The Portfolio Community of Practice

ePortfolio vs. Dossier

What is the difference between an electronic teaching portfolio and a teaching dossier? Other than the obvious fact that an eportfolio is electronic, there are other features that set them apart. The ruling distinction is that the eportfolio allows for more creativity and self-expression because it has not (yet?) become as regulated as the dossier. Traditionally, teaching dossiers are standardized documents that are used “to document capabilities of employees and students in order to streamline institutional business processes” (Interface 2006 ePortfolios). But this is not necessarily the purpose of eportfolios. On the contrary, “portfolios are a process of creative expression” (D’Arcy Norman).

The eportfolio gives us the opportunity to create dynamic and often interactive platforms for presenting our work and reflecting on our learning experiences. We can also include additional resources such as pdf files, images, sound clips, video clips, and hyperlinks, that help to link the content of the portfolio to a concrete context by capturing the learning process in a variety of ways.

Unfortunately, one of the drawbacks to the eportfolio is that it is not recognized by all institutions in the process of applying for tenure and promotion, and this is why most instructors should think about having both. Still, the eportfolio is a valuable tool for maintaining an on-going reflective journal on your experiences in teaching and learning.