Introduction to the portfolio requirement
The School of Business faculty has implement a portfolio requirement for all
BBA students who declare a business major in 2003-2004 and after. The portfolio
is designed to demonstrate attainment of critical competencies. While the
concepts and process of the portfolio are integrated into the curriculum, we
believe that students will benefit from having easy access to a Web-based
tutorial which will enable them to make progress on their portfolios
independently of enrollment in specific classes.
A digital portfolio offers students an opportunity to document their academic
achievements in the competency and knowledge areas identified in the School of
Business objectives. Students who have carefully developed career goals are
better able to use their portfolio evidence make a persuasive case with
potential employers.
The objective for this on-line module is to
enable each student develop
his or her own digital portfolio with a minimum of frustration. In this Web module you will compile an inventory
of your academic and co-curricular achievements to date, create the structure
and basis for your own digital portfolio, and develop objectives for the
remainder of your academic career. Specifically, this means that students who complete
the entire module will:
- Identify their primary and secondary academic objectives (career
path(s),
academic prerequisites for the relevant career path(s), co-curricular
interests and the linkage between those interests and career choices)
- Perform a personal SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats)
analysis to determine what they have accomplished in their academic careers
to date and what learning experiences will be most effective and important
in achieving the objectives identified in #1, above.
- Compile an inventory of significant academic and co-curricular work to
date, including but not restricted to term papers, semester projects, class
presentations, case analyses, student leadership positions and
internship/work experience.
- Students will examine existing portfolios and learn to constructively
critique what others have done in order to better display their own work.
- Determine how best to represent their accomplishments to date using
selected artifacts to show both development (i.e., evolution) and
achievement of skills and abilities.
- Prepare a reflection on their academic and co-curricular experiences.
(e.g., What was learned from doing this piece of work? How did I learn it? How can
I now (and in the future) apply this learning?
- A software package called Uedit is available
for portfolio development. You may use this or any standard Web development
toll you wish.
- Develop an action plan to ensure that their individual academic and
co-curricular objectives will be achieved.
The Portfolio Development Web was prepared by Professor Gerry Myers of the
PLU School of Business. If you have questions about the portfolio development
process or suggestions for the improvement of this Website, please contact him at
myersgm@plu.edu.
Texts and materials
All materials for the completion of this module are available electronically. Appropriate
hyperlinks are provided in the descriptions of the steps in the process.
The evaluation of your portfolio hinges on the answer to two questions. The
answer to both questions must be "yes" to complete the portfolio
requirement. Question 1 is "Did you get the job done?" In
other words, did you develop a working portfolio which appears to be a credible
reflection of your skills, capabilities and achievements? Question 2 is
"Is the student's portfolio worthy of the imprimatur of Pacific Lutheran
University?" Your portfolio need not be a work of art, but it should
reflect favorably on you and the institution. Remember that a portfolio is essentially a public
document, so you want it to be something that you wouldn't be embarrassed to
have others see. Unprofessional or sloppy work will be evaluated accordingly. Things like spelling errors,
poorly written work and poor formatting reflect unfavorably on you and on the
school, and diminish the value your degree and the degrees of all those who call
themselves "Lutes."
As noted in the Portfolio Handbook, all portfolios will be in digital format.
Students who elect to do so may use their own space on the PLU server.
alternatively, portfolios may be accessed through the Digital media Center
Website. Some students will choose to make use of audio and video clips from
faculty members or other who are able to attest to the quality of their work. While this is an excellent way to present some information, inclusion of audio and/or video testimony in your portfolios is strictly optional.
If you lack the technical expertise to do such things well, it is probably best
to avoid doing them at all.
It is important that you work through the steps below in order.
Skipping around may be more interesting, but I can guarantee that you will spend
more time than if you work through everything step by step. I suggest that you
read through the entire process before you actually start work on step 1. The whole business will make more sense if you have the big
picture as you move along.
