Abstract:

The ePortfolio, increasingly present in university education, is not only a collection of digital information that describes learning and illustrates students' experiences and achievements, but also a tool for reflection.
ePortfolios allow students to make connections between course content, professional and personal experiences, and soft and hard skills. The acquisition of skills, not directly developed or measured, and the achievement of course goals and objectives are demonstrated through artefacts and reflections by following an ePortfolio learning pathway. Mandatory small group coaching sessions, as well as the use of Learning tools Interoperability, an external tool linking assignments and assessments from the institution’s learning management system (moodle) to each students’ personalized ePortfolio, enable students to build their ePortfolio throughout their 3-year bachelor degree.

The University of Applied Sciences of Western Switzerland has included the development of student ePortfolios in its new study plan framework since 2020. The acquisition and valorization of key soft and hard skills form the basis of the personalized curriculum of the Bachelor's degree in Tourism.

The evidence that tells the story of the student's learning journey through a digital collection of artefacts in the form of projects, documents and reflections assembled and managed by the student and validated by a faculty member concretely endorses the knowledge and skills acquired. The ePortfolio thus enables students and graduates to apply for jobs by highlighting and showcasing specific skills. In order to facilitate the development of student ePortfolios, faculty members have been required to learn new skills to include learning pathways in their teaching.

We will present examples of student ePorfolios, learning pathways at different levels (project, course and module) as a guide to enable students to increase their employability by mapping the skills developed or enhanced from the first semester to the end of their studies.

Throughout the degree course, periodic milestones comprising several steps and responding to different learning styles allow students to check their progress through compulsory and optional content, exercises, and assessments. Skills are linked to each stage to make students aware of the skills they are developing indirectly. Digital badges can validate outstanding work and provide recognition of the quality of the work done.

The study programme may comprise several tightly controlled pathways, which gradually give students the freedom to choose their content and assessments, allowing them to gain autonomy and individuality as they develop critical thinking skills. Thanks to information and communication technologies, a great flexibility to personalize the pathways exists, allowing students to create a professional digital profile to demonstrate the acquisition of the different skills developed during their bachelor degree, thereby increasing their employability.
A pathway provides the transparency necessary for students to understand what is required in order to succeed not only in their studies, but also in their professional lives.

Keywords:

ePortfolios, learning pathways, skills, pedagogy, career, reflection, evaluation.