course. Furthermore, researchers have found staff and students have different views about the purpose and importance of the ePortfolio (Hrisos et al., 2008; Wagner & Lamoureux, 2006) so the purpose needs to be made explicit and be relevant to the students’ current stage in the course. An ePortfolio is a valuable learning tool Students recognise the value of the ePortfolio primarily as an organisational tool, rather than see the educational value, particularly students in later years. Jenson and Treuer (2014) state that students do not clearly understand the purpose of the ePortfolio as a learning tool, and this means “perceptions of the role and purpose of the portfolio may affect the ability of students to engage fully in portfolio use to develop learning” (Tochel et al., 2009, p. 314). Students did engage with the ePortfolio and some found it useful for setting goals and analysing skill development, which is consistent with other research (Bollinger & Shepherd, 2010; Devlin-Scherer, Martinelli, & Sardone, 2006; Hrisos et al., 2008) and reflects the statement “users can be simultaneously sceptical about a portfolio’s intended purposes and appreciative of what it can deliver for them personally” (Tochel et al., 2009, p. 314). SP students in the current study were not generally positive about the ePortfolio’s value in developing reflection. Bollinger and Shepherd (2010) found students were positive if the students were taught reflective skills first. Other researchers report “the relatively low level of reflection and personal development planning of learners remains a challenge” in ePortfolio use (Faulkner et al., 2013, p. 884). An ePortfolio is beneficial for lifelong learning Fourth-year SP students did not recognise the value of an ePortfolio to promote future employment opportunities, implying the future value needs to be made more explicit to students. In other research, students and alumni have reported the value of ePortfolios to show to prospective employers and to document growth in their future career (Devlin-Scherer et al., 2006; Gardner & Aleksejuniene, 2008). Using a platform that is portable and can be used after graduation would help (Leeson & Williams, 2009). Students need to be taught the ePortofolio’s use in lifelong learning (Jenson & Treuer, 2014, p. 54) and “embedding formative feedback from staff, peers and professional mentors to encourage and support the development

Table 9. Students’ perspectives on the future use of the ePortfolio Student cohort 2nd 3rd 4th Students did not see the value of the ePortfolio for their future career either as a showcasing tool or for lifelong learning (Table 9). Students commented that the ePortfolio needs to be “something constructive we can take with us when we graduate” (third year) which was not possible with the MyExpo platform. Other students wanted more information about using the ePortfolio in the future: “explain how we can use it once we are working and for job applications” (fourth year). Students’ comments also varied: “Looking back at documents assists me to do better for subsequent tasks” (third year); “setting new goals each semester and then reflecting on those goals and then creating new goals has provided me with no benefit” (third year). Future career Average: 2.2 Note. 5-point Likert scale from strongly disagree (1) to strongly agree (5). Discussion The results of the current study are somewhat consistent with those of Gardner and Aleksejuniene (2008) who investigated the experiences of a small group of dental students who opted to complete an ePortfolio task. They discussed four dimensions of ePortfolios that will now be discussed in relation to the current study: (a) ePortfolio learning requires technical skills that are manageable; (b) an ePortfolio is time-consuming, but overall a useful experience; (c) an ePortfolio is a valuable learning tool; and (d) an ePortfolio is beneficial for lifelong learning. ePortfolio learning requires technical skills that are manageable SP students reported being comfortable and confident with using new technology, but reported the technology was the most difficult part of using the ePortfolio. Similar findings were not observed by Gardner and Aleksejuniene’s (2008) students, who used a different platform and voluntarily chose the ePortfolio task. Adoption of any new technology takes time and learners may not see the value in it (Buckley et al., 2009). Using a more flexible, user-friendly software platform and a better ePortfolio template would alleviate some of these frustrations. Students suggested explicit, timely and detailed training and support along with appropriate feedback would also better support the use of the technology. 3.9 2.9 I can see how the ePortfolio will be useful when I graduate as a speech pathologist I can see how I can use the ePortfolio to apply for jobs when I graduate I can see how I can use the ePortfolio in my working life as a speech pathologist 4.0 3.1 2.0 3.3 2.7 2.4 4.3 3.0 2.3

process can facilitate transforming learners into professionals” (Faulkner et al., 2013, p. 884).

143

JCPSLP Volume 16, Number 3 2014

www.speechpathologyaustralia.org.au