Constructing an e-portfolio of competences with higher education students of postsecondary age group. Technological issues and outcomes

This paper presents some outcomes and results of a 3-year empirical research in which we propose an adult workers-oriented tool – the portfolio of competences – to higher education students of the postsecondary age group, using an e-portfolio system (Mahara), with the aim of making them able to reflect about their learning experiences, to demonstrate their competences and to mobilize them in a real working context, relying on the substantial working experience they have during their studying period, albeit often occasional and scarcely related to their degree programme. We especially focus here on technological issues, mainly addressing the portfolio structure and communication between the teacher/tutor and the students, analyzing data coming from the internal database of the e-portfolio system and comparing the solutions adopted both at technological and didactical level, from one year to another.