There is a potential benefit to working on this project with someone else who you
know and trust. The advantage in having a partner is that you can share ideas,
critique each others' work and provide feedback. If you are fortunate enough to
be able to work with such a person, that's all to the good, but it is not
necessary.
The specific steps required to complete your portfolio are
outlined in the Portfolio Handbook. Use the hyperlinks below to access the
individual sections of the handbook.
This handbook is designed to give faculty and students a
handy, online reference that should answer most questions about the portfolio
process and requirements. I will try to update the page regularly as faculty
decisions are made and as new materials for guidance and instruction become
available.
The portfolio is an opportunity for students to document progress and achievement in specific areas of competency and
knowledge. The portfolio should not be seen as a repository for all of a student’s work. It does provide a framework for organizing and presenting evidence that each student has developed the abilities that we in the School of Business seek to deliver in all of our graduates. The process of accumulating the evidence over the course of completing the business major is intended to keep the student’s focus on developing these abilities. The portfolio should be sufficiently terse to allow quick access
and an easy review of the evidence presented. The portfolio may contain a variety of examples of student performance, as well as testimonials from faculty, internship supervisors, and others. Inclusion of such content is at the discretion of the student and relevant faculty or outside
individuals. It is also important to note that a portfolio should not limited to exemplary work. As discussed further in a subsequent section of this document, a major purpose of portfolios should be to document progress and the evolution of one’s ability in a discipline. If the only exemplary work is included, there can obviously be no documentation of progress.
A portfolio documents progress and achievement in ways that a conventional transcript cannot. A transcript merely reflects grades. A portfolio shows what is behind the grades:
 | papers |
| projects |
| speeches |
| performances |
| presentations |
A portfolio might also include evidence of learning and experience in student activities
| community or volunteer work |
| participation in student government |
| committee membership |
| internships |
| certifications |
| awards |
| study abroad |
| interviews |
| sports |
| honors projects |
| field work |
| work experience |
| a current resume |
Thus, a portfolio demonstrates intellectual and professional growth during undergraduate years; it may also be a means of highlighting qualifications in discussion with prospective employers or graduate school admissions offices.
Four required components in a portfolio
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The portfolio should demonstrate the skills of life-long and independent leaning. Thus, it should include evidence of:
- Goal-Setting: The establishment of clear, specific, and measurable goals, and the steps needed to achieve them.
- Assessment of Achievement: Your own self-assessment of how well you’ve accomplished the objectives of specific assignments, specific courses, your major, and the core.
- Self-Reflection: This might include some evaluation of where you are in relation to the overall University Objectives, the objectives of your major, and your own chosen goals and career plans: what you have achieved and what you need to achieve.
- Selection of Work: Careful evaluation and selection of the most appropriate material for your portfolio
There is obviously a close relationship between the content of your
portfolio and the objectives of the University, the School of Business,
and the individual courses in which you enroll. You should have become
acquainted with the mission and objectives of both the University and the
School of Business, but they are included below for reference.
The Pacific Lutheran University Mission Statement reads as follows:
Long committed to providing an education distinguished for quality, in the context of a heritage that is Lutheran and an environment that is ecumenically Christian, PLU continues to embrace its primary mission: the development of knowledgeable persons equipped with an understanding of the human condition, a critical awareness of humane and spiritual values, and a capacity for clear and effective self-expression.
For all who choose to seek a PLU degree, the university offers opportunity to pursue a variety of programs of academic worth and excellence. Its standards of performance demand a finely trained faculty as well as highly skilled administrative and support staff. In its institutional emphasis on scholarship, the University views the liberal arts as providing the necessary and essential foundation for the technical training and education in the professions which modern society requires.
The university aims to cultivate the intellect, not for its own sake merely, but as a tool of conscience and an instrument for service. The diversity and variety of cultural programs and personal services offered by the university are intended to facilitate this positive development of the student as a whole person in order that our students might function as members of society.
