Proposal for ePortfolio

Storytelling and the Creation of an Interactive Digital Story

ETEC 590 Dr. F. Feng, UBC
Catherine Fowler
June 14, 2015

Proposal for ETEC 590 ePortfolio

Storytelling and the Creation of an Interactive Digital Story
Dr. F. Feng, UBC
Catherine Fowler
As an elementary school librarian I am immersed in stories; fictional, non-ficitonal,
arising from personal experiences and from the imagination. No matter where these stories
come from they all have one thing in common, they are told and shared. Through stories we
explain, interpret, and assess situations, experiences, and ideologies, leading in turn to the
creation of new meanings. Storytelling is prevalent in all aspects of human interaction,
connecting generations of the past with the present and future to form, pass on, or reformulate
wisdom, values and beliefs. (Chung, 2007)
A traditional role of the librarian is to share stories with children, directing them to the
stories of others in hopes of feeding their imaginations and desire for learning. Though I have
always encouraged my students to share their stories, few were excited about writing them down
or finding ways to share them. Once I introduced digital storytelling to my students they became
excited to create, tell and share their stories in new and exciting ways. Digital storytelling has
transformed the library from housing stories to being the center of creation for them.
The creation of a digital story to tell my MET journey experience was a natural decision
for me, ensuring my philosophy, practice and passion for storytelling was represented. I believe
that storytelling and digital stories are powerful tools for engaging students across all disciplines,
ages and cultures. Through the telling of our stories we pass on a piece of ourselves while
encouraging those we tell to add a piece of themselves to the story, creating a new story that
contains an essence of all those that have encountered it. In this way my ePortfolio is a living
document that will grow with me and perhaps inspire other students and become a part of their
story as well.
This is my story, every interaction, experience and lesson learned has become a piece of
who I am.

Statement of Purpose: Objectives

The purpose for the creation of my ePortfolio is to document the story of my progress
and journey through the MET program. Helen Barrett (2001) describes ePortfolios as
Reflective stories of deep learning, where digital storytelling provides a connection to
students lives and a way to demonstrate not only what was learned, but how people learn
through accessing and organizing prior knowledge around a conceptual framework. Paulson &
Paulson (1991) tell us that, A portfolio tells a story. It is the story of knowing Portfolios are
students' own stories of what they know, why they believe they know it, and why others should
be of the same opinion. Through the telling of my story I am able to reflect, question, realign
my previous assumptions and ideas and extend my learning to my profession. The process of
creating an ePortfolio forces me to evaluate my work, artifacts, notes and discussions to see how
my story has developed, taken twists and turns at unpredicted places and changed dramatically
from what I would have predicted in the beginning. One objective through this process is to take
the time to critically evaluate how the MET program has changed my pedagogy, beliefs and how
this changes how I teach and interact with my students and colleagues for these changes are
significant.
The creation of this ePortfolio demonstrates digital storytelling techniques, using audio,
images both moving and still, video, scripts, Blogging and of course text. This story is housed in
ATAVIST, an easy and intuitive program that may be used for any kind of storytelling activity.
Focus Questions
The purpose of the portfolio is communication. It is a story, a narrative, told from the
student's perspective. (Paulson & Paulson, 1991) Does my ePortfolio communicate what I
know, how I have come to know it and how I will use what I know? Is this ePortfolio a
reflective story of deep learning? What evidence supports this?

Audience
This ePortfolio is for my peers, both in the MET program now and in the future as well
as for any teacher or student interested in Educational Technology. Secondly, it is fulfils the
requirements of the Teacher Qualification Service (TQS) of BC so I qualify for the Category 6
Salary in my district. Lastly it is for me and my family, as a document of my experiences, hard

work and learning. If, in the future I wish to further my career, this ePortfolio would serve as
either a valuable resource or a starting point for a professional resume/portfolio.

Metaphor/theme
I chose the Adventure genre as the narrative for my story as it has always been a
favourite of mine, Robinson Crusoe and Treasure Island being two favourites. The adventure
genre provides the background for the new places, experiences and challenges I faced along my
MET journey. Reflections are included as the main characters Journal Entries highlighting the
artifacts which represent the challenges and obstacles encountered along the way.
The story is written on the premise that the MET program is a group of islands, each one
unique and offering new experiences and challenges. The islands are divided into two groups,
the Core Islands and the Elective Islands. The adventure ties the islands together finding bridges
between the islands and linking the skills needed to navigate through the islands as the artifacts.

