he tangata, he tangata, he tangata 

Acknowledge the past

Embrace the present

Advance the future 

1. Almost 8 months have passed, what features of your ePortfolio do you like the most and why?

The simplicity!

I like the reflective thinking process that helps me to clarify my thoughts and plan activities.

I like the way everything is recorded as a separate ASSET and can be used and reused in all sorts of formats and for all sorts of purposes.

The way ASSETs are gathered together and displayed is so simple, easy and quick it is almost breathtaking the first time you do it and get such a professional looking result.

I like the fact that I can share my reports with anyone, that I control who and how my data is accessed and that I am not limited by system or product accessibility.

2. How have I used my ePortfolio?

My first priority was to record activities for the ALIA PD Scheme which I added as individual assets. Using TAGs I can collate theses ASSETs into a WEBFOLIO which can be submitted for audit. Because the activities are individual ASSETs I can also use them for other purposes. An example of this is the notes I recorded for a QOPALs presentation by Gill Hallam and myself on ePortfolios in professional practice. As well as being used for PD reporting, I circulated the ASSET to QOPAL members as notes of the meeting and have used this report several times for people who want to know more about ePortfolios. It can be shared via email with anyone and does not require special software. It is safe, I can set the access permissions and know that the rest of my data is safe. Currently I am recording all of my PD activities and next is getting everything to display the way I want it to and submitted to ALIA for audit.

3. How am I progressing and what are my experiences so far?

At first the platform was quite daunting. How to TAG, which ASSET type to use, what exactly am I recording, why am I recording this information, what have I got myself into? Now it is more familiar and the more I use it the more natural it has become.

4. What do I want to achieve as a member of the project?

I want a way to record my professional development activities that allows me to analyse and plan my career pathway. I want to be able to manipulate the information so I can use it in different formats such as job applications as well as ALIA PD Scheme reporting. I wanted a system that was safe, secure and easily transported. I was cautious of systems and software that tied me to a contract or may not be easily shared with people who did not share the software.

5. Why did I sign up for the joint ALIA/QUT project?

I have been a participant in the ALIA PD Scheme for several years and value continuing professional development highly. I have developed my own system for recording PD activities, reflecting on my skills and knowledge and planning ongoing career pathways and learning. I was looking for a way of developing this so that the information could be easily imported into different formats such as job applications, resumes and even reports and appraisals in the workplace. I presented a paper on the topic at the ALIA New Librarians Symposium in 2008 where Gill Hallam presented on e-portfolios and I was taken by the synergy between our topics and interested to learn more about how e-portfolios would help to solve my problems. I wanted to learn more about how e-portfolios work and also to make a contribution toward the development and learning for other library professionals because I see the development of the profession being closely tied to the intrinsic benefits to the community and that for Library Professionals to be valued they need to be keeping ahead of the trends not just keeping up.