In other words, PLU affirms that realization of one's highest potential as well as fulfillment of life's purpose arise in the joy of service to others. To aid its students in sharing this understanding, the university seeks to be a community in which there is a continuing and fruitful interaction between what is best in education and what is noblest in Christian edification.
This deliberate and simultaneous attention to the religious dimension of the total human experience and to the standards of scholarly objectivity, coupled with clear recognition of the integrative impulse in each, is the essence of
PLU.
The PLU faculty has adopted the following Integrative Learning Objecitves as the goals of a PLU education:
Critical Reflection
| consider issues from multiple perspectives
|
| evaluate assumptions and consequences of different perspectives in assessing possible solutions to problems
|
| select sources of information using appropriate research methods
|
| understand and explain divergent viewpoints on complex issues, critically assess the support available for each, and defend one's own
judgments. |
Expression
| communicate clearly and effectively in both oral and written forms
|
| create symbols of meaning in a variety of expressive media, both verbal and nonverbal
|
| adapt messages to various audiences |
Interaction with Others
| work creatively to identify and clarify the issues of concern
|
| develop and promote effective strategies and interpersonal relationships
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| acknowledge and respond to conflicting ideas and
principles, and identify common interests |
Valuing
| articulate and assess one's own values, with an awareness of the communities and traditions that have helped to shape them
|
| recognize how others have arrived at values different from one's own
|
| develop a habit of caring for oneself, for others, and for the environment
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| approach moral, spiritual, and intellectual development as a life-long process |
Multiple Frameworks
| recognize and understand how cultures profoundly shape different assumptions and behaviors
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| identify issues and problems facing people in every culture
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| cultivate respect for diverse cultures, practices, and traditions |
The School of Business has identified
a number of learning outcomes consistent with the University ILOs:
- Knowledge is defined as learning, understanding,
and internalization of business curriculum content, and includes
disciplinary content, concentration content (where relevant),
global perspective, effective use of
technology,
and ethical decision making. Disciplinary and concentration content
refer to the specific academic content of business core and concentration
courses (e.g., accounting finance, human resources management,
etc.). Follow the hyperlinks to learn more about the School of
Business faculty's definitions and attributes of global perspective, effective use of technology,
and ethical decision making.
- Competencies represent the ability to apply
knowledge and awareness, to draw conclusions, and to promote action.
Competencies include written and oral communication,
critical
thinking, and
interpersonal relationships.
- Core values are the enduring beliefs that guide
behavior. Our core values are professionalism, ethical
conduct, and
service
to the community.
Clearly, some of these are more relevant to some
courses than others. For example, interpersonal relationships may be
stressed in relatively few courses, while many, if not all, courses will
provide experience in critical thinking and written or oral
communication. School of Business faculty have agreed to provide
descriptions of the relationship between their course assignments and the
knowledge areas, competencies and core values cited above. Selection of
which of those assignments you may want to use to highlight the
development or your capability in a specific area is part of the process
of development of your portfolio. Some assignments may be more
representative of your capabilities than others. Remember that your
portfolio is not simply a storage bin for every assignment. Rather, it is
a set of materials selected specifically to demonstrate growth and
achievement. Choose materials carefully so that you can show a progression
of your capability in each area, rather than overwhelming the reader with
sheer volume of material.
School of Business student portfolios will be in
digital format, which provides several advantages compared with a hardcopy
version. A digital portfolio can be posted on line, recorded on a floppy or zip disk, or burned onto a CD.
There are a number of advantages to maintaining your portfolio electronically:
| It can include more material than a hard copy version (e.g., a 3-ring binder) |
| It can have more than one organizational scheme |
| It allows for easy cross-referencing |
| It is more portable and accessible. |
One way of organizing your portfolio would be to have a table of contents,
with each item hyper-linked to the various projects, papers, and other
artifacts, each of which is represented in a separate digital file (e.g.,
.doc, .ppt, .xls, .pdf, etc.). The initial table of contents could also
provide hyper-links to alternative organizational structures; materials
might be organized by course, major vs. minor, or by area of competence
(communication, interpersonal relations, critical thinking). Use your
imagination to determine what will best "tell your story."
