Transcript Slide 1

Personal Development
Profiles/Planning: where we are
and where we’re going
Janet Strivens
Senior Associate Director,
Centre for Recording Achievement
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
The Centre for Recording Achievement
A cross-sectoral network organisation with institutional
and individual members.
Seeks to promote awareness and understanding of the
processes associated with recording achievement (review,
reflection, planning) as an important element in
improving learning and progression throughout the
world of education, training and employment.
The one-stop shop for the HE Progress File
http://www.recordingachievement.org
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
CRA and the Higher Education Academy
• a Centre of Professional Expertise in the field of representing,
recording and communicating student learning and achievement
maintaining its independence but designated an Associate Centre
of the Higher Education Academy.
Supporting Academy members by:
• Facilitating communication and development work.
• Identifying development needs so as to inform planning and work
programmes.
• Running a programme of events so that all have the opportunity to
learn about, and participate in, up-to-date development work.
• Providing a consultancy service to address the specific
development needs and interests of individual institutions in the
area of PDP and related activities.
• Contributing to the development of e-portfolio approaches to
support the Professional Development and Recognition of HE
Staff.
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
(Just to remind you…..)
What is Personal Development Planning?
“Progress Files [for Higher Education] should consist of two elements:
• a transcript recording student achievement which should follow a
common format devised by institutions collectively through their
representative bodies;
• a means by which students can monitor, build and reflect upon
their personal development”
(National Committee of Inquiry in Higher Education [The Dearing
Report]: 1997)
“a structured and supported process undertaken by an individual
• to reflect upon their own learning, performance and/or achievement
and
• to plan for their personal, educational and career development”
(QAA: Progress Files for Higher Education: 2000)
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Policy Intentions - to help students:
• become more effective, independent and
confident self-directed learners;
• understand how they are learning and relate
their learning to a wider context;
• improve their general skills for study and
career management;
• articulate their personal goals and evaluate
progress towards their achievement;
• and encourage a positive attitude to learning
throughout life.
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Burgess Report:
Measuring and Recording Student Achievement
Recommendation 6 2004
“ Higher education institutions should continue
to implement Personal Development Planning
within the guidelines developed by the
Progress File Implementation Group. There
should continue to be evaluation of the impact
of learning and the representation of learning
and achievement of different forms of Personal
Development Planning.”
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Some PDP activities
…and PDP outputs
(records)
• Reviewing strengths and
weaknesses (generic/subject
specific)
• Stating and reviewing goals
(short term/long term)
• Making plans to achieve
goals/remedy areas of
weakness
• Recording experiences,
reflecting on what has been
learned
• Recording achievements,
reflecting on progress
• Initial statement of
motivation for programme
• Review of a period of time what have I achieved?
• Analysis of feedback
received – what are my
strengths and areas for
development?
• Critical incident analysis
• Reflective learning log
• Action plan
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Approaches to PDP implementation
Strategies divide into two broad categories:
• embedding PDP into the academic curriculum,
programme by programme, level by level;
• offering generic opportunities outside the
curriculum, most obviously via the personal tutor
system.
These can be supplemented by extracurricular
opportunities. They can also be combined in a ‘mixed
economy’ model.
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Embedded in the curriculum
Advantages
• Resourcing comes through the
academic curriculum
• Student may be more likely to
accept PDP as relevant to his/her
studies
• Makes the improvement of
learning central to the concept of
PDP, therefore may appeal more
to academics
• PDP required within some
disciplines e.g. healthcare,
therefore easier to implement
• Students motivated by gaining
credit and assessment
requirements.
