eportfolios and Life Stories in a Senior Capstone Seminar Susan Kahn and Karen Ramsay Johnson epic 2015 Composing a Life Story Composing a life has to do with the ways in which you compose your own versions of your life.the stories you use as lenses for interpreting experience as it comes along. What I want to say is that you can play with, compose, multiple versions of a life. (Bateson, Willing to Learn: Passages of Personal Discovery, 2004) 1
Context of IUPUI Urban research university founded 1969 22 schools, professional schools dominate 30K students, primarily local, working, nonresidential High proportion of first generation, low-income, minority students University education as a means to achieve social and economic mobility The senior year and the capstone: Prepare for transition to post-university life Achieve a sense of closure and accomplishment Integrate learning over time, across disciplines, across in- and out-of-class experiences Reflect on what it all adds up to 2
Capstone reflections 1. Who you are a reflection on an experience in which students think deeply about some aspect of their identity 2. What your educational experiences add up to a reflection in which students think integratively about their learning and intellectual/professional development as undergraduates Students Reading the Essay Devon: I've kind of always thought that my story goes one way and it can't be altered...it's interesting to think that I can be in complete control over my life story, how it is perceived, and what I decide it will mean for me. It's actually kind of liberating. David: What an inspiring and encouraging read this was!... Lives and careers only take a linear path in the imagination of our culture. In reality, life is full of zigzags. Ben: I have definitely felt the pressure to put myself on a linear path People should understand that they will most likely find themselves on a discontinuous path, and they should embrace it. You don't have to have it all figured out all at once. 3
Life Stories Reflection Create two one-page narratives that represent different versions of your life story (or, if you d prefer, of an experience like your undergraduate experience or the story of how you became an English major). Next, re-read your stories and write a 2-3 page reflection that addresses one or more of the questions below.conclude the reflection by telling us which version of your story you expect your eportfolio to focus on. How will you build your eportfolio so that its elements (text documents, section introductions, photos, introductions to examples of your work, and any other media you incorporate), viewed together, convey and demonstrate that story to your audience? Reflection questions What are the major similarities and differences between your two stories? In what ways do they represent alternative ways of looking at the same events/experiences? For example, is one the story you tell yourself and is the other the story you tell other people? Does one have more continuity than the other? Why? Which story do you prefer? Why? Was it difficult for you to compose one or both stories? If so, why? Have other people s stories (like your parents stories) influenced yours? In what ways? Did you compose your preferred story prospectively or retrospectively (i.e., are you looking forward or backward at your story)? What insights did you gain from composing and re-reading your two stories? 4
eportfolio pedagogy Constructivist approach to knowledge Integrative approach to learning and experience Metacognition Student engagement, agency, purpose Identity representation and development Social pedagogy Creating Life Stories Hannah says: Rather than focusing on only one of these stories in my eportfolio, I have included ideas from both. My fields of study truly are linked, and I wanted to demonstrate that theme, showing how what I m learning in one area strengthens the other and has led me to the career path that I am now pursuing. Threading these narratives together, the sub-sections of my Work Showcase pages display work completed in my different areas of study. In each subset, the skills and knowledge gained relate to my English major, putting the interconnectedness of these studies into perspective. As a whole, my eportfolio shows the academic and professional development I have made while emphasizing the convergence of my interests that have guided me on my life s path. It embodies the harmony of my studies, connected by my deep love of language in its varying forms. 5
Spencer Spencer found that It was difficult for me to compose both stories. Approaching the capstone, I was ready to think about life after my degree. I was not prepared to reconsider all the decisions I made previously. But an idea in Mary Catherine Bateson s Composing a Life Story did make these stories come out a little easier. She mentions making creative choices in how you look at your life (462). Previously I had only thought of my life as one continuous story, and I had never examined my life in different, unrelated ways. I feel that interpreting my own story in as many ways as possible is the first step to learning more about myself in order to discover what I would like to do with the rest of my life. Jody Jody had recently confronted a serious work crisis: I choose my second narrative, the one of growth and opportunity as the focus of my portfolio. I have changed a lot since 1993 and the work I did in each phase of my college career has been different and reflects the change and growth in my personal life, my interests and the challenges. I choose to show my best efforts and focus on success, rather than failures. It would be really easy to choose the disaster story, but when I look back at my life and the choices I have made and the struggles I have faced, that story is not an option for me. I choose the second narrative as my story because it is the narrative that allows for hope and opportunity rather than defeat. Defeat is not an option for me. I had one son at the time I got laid off, and now I have two. I have to make the best of my situation for their sakes. 6
Ashley Ashley s life has presented her with a whole set of complex challenges: While re-reading my stories what struck me is how independent and hardheaded I truly am. It was insightful to see my need to be able to express myself in a fashion that may be different from other people. I liked looking back and seeing how I got to where I am today, because the girl who was trying to find her way in this world is now the woman trying to find her way in this world and she is still okay with that. I found that I like to challenge things and I think that s positive, because it allows me to show a different perspective on things. One of the most insightful things that came from this story is that I m not perfect and that I will always be a work in progress. Can you imagine how freeing that is to know that, yes you will falter, but you will find your way. As much as I disliked writing this story, it became a beautiful mess for me. I wrote a first one and it wasn t good enough, so I had to really dig deep to come up with something that I felt worthy of writing and this is it. These two little short stories say a lot about who I am and where I came from and in the end it allowed me to challenge myself and find my way. Devon The first story presents my life as an accumulation of my loved ones experiences. I believe that a person s story is strongly entwined with those they care about, even as a bystander. You feel the pain that is felt by those you are closest to, even though you are not a direct victim of the pain. In the first story, it may seem as though I simply watched as the events occurred. But that is not the case. I provided compassion, attention, time, or resources to helping my loved ones I had not thought about that element of the story until I read Professor Johnson s comments on my draft submission: It sounds to me as though your first story might be one of yourself as a caretaker and supporter of others which may be why your own passion isn't at the top of your consciousness. I was very grateful for this comment, because I had never considered myself as fulfilling those roles. But it is true. For much of my life, my priority was the quality of life experienced by others. I think the second version of my life story presents a nice contrast to the first version of me. 7
Devon I am very grateful for this assignment. At first, I honestly didn t see the point of considering my life story, but I have made some interesting realizations about myself in the process. Looking back on my life in different ways has proven to not only help me gain insight into where I ve come from and who I am, but it has also helped me make decisions about my future. Granted, nothing is set in stone at this point, but that just gives me an incentive to continue considering my life from different angles, which may help determine where I should take it from here. http://natewynne1982.wix.com/e450portfolio https://jodystout.wordpress.com/english/ http://devstarr444.wix.com/-devonritter https://w.taskstream.com/ts/reno9/captstone.html/alhxhu0 0anhvhnhphwhxh0hj 8