Student Portfolios
Honors students say that the ePortfolio is one of the most valuable educational experiences they have during their time in college: “The most positive feature of the program is reflecting on what you actually did in college and how it can be beneficial to you. Most people just move on after college and think it was just for the degree, but this program has you look at how you have grown as a person and why.”
In 2008, higher education researcher George Kuh introduced 10 high-impact practices in a publication titled, High Impact Educational Practices: What They Are, Who Has Access to Them, and Why They Matter. A high-impact practice is a teaching and learning tool that has been proven to have a significantly positive impact on a student’s educational experience. In 2016, the American Association of Colleges & Universities updated Kuh’s initial list to include ePortfolios.
The Honors Program at Minnesota State University, Mankato has been utilizing ePortfolios since 2011. Honors students demonstrate their competency development through the ePortfolio by:
- Reflecting on key experiences
- Including artifacts to represent learning
- Synthesizing their learning across multiple experiences
Students create, update, and revise their ePortfolio throughout their time in the Honors Program in consultation with their honors advisor. As part of their culminating honors course, students present their ePortfolio to a group of faculty, staff, and fellow students. Upon successful completion of this presentation, students graduate from the Honors Program.
Honors students utilize their ePortfolio to gain internships, summer research experiences, and volunteer positions during their time in college. Students frequently indicate that their ePortfolio helped them secure permanent employment prior to graduation.
You can view completed ePortfolios through Cornerstone, A Collection of Scholarly & Creative Works maintained by Library Services at Minnesota State University, Mankato here: Honors Capstone Portfolios | Honors Program | Minnesota State University, Mankato.
For more resources on ePortfolios as high-impact practices, please see below:
High-Impact Practices | AAC&U
George Kuh on ePortfolio as High-Impact Practice
"The Power and Utility of Reflective Learning Portfolios in Honors" by Christopher R. Corley and John Zubizarreta
