“My Apartment Smells of Rich Mahogany” No, wait…it’s an electronic portfolio

By Hanna Ackerman

Portfolio n.: port·fo·lio
Pronunciation: [pôrt-f l - ]
1: a hinged cover or flexible case for carrying loose papers, pictures, or pamphlets

Not quite what the newly instated Learning Portfolio is, but Gettysburg has transferred it to cyberspace.  Though the current learning portfolio may not evoke images of leather-bound works of intellect, to be saved and displayed as personal academic triumphs; don’t be fooled, that is exactly what it is.

The Learning Portfolio is a significant part of the new Gettysburg curriculum and the college’s new directive: of actively creating well-rounded students with a true liberal arts education.  Instated for the class of 2008, the Learning Portfolio is now a requirement for graduation from Gettysburg.  A sign of higher standards to be enforced in the years to come, the Learning Portfolio is a step up in effort for the Gettysburg academic community. This step up is exactly why Gettysburg is rising in national rankings and why the freshman class is significantly larger this year than it has been in years past. However, this by no means indicates the happiness of the student body to comply, “I can see how it will be annoying, but in theory it is a good idea,” stated freshman, Kelly Chubb.

The purpose of the Learning Portfolio is simply to allow students an opportunity to save and reflect upon written work and projects that they have completed for courses here at Gettysburg College.  It is essentially a record of all the assignments that, a student feels, represent an important point that he or she made in a piece of work or a significant step in his or her academic career at Gettysburg.  The point is clearly to give students something to be proud of, and yes, the mark of an excellent higher learning institution is the demand that students go the extra mile for their academics. However, are students willing to give the amount that the portfolio asks for? Well, whether we want to or not this is a requirement for graduation for the class of 2008 and every subsequent class.

We are expected to write prefaces to all pieces of work that we post to the Portfolio. Considered important enough to deserve its own hour training session through the First-Year Experience and offers of more training and suggestions from the writing center for older students, the preface is key to each portfolio entry. They are used to clarify and reflect upon the points and the importance of the ideas in the writing or project, and they must be of an excellent academic degree. The thing is, after we write the prefaces they will be used by the college to rate their own performance as to how well they are instructing us. If a preface is not good enough or cover all the right points we will be asked to rewrite it. So are we receiving any sort of grade for this? What will happen if it is not completed or completed incorrectly? And how do we know if what we write is good enough?

Although help is available from the Writing Center, as it always is for writing that needs to get done, the information that has been provided regarding the Portfolio is sketchy at best. Many people do not fully understand the entire purpose of the Electronic Portfolio, a massive oversight on the administration’s behalf.

What we do know for sure is this: easy enough to use, the Learning Portfolio is accessed in CNAV, through the My Place to My Portfolio links.  Sections for each required posting are laid out in an easily accessible format and are clearly marked so as to negate the need for extensive directions. The required entries are First-Year Writing, Interdisciplinary or Cluster, Letter to First-Year Advisor, Letter to Major Advisor, Arts, Humanities, Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences.  If all these topics have postings under them the student can be assured that they have completed, and understand, the requirements for graduation from Gettysburg.