Disadvantages
• Danger of neglecting
extracurricular development
• Finding the time within the
curriculum
• Modular philosophy is antiintegration: difficult to establish
‘synoptic’ learning outcomes
• Possibly undermines the whole
philosophy of partnership in
learning and the development of
student autonomy/responsibility
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Additional to the curriculum eg via personal tutors
Advantages
• May be easier to monitor and
guarantee a standard ‘core’
• Extension of a role currently
understood (and accepted?) by
academics
• Common recording systems can
be designed
• Allows tutor and student to
review learning across the whole
programme
• Puts the onus more on the student
to take advantage of the
opportunity, thus consonant with
philosophy
Disadvantages
• Not all academics have the skills and
aptitude for this extended tutoring
role
• Therefore needs ready access for
tutor to good quality information,
guidance and networks
• Easily sabotaged by one negative
experience
• Even the minimum entitlement to
time may be significantly more than
academics are currently allocating
• May dependent on other policies e.g.
on feedback operating well
• Without academic credit, students
may be difficult to motivate to
attend
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Learning/employability
• Not incompatible
• Where you start depends on institutional
culture/expectations of students (motivations
may change throughout programme
• Who is leading in your institution?
• Make links to subject benchmarks/graduate
profiles
• Use employers’ expectations
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Advantages of e-PDP
• The records can’t get left on a bus
• Cuts the administrative burden for staff members
• Allows links to online help and guidance (for students
and staff)
• Some students find it easier to reveal problems and
issues in an online environment (other don’t)
• The internal structure can support reflection
• Potentially transferable when student leaves
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
Do we want an e-portfolio?
Does having an e-portfolio mean
the PDP box can be ticked?
What is it anyway?
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
The Future?
‘We will encourage every institution to offer a personal
online learning space to store coursework, course
resources, results and achievements. We will work
towards developing a personal identifier for each
learner, so that organizations can support an
individual’s progression more effectively. Together,
these facilities will become an electronic portfolio,
making it simpler for learners to build their record
of achievement throughout their lifelong learning’.
(DfES Towards a Unified E-Learning Strategy, 2005,
para10, page 5).
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
and
• The Report of the Scoping Group on ‘Measuring and
Recording Student Achievement in HE’ (‘the Burgess Report’,
2004) emphasised ‘the recognition that students themselves
are crucial translaters and conveyors of information about
(their) learning and achievement’. It envisages the possibility
of a personal electronic portfolio (e-portfolio), by all HE
students in the medium term.
http://bookshop.universitiesuk.ac.uk/downloads/measuringachievement.pdf
• The recently published e-learning strategy produced by the
Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE,
2005) emphasises the encouragement of ‘e-based systems of
describing learning achievement and personal development
planning (PDP)’ within its Joint Implementation Plan.
http://www.hefce.ac.uk/pubs/hefce/2005/05_12/05_12.doc
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
and
• The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority’s Blueprint for
e-assessment (QCA 2004) envisages that within five years ‘all
awarding bodies should be set up to accept and assess eportfolios’ http://www.qca.org.uk/2586_6997.html
• Beyond the UK, the Europortfolio consortium has launched a
manifesto committed to e-Portfolio for All by 2010. Founding
members include the European Institute for E-Learning
(EifEL), the UK’s CETIS, and IMS in Europe. In December
2004 the European Commission announced the launch of a
EuroPass e-portfolio service, based in Maastricht
http://www.europortfolio.org
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
A portfolio is…..
Most often…
• A collection of the owner’s work
• Evidence to demonstrate that specific learning
outcomes/criteria have been met
Could also be…
• A repository for thoughts, ideas, questions,
plans, work in progress
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
What functions do we want in an eportfolio?
• A digital repository
• With the power to select easily different
viewing permissions
• And to make internal connections/relationships
• Linkages to other electronic sources,
particularly guidance and qualifications
• Linkages to social/collaboration tools, with the
power to extract useful bits!
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006
(Some) considerations
•
•
•
•
Ownership/permissions to view records/DP issues
One system or many? (Do they talk to each other?)
Commercial/open-source/home-grown?
What happens when the student leaves (and perhaps
he/she arrives?)
• Purposes: presentation, assessment, support for
learning, career planning….
• Functions: guidance, repository of evidence,
stimulating reflection, capturing ideas, sharing and
collaboration….
Early Childhood CETL/SWAP/ESCalate event
Stranmillis University College
March 1/ 2nd 2006