The value of e-portfolios as assessment tools in higher education has been acknowledged. Yet, they have often been considered effective in first-world countries. E-portfolios can be utilized successfully as transformative assessments in South African higher education institutions. The authors conducted qualitative research among South African student teachers involved in a teaching practice course that required them to construct and submit e-portfolios. The authors intended to investigate and analyze students' reflections on how they experienced e-portfolios as assessment tools. The study's findings demonstrated that students considered e-portfolios to be valuable assessment tools. They promote 21st-century skill acquisition, foster the realization of the interconnectedness of various programmatic learning components, support personal development, and successfully prepare graduates for the workforce.
TopBackground Of The Study
In open, and distance education learning, assessment is a crucial activity in determining students' success and learning levels, and competencies because it raises the standard of the services provided to students, enhances the educational system, and promotes the system's quality. The assessment process in higher education institutions includes the use of e-portfolios. In recent years, fundamental changes, and advances in the education sector, including assessment, have happened concurrently with the ICT industry's rapid rise. Assessment tools are also affected by modifications to educational technologies. Students are expected to present their work and exhibit their abilities online.
E-portfolios are specifically utilized by students to display their efforts, progress, and achievements in the module at the University of South Africa, the Open University of in the United Kingdom, and the National Taipei University of Technology in Taiwan (Chang, 2001; Jafrari & Kaufman, 2006). One of these is the usage of e-portfolio applications, which are useful media and tools for evaluating the educational and teaching process, student achievement, and students' aptitude for a particular course or subject. E-portfolios are replacing traditional paper-based portfolios in recent years as e-learning and other sophisticated technologies become more widely accessible (Chen, & Pao Nan, 2009).
Although Hubert et al.'s (2015) use of the word “composed” to describe the e-portfolio was meant to apply to writing in general, the notion that this is a high-impact practice (HIP) that fosters creativity is still valid. The researchers posit the use of e-portfolio as a mechanism to address issues related to the expanding number of graduates who are unemployed since it focuses on the outcome-based approach to continued educational reform (Tam, 2014; Zhang, 2021). In the context of this chapter, research was conducted at the University of South Africa to have an in-depth understanding of the use of e-portfolios, with special reference to the teaching practices of students.