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Enhancing student reflection and creativity

Kanerva Matveinen, University of Helsinki

Kanerva Matveinen, eLearning Specialist from University of Helsinki on ‘Enhancing student reflection and creativity by non-structured portfolios.’ This recording is from our 2023 MiniBash community event which was hosted in Birmingham, England. Videos are for educational personnel only and require a live educational email to watch. You can read a small snippet of the video transcript below. 

–START TRANSCRIPT– 

Hello, everyone. My name is Kanerva Matveinen and I come from the University of Helsinki. If Kanerva is too difficult for you, please call me Heather. That is my English name.  

So I’m talking about enhancing the student reflection and creativity by non-structure portfolios and I’ll come to what that means in a second. 

First, a bit about how we use ePortfolios at our university, what the non-structured portfolios are, what is included in planning and assessment of our portfolios. 

And then we’ll take a look at our portfolio, and then a bit about what this means for the teacher. 

So, contrary to the two previous presentations on the slot. We do not use workbooks. I know. Shocking. 

So, at our university, when we use portfolios, there are two types of years. We either use the ePortfolios during the courses, which means that the students are discussing the topics, the themes of the course in their portfolios. Of course, reflecting and doing all the other stuff too. 

But then we also have working with portfolios where the students are focusing on their work, work life skills and so on. 

The course of how long the students are using the portfolios depends. Sometimes they’re only using it for one course and then we have programs where they are using it for 3 years. 

Usually, our ePortfolios are non-structured. And in this case, it means that the students are building and structuring the portfolios themselves. The teachers are not doing that work for them. 

We use PebblePad, but also allow students to use other forms like PowerPoint, word, etc. It just depends on what they personally want to use. Many prefer PebblePad, but the goal of ePortfolio work and non-structural ePortfolio work at our uni is that the students get to recognise their capabilities, their skills, the knowledge that you have already built and are building, and the creativity that they have inside them. 

So why non-structured portfolios? 

We believe those portfolios are for the students. They are not for the teacher. The students need to understand what is important for them. They need to start to think on their own, form their own questions and become problem solvers. If we’re always asking the same questions, how are they learning to ask the new questions? 

And generally, actually, non-structured portfolio work has been working better at our uni than structured workbooks and so on. 

And they are really thorough and reflective at all degree levels, and I will show you the example and what I mean by this. 

And one really big point is that we need to focus on the working life. When we are educating our students, we are educating them to be specialists. We are educating them to be researchers and they need to be able to work on their own. They need to recognise their skills. They need to be able to ask, does this matter? Is this relevant? Is this worth doing? They are not the ones who are only filling in the forms. They are the ones who are making the forms for others. 

–END TRANSCRIPT– 

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Gaining CPD with PebblePad

PebbleBash 2024, a biennial international PebblePad conference, to be held in Edinburgh, Scotland, in June 2024.  PebbleBash brings together PebblePad practitioners from around the globe to share practice and discuss the opportunities and challenges that the use of a learning and teaching platform like PebblePad presents.

As many of PebblePad’s customers are undertaking initiatives to reshape the curriculum, PebbleBash provides an opportunity to exchange insights, best practice and renew ideas for creating exceptional learning experiences, aligned with evolving student needs.

Attendees will benefit from the opportunity to:

  • Learn about methods from expert practitioners who have overcome similar challenges
  • Learn how PebblePad is being used to help education institutions tackle some of the key themes in the HE sector: Authentic assessment and feedback, Flexible learning design, Belonging, wellbeing and success, Employable and future-ready and Professional identity and capability
  • Learn about strategies for implementing PebblePad at scale, resources and processes for training and support, reporting and learning analytics, integrations and administration.
  • Network within the community and meet and speak with the PebblePad leadership, implementation and development teams.

Education is an Experience That Should Be Designed

Talk description: We have any number of problems and opportunities as universities, and universities must adapt to help students from diverse backgrounds develop the knowledge and skills they need to thrive and make a positive impact in the world. Key to those adaptations is understanding that we provide students with an experience. We ought to design them with intention and purpose. This talk with take up this argument and ground it within a large educational transformation project at the University of Leeds.

Bio: Jeff Grabill is Deputy Vice Chancellor for Student Education at the University of Leeds. Prior to joining the University of Leeds, Grabill was at Michigan State University (MSU) in the United States for nearly 20 years. He served Michigan State University as the Associate Provost for Teaching, Learning, and Technology. In that role, he was responsible for facilitating innovation in learning and educator professional development via his role as Director of the Hub for Innovation in Learning and Technology. Grabill’s research focuses on how digital writing is associated with citizenship and learning. That work has been located in community contexts, in museums, and in classrooms at both the K-12 and university levels. Grabill is also a co-founder of Drawbridge, an educational technology company.

Curriculum Transformation at the University of Edinburgh: co-creation and the relationship between local innovation and institutional change

Talk description: I will use the themes of reflection and experiential learning, skills development and assessment (including programme level assessment and changes in assessment practice) to explore this process in more detail. This includes the link between disciplinary and institutional curriculum reform, learning from local innovations and changes, and using this to inform University level changes and support.

Bio: My current position is leading the University wide Curriculum Transformation Project. This is a major and long term initiative for the University considering all areas of the University’s undergraduate and taught postgraduate curriculum. Prior to this Jon set up and led the Institute for Academic Development (IAD) at the University of Edinburgh. The IAD provides University level support for teaching, learning and researcher development, including direct support for students and staff, and support for enhancement and innovation in curriculum development, the student and researcher experience. Jon has a PhD in petroleum geology.

Dr Melissa Highton. Assistant Principal, University of Edinburgh

Talk description: A journey through the stories told by wicca data. How a neglected research data set was used by students to overturn historic injustice and shed new light on the lives of women in Scotland.

Bio: Melissa has worked for many years in higher education at some of the UK’s finest and most ancient institutions. In each place she enjoys discovering the hidden histories and less heard voices which can be surfaced in new ways using the most up to date and open technologies. She is a champion of playful and curious approaches to engagement with audiences on campus and online, and is an invited speaker at events about dangerous women.

Disclaimers

The event agenda is correct at the time of publishing. As with all events, we may need to alter or modify aspects of the agenda.

While we take every precaution to ensure the safety and security of our events, Pebble Learning Ltd recommends you review insurance policies to ensure adequate coverage, especially in the realm of business travel.

We will be recording (audio/video) the presentations during the event. A conference photographer will also be capturing moments for our highlights reel. The video and photography will be used to share insights and market PebbleBash to the wider HE community. We do not give automatic refunds, please see the cancellation policy in the FAQs.

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