Edul@b participates in the ICERI 2020 Conference

On the 9th and 10th of November 2020 the Conference of Education, Research and Innovation “ICERI” 2020 was held virtually with a focus on “Transforming Education, Transforming Lives”. Marcelo Maina, Lourdes Guàrdia, Sandrine Albert, Federica Mancini and Derek Clougher, members of the Edul@ab team, presented the paper “Using an ePortfolio to Showcase Student’s Employability Skills: The Case of the Master in Education and ICT (eLearning) at UOC” as part of the session Assessment and Evaluation.

The paper presents the results of the EPICA pilot study led by the UOC team which included the use of an ePortfolio for the evaluation and micro-credentialization of employability skills. The overarching aim was to facilitate future graduates to showcase a more complete profile, in line with the expectations of potential employers. The ePortofolio, specifically designed for the project, implemented a collaborative approach involving professors, local university coordinators, employers and the students themselves. Students partook in a micro-credential process aimed at demonstrating their communication and interpersonal skills, problem-solving skills, creative thinking skills, digital skills and teamwork skills with the aim of presenting them to potential employers, thus increasing the likelihood of getting a job upon graduating. The paper concludes with recommendations for the incorporation of the ePortfolio in the wider academic context as a strategic and transitional tool to identify, assess and showcase graduates’ employability skills.

Based on the positive results of the experience, conclusions are drawn highlighting the need to continue evaluating and investigating new and innovative pedagogical methods to adapt curricula to the demands of the labour market and respond to an urgent need to train students in employability skills. The overall objective of the project is to contribute, directly from the university, to improve the possibilities of access to work and professional development of its graduates.

For more information on the EPICA project and it’s findings you can check out the project website here.