Electronic Portfolios (eFolio): Transitioning into the Real World

1. Innovative integration of technology into the curriculum and teaching practices
The mission of the Transition Program is to prepare students with autism spectrum disorders, emotional behavioral disorders, and other neurobiological disabilities to live meaningful and productive lives. The Transition Program strives to equip middle and high school age students with the skills needed to become capable, connected, and contributing members of their community. This project will focus on the young adults 18-21 years of age emphasizing appropriate social interactions. Our project will lead our young adults to develop an electronic portfolio, or eFolio, highlighting their work. Through the process of creating this portfolio, students will have a rich multimedia CD to share with service providers, demonstrating the program’s social development philosophy of Cooperation, Assertiveness, Responsibility, Empathy, and Self-Control (C.A.R.E.S.). Some of the items that may be included are student resumes, areas of strengths, needs (based on Evaluation Report), goals (IEP), things that stress and relax them, and student progress-monitoring graphs. Students will create their eFolios utilizing Microsoft PowerPoint and become familiar with the three toolbars associated with the software, standard toolbar, formatting toolbar, and drawing toolbar. Students will also be utilizing digital cameras and audio equipment to include video introductions for their eFolio and narration of each page. Students will be required to have photos, text, video introduction, narrated slides, and artistically designed pages. To enhance the lessons an interactive whiteboard will be used. The instructor will typically model application use, then students will have guided practice with whiteboard and then independent demonstration of application use.

In previous years computer instruction was limited to teacher-centric demonstrations and did not provide students with enough meaningful hands on activities and projects that would test and grow their skills. This year we have modified the curriculum used in the computer lab to focus on engaging projects for the 90 some students in our program. Activities have been organized into community (e.g. school yearbook), individual (e.g. eFolio), and special projects (e.g. site program video). Our curriculum will teach students how to navigate a common software program (PowerPoint) in a meaningful project-based manner. Students will gain the knowledge of the toolbars and have an end product that they can use to help them transition into adult life.


2. Expected impact on academic achievement
Learning how to navigate software applications is a major skill students will need when they go on to pursue academic and employment opportunities. Becoming proficient in identifying and using the toolbars will greatly improve student’s ability to navigate other similar software programs, and it gives them a basic technology foundation. Instructor will use a model-prompt-check instructional method to develop students technology skills.

The goals of this project have been aligned with Minnesota’s Frameworks for Trades and Industry Education, Career and Technology Standards (CTE). These are the appropriate standards for the projects’ target, 16-21 year old participants. This project addresses the following state standard areas: Technology, Career Investigation, Occupational Experiences, Arts, Math, Technical Reading, and Technical Writing. A detailed relationship between state standards and this project are attached at the end of this application.

Students will have monthly quizzes on each of the toolbars to evaluate their understanding of each. Students will also graph their own performance utilizing Microsoft Excel so they can see their progress across time. Finally, students will do a peer-to-peer evaluation of eFolios to get constructive criticism for their final slides before burning to CD.


3. Scope of impact
The eFolio project will affect 11 classrooms totaling 93 students. There will be 40 students ages 16-21 directly affected by this project, across 4 classrooms. There will be 53 students ages 9-17 who will also create eFolios; however, the content of their portfolios will be relative to their respective ages and developmental levels.

This project will have a significant impact on a number of students, classrooms, and future service providers of students transitioning into adult life. The creation of this multimedia portfolio will be a move from the old limited teacher-centric lessons to lessons that are a more collaborative, communicative relationship centered on students. This project aims to provide students with technology skills and a tool (eFolio) to demonstrate competencies. It also prepares them for real world 21st century employment and academic opportunities. Students will be charged with evaluating their portfolio by critically asking what things they did well and what things they can improve. This project will empower students to communicate in meaningful ways and afford them a tool to communicate their technology competencies.

PROJECT SAMPLE: http://transitiontechlab.wikispaces.com/Grant+Applications