Artifacts
Because my story is linear in nature, my artifacts will be drawn from the courses I took in
the order they were taken. This is important to me because as I look back upon these courses I
can clearly see where my thinking shifts and new directions are taken. My intentions and
choices for future courses were dependent upon the earlier courses and knowledge gained.
Rationale for choosing Artifacts:
The artifacts are carefully chosen to represent different media tools, a variety of topics,
methodologies, and creativity but most importantly to represent my growth within the MET
program. Each artifact is chosen to highlight a question, or topic arising from personal growth,
and the broadening of my perspective within the frame of educational technology. As I began to
examine my personal praxis, including my philosophies and ideologies I found more questions
than answers leading me to discover new theories, adjust my own philosophy and ideology and
adopt a new praxis for using educational technology. Growth, development and potential further
development is shown both through the actual artifact and accompanying reflections.

Story Board: Proposed Artifacts

Story
Sequence

Chapter
Headings

Artifacts (Possible)

Purpose

ETEC 511 Discussion Post

Highlights Discussions and

testing the waters
Looking for direction through
Group work/ collaboration

All About Me
The
Characters/
Exposition
The
Setting

The Journey
Begins

Economics of Ed.
Technology/ DLG work.
ETEC 512 Situated and
Distributed Learning Blog
The Plot

The Plot

ETEC 500 Librarians as

Educational Technology
Leaders
Reading Management
Programs: A research
proposal
ETEC510 Community of
Writers': A project in
educational design

Sorting out key characters and

themes, finding a direction to
travel
Facing and challenging core
beliefs

Questioning past practice

Linking theory to practice,
finding strength in numbers

ETEC 510 Wiki Post

The
Conflict

The Plot
Thickens

ETEC 565M MicroExpression Group Blog

Deciphering the new

language and map reading
along the way

Mobile Weebly App

Survival skills in the wild

ETEC 530 Mind Map

Constructivist Goal Setting
site
Constructivist Learning Plan

Discovery and finding

answers, mapping out new
directions, establishing new
pedagogy and praxis

The
Climax

When I realize
the end is both
near and not yet
in sight.

ETEC 540 Documentary:

Hidden Agenda
Rip Mix Feed 21st Century
Storytelling
ETEC 532 CIP: 21st
Century Digital Storytelling

The
Resolution

Looking
Back/Looking
Forward

For the joy of learning and

discovery, the pinnacle and
finding a new passion

Sharing my passion with

others and finding like-minded
souls

ETEC 590

Media and Tools

I am using a new, to me, tool called ATAVIST that enables you to create multimedia
digital books, or magazines. The final product will read like a book, but include hyperlinks to
documents and webpages as well as multimedia inserts such as images, video and sound bites.
Each artifact will showcase different media and tools used throughout the MET program.
Where possible I reflect on the process of using the tools as well as on the content of the
artifact itself.

Time Line
Week 4 - Write Proposal for instructor/peer feedback
(Choose metaphor, explore and choose media, platform )
Week 5 - Review feedback, rewrite/adjust proposal
(Begin planning process, seek feedback on ideas, concepts, plans)
Week 6 - Begin Construction of ePortfolio
(Create storyboard, plan sections, design ideas)
Week 7 - Construction of ePortfolio
(Select and connect artifacts, reflections for artifacts)
Week 8 - Construction of ePortfolio
(Continue to build ePortfolio)
Week 9 - Seek Review and feedback from instructor/Peers
Week 10- Examine feedback, make adjustments, check hyperlinks, connections, media

Week 11- Seek continuous feedback, make adjustments, review content, review design
Week 12- Edit, review, seek feedback, revise, adjust, seek feedback , create Guided Tour Video
(Be happy with ePortfolio)
Week 13- Take one last good look and submit ePortfolio

Assessment Rubric
Criteria
TQS
ePortfolio demonstrates understanding and the ability to critically
evaluate theory and research in Educational technology
ePortfolio demonstrates an ability to derive and represent linkages
and applications to professional practice
Artifacts

Proficient

Exemplary

Artifacts are clearly and directly related to the purpose of the

eportfolio and represent a wide range of skills and competencies
Artifacts show growth through collaboration, group work and peer
evaluation
Reflections
Reflections clearly demonstrate growth, competencies,
accomplishments, and include goals for continued learning
Reflections show a synthesis and analysis of learning
Design and Metaphor
Design and metaphor are linked through text, media and artifacts
showing growth and connectivity to overarching theme
ePortfolio is linked to educational design principles, is
aesthetically pleasing, easy to navigate and view
Multimedia applications augment the overall theme and design,
highlight artifacts and represent learning and professional
development

References
Barrett, H. (2001). ePortfolios: Digital Stories of Deep Learning. Work, 1(11/9), 89. Retrieved
July 22, 2015, from http://helenbarrett.com/portfolios/SJSU2.pdf
Chung, S. K. (2007). Art education technology: Digital storytelling. Art Education, 60(2), 17.
Retrieved July22,2015, from
http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/stable/27696201?
Search=yes&seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents
Paulson, F. Leon and Peal R. Paulson (1991). Portfolios: Stories of knowing.
Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Claremont Reading Conference. Retrieved
July 22, 2015, from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED377209.pdf.