Your portfolio is a semi-public
presentation of yourself. It will be a means of demonstrating a wide
variety of academic and co-curricular accomplishments. You may well want
to use it to support your applications for employment after graduation, or
applications for graduate school. Therefore, it is important to be
thoughtful about the materials you select and how they are organized. We
suggest a systematic process such as the following:
- Identify your primary and secondary academic objectives (career
path(s),
academic prerequisites for the relevant career path(s), co-curricular
interests and the linkage between those interests and career choices)
- Perform a personal SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats)
analysis to determine what they have accomplished in their academic careers
to date and what learning experiences will be most effective and important
in achieving the objectives identified in #1, above. (Note:
"challenges" may be a better word than "threats" in this
context.) What are you good at? How do you know? What do you like to do?
Note that it's important to be as objective and honest as possible here.
Puffery and exaggeration will be discovered sooner or later, typically to
one's detriment. Sometimes it's hard to get past preconceived notions and
the well-intended comments or advice of others. On the other hand, it's
important not to shortchange yourself. A fair amount of introspection may be
required to develop a realistic assessment of your capabilities.
Conversations with others who you can trust to be both candid and
constructive may be useful as you develop your self-assessment
- Compile an inventory of significant academic and co-curricular work to
date, including but not restricted to term papers, semester projects, class
presentations, case analyses, student leadership positions and
internship/work experience. How do your co-curricular achievements reinforce
your academic accomplishments? Leadership on the soccer field may translate
into leadership in teamwork for a class assignment. Class presentations may
be a breeze for someone who has experience in speech and debate. The
relationship may work the other way. Perhaps organizational and leadership
skills in a class project stimulated your interest in leadership in
athletics.
- Examine existing portfolios (a Web search will get you
lots of hits) and learn to constructively
critique what others have done in order to better display your own work.
Remember that you are looking for both content and appearance. What sorts of
artifacts do you find that really enable you to get a sense of a student's
capablities? For those using the ePLU interface, appearance will not be a
serious problem, but if you design your own web site (or include links to it
from your ePLU page), think about what color combinations work together.
Black print on a purple background this
is black Arial 12 point doesn't show up very well. Textured or
variegated backgrounds often make the text very difficult to read; click here
for an illustration found at one portfolio site. Also remember that red and
green combinations (e.g., red type on a green background) don't work for
those afflicted with color blindness. Script fonts (e.g., Brush)
may look nice under some conditions, but may be extremely hard on the eyes
or virtually unintelligible against some backgrounds; click here
for an example.
- Determine how best to represent your accomplishments to date using
selected artifacts to show both development (i.e., evolution) and
achievement of skills and abilities. Except in isolated cases, the items you
select for your portfolio don't stand for themselves. You will need to
provide a brief description of why you have selected each item. What
role does it serve? How does this artifact demonstrate your improved ability
in, say, written communication?
- Prepare a reflection on your academic and co-curricular experiences.
(e.g., What was learned from doing this piece of work? How did I learn it? How can
I now (and in the future) apply this learning? You may want to
have your advisor or a trusted faculty member read over your work to provide
constructive comments.
- Develop an action plan to ensure that their individual academic and
co-curricular objectives will be achieved.
- Assemble your portfolio!
Remember that a portfolio is a dynamic entity. Just
as your capabilities evolve and change with each new experience, your
portfolio should evolve to reflect those changes. You are in the initial
stages of a process of lifelong learning. Use your portfolio as a way of
documenting that process and the outcomes from it.
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This page is maintained by Professor Gerry
Myers, School of Business, Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, WA 98447.
Address communications to me at myersgm@plu.edu
Page last edited on 06/16/04 01:31 PM
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