Exploring College Student Leadership Development in an Integrative E-Portfolio Process

• In Event: Interactive Roundtable Discussions
  In Interactive Roundtable: Leadership Education Interactive Roundtable Discussions

Short Description

This qualitative research project assessed student learning and design aspects of an integrative e-portfolio program that contributed to students’ leadership development. Discussion will highlight student growth resulting from faculty, staff, and alumni mentoring; a cohort-based seminar course; and a structured integrative reflection process.

Detailed Abstract

Problem, need and significance:
A 2013 survey from the EDUCAUSE Center for Analysis and Research demonstrates how the use of e-portfolios has increased sharply since 2010 where e-portfolios are now being used in more than half of U.S. colleges and universities. Emerging research has demonstrated the multifaceted benefits for students of well-designed, well-executed e-portfolio programs. However, like any new pedagogy, it requires successive iterations to get it right (Kahn, 2014). Thus, more empirical research on effective e-portfolio practices and the impact of these practices on student learning will inform program design adjustments to optimize student learning.

In addition, while the field has seen an increase in research on the impact of e-portfolios on student learning in general, little research has been done on the impact of e-portfolios on student leadership development, specifically. In an integrative review of the field of leadership, Avolio et al (2009) encouraged the field of leadership to more deeply explore what contributes to or detracts from genuine leadership development. In addition, The Inter-Association Leadership Education Collaborative has called for a need to shift away from what experiences foster leadership growth to what about these experiences fosters growth (ILEC, 2014). Thus, this research study bridges the e-portfolio and student leadership development literature and helps leadership educators identify the impact and design aspects of a specific pedagogical tool in the form of an e-portfolio program that contribute to student leadership development.

Framework:
A large public research university in the western United States is utilizing e-portfolios as an evidence-based best practice for teaching and learning in its leadership education efforts. A cross-campus leadership initiative has catalyzed a series of curricular and co-curricular programs over the last four years that aim to cultivate students’ leadership capacities. The capstone leadership certificate program offers students an opportunity to create a leadership e-portfolio that integrates their leadership values, competencies, learning and long-term goals. Students are matched with a faculty/staff/alumni mentor who helps the student reflect upon and give voice to their leadership development. A required credit-bearing leadership e-portfolio course adapted from the Integrative Knowledge Portfolio Process (Peet, 2012) also guides students through a series of reflective exercises that helps them articulate both explicit and tacit knowledge while identifying deep connections between their leadership development experiences. Specifically, student draw upon their key learning experiences and articulate how they have demonstrated and developed a number of student leadership competencies (Seemiller, 2014), a research-based set of knowledge, skills, abilities and behaviors important for student success in their early careers. Over the last four years, the program has grown from 18 student participants and 18 mentors to 164 student participants and 150 mentors.

Questions and content:
A formal qualitative research study was conducted during the last year to explore how program participation influences:
• Students’ ability to articulate leadership competencies they developed through their undergraduate experiences;
• Students’ ability to articulate transferable skills they may carry forward;
• Students’ value for reflective practices that support their self-awareness and growth as a leader;
• Students’ self-efficacy to engage in leadership.
In addition, this research study explored how specific aspects of the program facilitated student leadership development. Program aspects include a mentoring component, course component, peer interaction and reflective exercises.

Design:
Data collection for this qualitative study involved the following:

Post-surveys: An assessment survey was administered to 158 students who completed the leadership certificate program during the last three academic years. The survey explored students’ perception of their leadership development learning in addition to their opinions of the aspects of the program that were influential in their development
Focus groups and individual interviews: 4 focus groups with 21 students and individual interviews with 4 students who could not attend the scheduled focus groups were conducted to gain further insight into issues that developed through data analysis of the survey results.
Document analysis: The content in students’ leadership e-portfolios were analyzed to understand how students articulated their development around specific leadership competencies as well as how they articulated transferable skills they may carry forward.

Results, findings and outcomes:
Initial findings indicate student growth and additional opportunities for program design adjustment. Findings around student learning include:
• increased value placed on the reflection process for one’s leadership development;
• increased self-awareness of leadership strengths and challenges;
• increased clarity and ability to coherently articulate one’s leadership values, philosophy and strengths;
• increased sense of preparedness for future career and academic pursuits;
• increased confidence and self-efficacy to engage in the leadership process.

Findings around program design include:
• value for mentor feedback and dialogue in helping students articulate their tacit knowledge;
• value for a structured reflection process that guides students in integrating and articulating their learning across multiple experiences;
• value placed on utilizing flexible e-portfolio platforms to creatively tell their unique story;
• overall importance of helping students translate their education to make their leadership learning an explicit part of their undergraduate experience.

Insights for future program improvement that arose from the study include differentiating between a learning and professional portfolio and engaging in longitudinal studies to assess the long term influence of this program on student leadership development.

Conclusions and implications:
Initial findings from this research study bridges the e-portfolio and student leadership development literature and shines a light on e-portfolios as a powerful pedagogical tool for college student leadership education. In addition, this program demonstrates potential for making leadership education more inclusive and accessible to undergraduate students by modeling inclusive leadership principles in program framing, design and structure. This specific program has moved from being a highly selective program to one that embraces a more inclusive approach and thereby now currently draws students who engage in leadership in a variety of ways. We believe this approach models inclusive leadership and conveys the message that every student has the potential and opportunity to cultivate their leadership potential necessary to be effective change agents and contributing members in their communities.

Participants

• Francesca Lo, University of Washington

• Nandita Vishwanath, University of Washington

• Michaelann Jundt, University of Washington