E-portfolio of competences in Higher Education, in order to reflect about informal learning.

What is it about?

This paper presents some outcomes and results of a 3-year empirical research in which we propose an adult workers-oriented tool – the portfolio of competences – to higher education students of the postsecondary age group, using an e-portfolio system (Mahara), with the aim of making them able to reflect about their learning experiences, to demonstrate their competences and to mobilize them in a real working context, relying on the substantial working experience they have during their studying period, albeit often occasional and scarcely related to their degree programme. Il especially focuses on technological issues, mainly addressing the portfolio structure and communication between the teacher/tutor and the students, analyzing data coming from the internal database of the e-portfolio system and comparing the solutions adopted both at technological and didactical level, from one year to another.

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Why is it important?

It is important because there is lack of papers about reflective tools, aimed at reflecting on prior learning, oriented to students of postsecondary age group even if we show that they have several working, sports or hobby experiences to be valued. But the main aim is overall to make them learn to build an e-portfolio in future working experiences and making them aware of the leaning possibilities of informal contexts to bring learning. This is especially true for the so-called soft skills.