Our Fall 2017 Learning Media Design class was tasked with designing an e-portfolio solution for middle school students. Guided by the MakerEd initiative, we observed seventh and eight grade students in classrooms led by forward-thinking instructors.
The middle school was committed to Harvard’s Project Zero, which uses the arts as a way to encourage learning, so students were familiar with basic practices like sharing their work and giving thoughtful feedback to peers.
Our team of four graduate students were challenged to design a portfolio model that served two classrooms with different goals. The first class was an English Language Arts classroom, and the second was a Technology Education Makerspace. We began by using interviews and observation techniques to find common needs among students and teachers, and designed an e-portfolio system that addressed challenges across both classrooms.
