eportfolios: professional and personal development

Eportfolios are especially relevant to non-traditional learners because of their potential uses as evidence of personal and professional development, and as a means of sharing learning: for example, in the workplace. Sarah writes about the potential of webessays to accomplish a similar goal - and a webessay is one way pieces of an eportfolio could be presented.

In addition, Personal Development Planning (PDP) is emerging as a key objective in HE in the UK, and is set to be "operational across the whole HE system and for all HE awards by 2005/06". Specific fields and professional bodies are also beginning to look for evidence of individuals' learning, and eportfolios are set to play a significant role in institutions nationally. In addition, eportfolios are increasingly being seen as tools with potential to be used well beyond the education sector. The Europortfolio consortium, for example, aims to achieve its goal of 'eportfolio for all' within Europe by 2010. Its first mission statement is to:

Promote innovative practice and technology; use of the ePortfolio as one of the foundations of a learning economy and society. The link between the different dimensions of learning: individual, organisational, and community learning, based upon a lifelong and life wide repository and celebration of achievements.

This is an ambitious vision, and is just one of many springing from the intersection between social networking, eportfolios and reflective web writing (like weblogs).

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