What is E-Portfolios/Electronic Portfolios

As a punishment from the Greek gods for his numerous trickeries, Sisyphus was condemned to roll an enormous rock up a hill for eternity. As he reached the top of the hill, the rock rolled back to the bottom of the hill and he had to start anew. For some pre-service teacher education students, the work involved in creating an electronic portfolio becomes a Sisyphean task. However, upon completion of the e-portfolio, the students realize that the task has become a labour of love as they spend much of their spare time fine-tuning the finished product. This chapter describes that task and the pride that they feel at the end of their time in the teacher education program. The University of Northern British Columbia Education Program’s teacher education program has relatively new but very innovative and creationary. The professors teach undergraduate and graduate courses, are actively involved in graduate student supervision, provide professional development workshops to surrounding school districts on a regular basis, and publish research articles and present research findings at learnèd conferences. Since its inception in 2002, the Education Program has submitted and had approved its Bachelor of Education program by the teacher governing agency, the British Columbia College of Teachers (BCCT). Its graduates are hired by the surrounding districts, throughout BC and Canada, and overseas. It is, without a doubt, a solid program.