E-Portfolios in Nursing: Development and Professional Growth in NR512

This presentation explores the concept of e-portfolios in the context of nursing, specifically focusing on their application in learning and professional development. The presentation defines e-portfolios for both graduate nursing students and advanced practice nurses (APNs), highlighting their distinct purposes and contents. It emphasizes the importance of e-portfolios for self-evaluation, showcasing skills, and facilitating professional growth, providing examples of items that might be included, such as academic qualifications, course overviews, practical experiences, biographies, professional experiences, awards, and honors. Furthermore, the presentation discusses challenges associated with creating and using e-portfolios, such as a lack of technical skills and limited access to supporting resources. The presentation concludes by emphasizing the value of e-portfolios for reflecting on the learning process and designing new strategies for professional development, with recommendations for encouraging their use and maintaining ethical confidentiality.

Running Head: E-PORTFOLIOS IN LEARNING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN
NURSING PRACTICE
E-PORTFOLIOS IN LEARNING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN
NURSING PRACTICE
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Table of contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Introduction to e-portfolio...............................................................................................................3
Importance of developing and using e-portfolio.............................................................................3
Identification and discursion of items included in e-portfolio.........................................................4
Five examples that student would include in e-portfolio.................................................................5
Challenges associated using an e-portfolio......................................................................................6
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................6
Recommendations............................................................................................................................7
Reference list...................................................................................................................................8

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Introduction
Advanced practice nurse or APN refers to nursing professionals such as registered nurses,
clinical nurses and nurse anesthetists who perform set of clinical practices providing care to
patients. APRNS diagnose preliminary health concern of the patient and treat the individual in a
holistic approach as directed by the physician. However stepping into this profession requires a
certified degree in the discipline hence this topic will help any graduate student to understand the
benefits of developing an e-portfolio for the same level as well as APN for profession
development. The presentation created will lead to discursion of elements and examples that are
included in an e-portfolio.
Introduction to e-portfolio
Assembling of documents and experiences sh1owcasing one’s abilities and skills over the time is
defined as e-portfolio. An e-portfolio may contain different types of documents such as files
containing image or graphics, certification of academic qualification, progress report, work
published, extra curriculum activities and any other evaluation or recommendations (Eynon &
Gambino, 2017). Portfolios for a graduate student in higher education and an APN are discussed.
Graduate student: The type of e-portfolio that a graduate nursing student makes is a showcase
or learning e portfolio highlighting his academic career. The student creates this type of portfolio
mostly as a part of the learning course hence often shared among other students and guides for
the purpose of self-evaluation. Graduate students of nursing generally use progress report,
certification of the course, internship done along with names of the concerned person and unit.
APN: Professional e-portfolios are created by APN that reflects their skills and work
experiences. Such e-portfolios include career goal of the person along with nursing experiences.
The APN needs to mention about the department where she worked before or presently for
instance, pediatric or maternity ward as well as details of her shift timings, leadership roles and
job designation..

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Importance of developing and using e-portfolio
There are so many importance of e- portfolios for a graduate student and APN
 Students can easily self-evaluate themselves by receiving feedbacks so that they can
improve themselves
 The portfolio serves as a competency standard and supporting evidences for later
application in the profession
 E portfolios act as a self-directive learning tool. It raises personal capabilities and boosts
confidence to become a nursing professional.
 For APN e-portfolios helps creating personal development through digital identity.
 It helps the APN to connect with many professionals for professional development. For
instance, an experienced RN looks forward to shift to another hospital
 E-portfolios also help to analyze self-efficiency in APN to seek or accept an advanced
position in professional development. For instance, an enrolled nurse is offered a
managerial position within a few years of her practice
Identification and discursion of items included in e-portfolio
Graduated student in higher education
Academic qualification: For a graduate student they must have some basic items on e-portfolio
among which qualification gets the first priority. A graduate student who wants to make a career
in professional development in nursing should have completed minimal qualification required to
become an APN. The marks scored help the student to place himself at a better position in the
industry.
Courses undertaken: A student e portfolio comprise of an overview of the subjects that he has
learned throughout the course work. For instance if the student has learned various evidence
based practices during his course work, it will highlight his preliminary skills (Thibodeaux et al.
2017).

