How does creating online professional identities, articulating learning goals and developing reflective text in PebblePad engage international students in enhancing language proficiency and professional learning? Join us as we share the journey of our international students on a professional studies intensive program at Griffith. Our engaging story reveals the capacity of the digital portfolio to motivate international students by recognising existing professional skills and experiences, and providing a supportive platform for growing language capability.

1. ePortfolios and English Language Learners
Christine Grimmer and John Bourke

2. Building Leadership for Change through School Immersion
Khebrat (experiences)

3. • The Khebrat (experiences) international study
program for teachers
• 2030 Vision program – modernisation in KSA
• 25 teachers (6 countries)
• 12 months
• Australia, Canada, Scotland, New Zealand, USA
and Finland.
• A third cohort is planned for 2019.​
What is Khebrat

4. • Explicitly making learning and
experiences relevant
• Connecting education and
experiences
• Capturing learning for use in the
future
• Integrating experiences into
careers
ePortfolios in Khebrat

5. Khebrat at Griffith - Orientation - 1 week
- English language intensive – 15 weeks
- Technical Knowledge and skills – 4 weeks
- School immersion – 18 weeks
- Capstone Project showcase

6. • Start building their ePortfolio in a
guided and structured way during
the intensive English phase
• Work towards greater user
autonomy in phases 3, 4 and 5
• At project completion, have a
digital record that documents
their learning journey
Participants

7. BlackBoard Interface

8. • Engaging language activity
• Involves metacognitive processes
• Adds cohesion to the program
• Utilises and extends IT skills
• Facilitates dissemination
• Affirms identity
• Multi-media platform
• Atlas facilitates feedback
Affordances of the ePortfolio

9. Listening and Speaking

10. Reading and Writing

11. • Text, images, audio and
video, icons and avatars
• Great for individuals whose
culture doesn’t favour photos
of women
• A picture is worth a thousand
words
Multi-media platform

12. Feedback

13. “The best thing about ePortfolio is that it
paints me a wonderful map of my
presence in this course by talking
about myself and about my country and
then where I went here in Brisbane
and my goals from the program and
my philosophy in teaching. All this makes
everything clear to me and gives me
space for reflection and repor​ting
Student perspective

14. • 64% - the portfolio helped me to
improve my English skills.
(21 % neither agreed nor disagreed.)
• 88% - the portfolio enabled me
to show my skills and interest
as a teacher
• 92% - the classes were
engaging or somewhat
engaging?
Student Survey

15. Thank you