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Practical experiences: Along with the certifications and theoretical background, practical
experiences also play a vital role in development of e-portfolios. This can be included by
attaching a CV or DVD.
Advanced practice nurse for professional development
Biography: Biography gives a brief idea of the academic and professional background of the
nurse. According to Carl & Strydom, (2017) it also identifies the goals that she wants to achieve
by working in the area of her interest.
Professional experiences: Professional experiences include employment details of the previous
work places along with related testimonials. It also includes the work tenure, learned skills and
recommendations. It is also desired to mention clinical expertise she exceled in such as
therapeutic communication or evidence based practice.
Awards and honors: APN e-portfolio can be highlighted with achievements and reward stories.
According to Americannursetoday (2017), the nursing professional can relate her honors with
pictures or certificates of merits.
Five examples that student would include in e-portfolio
Certificates: certificates of academic qualification come first in student portfolios. Certificates
of other purpose also enhance quality of the learner. For example if the student had participated
in any voluntary initiatives arranging blood donation camp in his locality or provided care
service to injured people will be an added advantage for him. Participation certificated from
nursing seminar or conference can be included too in the e portfolio.
Paper presentations: Presentations can also serves as a good evidence to highlight the creative
side of the student. Perhaps the student had given a speech of her voluntary practice on caring
old patients of a local care home and written a paper on it by himself (Bennett et al. 2016).
Project work: Nursing graduate students need to undertake project work during their nursing
course. Therefore small samples from their projects can also set as a good example to include in

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their e portfolio. Project samples help the examiner to understand the field of interest for the
student. For instance, perhaps a higher education graduate student wants to approach a nurse
manager for work in pediatric ward, she can share her project samples that would focus on her
knowledge on professional practice and ethics of working in the concerned ward.
Recommendations: Recommendations are equally important example of e-portfolio (Vaughan
et al. 2017). Recommendations are almost equivalent to transcripts that a higher education
graduate student that helps the student to seek for training or internships in reputed hospitals.
Pictures: Graphics and pictures for any achievements for example, receiving an award from
popular personality relating to the purpose is a good example. Pictures showing effective team
work performing volunteer actions delivering care create a good image of the student.
Challenges associated using an e-portfolio
 Lack of technical skills to create e portfolio: An e-portfolio looks attractive if it is
created creatively will all data base supported systematically. Unfortunately everyone is
not that aware of the tools and techniques of creating e-portfolios that requires technical
skills. According to Bennett et al. (2016) it has been observed in students that they end up
making the portfolios too much colorful with irreverent information. On the other hand
some professionals also often skip linking essential formats due to lack of technical skills.
 Availability of supporting samples: E-portfolio is a digital portfolio hence it requires
every attachment to be interlinked. But at times there falls shortage of resources to build
e-portfolios such as missing of scanned copies or limited storage to support large
samples.
Conclusion
E portfolios hence serve as an effective storage formats for students and professionals to preserve
their performance record in order to reflect the learning process. It helps students of higher
education to share feedback so that they can undergo a reflective approach in their development.

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Whereas in case of professionals, the portfolio helps to design new strategies in order to set new
objectives in a new work environment. E-portfolios help to critically analyze qualifications, area
of interest, work experiences, strength and opportunities. This learning tool helps the graduate
students and professionals to make the learning visible and reconstruct knowledge.
Recommendations
 Learners and professionals should be encouraged and educated to use tools for making e-
portfolios
 Ethical confidentiality should be maintained since many people find it less secured to
share so many supporting documents

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Reference list
Americannursetoday(2017) CRAFT A POSITIVE NURSING DIGITAL IDENTITY WITH
AN EPORTFOLIO [Acessed on 2 May 2019
From:https://www.americannursetoday.com/craft-a-positive-nursing-digital-identity-with-
an-eportfolio/]
Bennett, D., Rowley, J., Dunbar-Hall, P., Hitchcock, M., & Blom, D. (2016). Electronic
portfolios and learner identity: An ePortfolio case study in music and writing. Journal of
Further and Higher Education, 40(1), 107-124.
Carl, A., & Strydom, S. (2017). e-Portfolio as reflection tool during teaching practice: The
interplay between contextual and dispositional variables. South African Journal of
Education, 37(1).
Eynon, B., & Gambino, L. M. (2017). High-impact ePortfolio practice: A catalyst for student,
faculty, and institutional learning. Eds 2nd Stylus Publishing, LLC.
Thibodeaux, T., Cummings, C., & Harapnuik, D. (2017). Factors That Contribute to ePortfolio
Persistence. International Journal of ePortfolio, 7(1), 1-12.
Vaughan, N. D., Stogre, T., Cool, R., & MacIsaac, K. (2016). PERSONAL LEARNING
ENVIRONMENTS: MOVING BEYOND EPORTFOLIO SCRAPBOOKS. Forging new
pathways of research and innovation in open and distance learning, 301.