Week 3, Task 2:

My research as a Marine Biologist and even my work towards my graduate thesis for my PhD would all be applicable for an ePortfolio.  I think that using an ePortfolio to document my work for my graduate thesis and the reflections and evaluations of my work would be extremely beneficial.  The use of video, audio, and graphics would all be extremely useful in documenting scientific research and discoveries.  Since my focus in Marine Biology is on marine mammals, with an emphasis on dolphins and their social behavior and health, using video cameras to document the animals that I would be studying would be useful and possible because of the ePortfolio.  YouTube allows you to post videos and then post them anywhere, most likely in an ePortfolio as well.  The audio aspect of an ePortfolio could be used to document my personal observations.  For example; if I was out surveying a pod of dolphins or diving and observing them, using an audio recorder would allow me to document all of my observations down to a minute detail.  Then, taking those audio recordings and posting them along with my research on an ePortfolio, would create an even more in-depth look at the work that I was doing.  Following along these same thoughts, graphics would also be a great addition to my portfolio.  Graphical evidence is often used to document scientific research and provide hard data as proof, so posting this along with all my research would create even more depth within my research and allow any evaluators to see exactly what I was doing.  Said evaluators obviously being professors or a panel for my doctorate.  The video, audio, and graphics would be the best possible evidence of my learning and research within my ePortfolio.  Evolution of my learning is best summed up by my research itself.  Science is all about creating hypotheses, proving them wrong, learning from it, and adjusting your data and continuing from there.  That in itself is an evolution of learning shown through my own evaluation and adjustment of my research and my continued experimentation.  

Having my ePortfolio online would also give professors and peers the ability to access it and evaluate it for me before I even finished with my thesis and research.  That would allow for receiving their feedback and using it to make potentially vital adjustments to my work and the presentation of my work.  This also relates to showing my excitement about my work for others to see.  Marine Biology is obviously a huge passion of me and my research in itself and the dedication that it would document would be evidence of my excitement and love for my work.  Also, having that portfolio there to look back on would remind me of how much I love what I do whenever the going gets potentially tough.  Also, the ePortfolio would allow for other people, such as civilians or students, to see my research and learn from it themselves.  One of my focuses is on marine health and how we are affecting it, so conservation plays a key role.  Showing my own research in ways like video and audio make the situation far more real to people, and potentially have more of an impact on them.  Having my research inspire one person to watch what they dump down the gutter or pour down the drain would be a huge achievement and just another way to make a difference with my portfolio.

Dr. Lankford - Quick Q: You didn't want video and graphics in this correct?  We were supposed to look at it theoretically?  That's what I got from the assignment at least, let me know if I need to add anything! Thank you.

Week 3, Task 1:

I thought about the answer to this question a bit when reading and writing about the FAQ's that we had to read last week.  The two ideas for ePortfolio use that interested me the most were that of an evaluation tool for high school graduation and as an asset within the application and review process for a job.  Since I've obviously graduated from high school =) I can't really relate that to my future life.  However, using an ePortfolio for job interviews and posting resumes is an idea that I find really interesting and potentially extremely useful.  For companies searching for potential employees online, being able to look at ePortfolios including resumes could make the process far more personalized and give them a better idea of the person whom they are considering hiring.  Now, for me personally, this may or may not apply later in life.  My major is Marine Biology and this is something that I want to go to Grad school for and then continue with research in the field.  However, if I move on from research later on in life this is definitely an area where I could use an ePortfolio.  My research itself, however, could be benefitted by the use of an ePortfolio.  I could use the portfolio to document and track my research along with papers that I write on my research.  The portfolio could then be accessed by other scientists within my field so that they could either use it or continue on with it in their own research.  

As far as for my own personal pleasure, an ePortfolio seems like it would be an interesting creation to make throughout a daughter/son's childhood so that they could look back on your thoughts or their achievements that you collected and documented for them.  Also, for any particular goal that I set for myself at some point in time, a portfolio could be used to document my progress and eventual achievement (hopefully) or said goal.  

ePortfolio Search and Evaluations

The first ePortfolio that I came across was a teachers (I used the google search marine biology ePortfolio).  He seems to be using his portfolio as a teaching and organizational aid for his class.  He has assignments posted on the portfolio and his students respond to his questions in their own replies.  I personally think that it is a really well set up educational plan!  It allows all of the students to see their peers responses, and it allows for very clear organization in regards to exactly what you are supposed to be doing.  I've found that some of the online classes through Etudes can be confusing simply because the requirements are split up and posted in so many different places that it is easy to lose track of them.  The simple, chronological order of his posts and the required responses would make the class easy to follow and you definitely wouldn't have any excuse about not knowing what you were supposed to do!

The second ePortfolio I found was a resume/business ePortfolio from a Marine Biologist.  Unfortunately she hadn't yet completed all of the required information, etc.  But it was a good example as to how an ePortfolio could be used in relation to your job, finding a job, putting out a resume, etc.  Also, I noticed that having all this information available along with your resume, in your own personal fashion, makes you seem more like a person instead of just another sheet of paper listing off another blurb of accomplishments.  It definitely seemed like it could make the interview/hiring process a bit more personal, something that would be beneficial to employees and bosses alike.

Next I chose to put in "dolphin research ePortfolio" simply because my focus in Marine Biology is marine mammals and their interactions with each other, us, and the environment.  The first blog that came up was a researchers blog that was actually all filled out unlike the one that I mentioned above.  It was very well organized and presented with numerous research papers listed.  Each one had a small blurb about what the paper was about and why she wrote it and then contained a hypertext link to view the whole document.  This definitely served to give me a better idea as to how my own ePortfolio should be set up.  

I then put "sailing ePortfolio" into the search engine and found a students ePortfolio from the University in Anchorage, Alaska.  This portfolio wasn't set up all that well.  Her About Me was simply a huge, massive paragraph with tons of information thrown at you.   I thought it could have been a bit better organized.  Also, I'm noticing that a lot of these ePortfolios have a blog link, but very few people are actually writing in them.  It seems that if they are using them to send out a resume, using their blog might be helpful into making them seem like more of a human being to the person reviewing their works.  Just a thought...

Lastly, I put in "fashion ePortfolio" and found a students version of an ePortfolio that she is creating during her time at school to list her accomplishments as they come, and to keep track of her personal and professional record.  This one seemed to be the most similar to what Dr. Barrett's FAQs referred to many portfolios as.  Although, this student still didn't use a blog and/or have one attached.  I guess I just linked ePortfolios with blogs more in my head then I should have been? Overall though, I found all of these ePortfolios helpful in giving me an idea of how to start my own. 

Response to FAQs

Question: What do I put into an electronic portfolio?

I chose this question simply because it was the most prevalent question that I had in my own mind (along with not knowing what an ePortfolio was in general).  But I found her response to this question interesting, the idea that the portfolio is a response to a question asked or a purpose.  The concept of using an electronic portfolio to document your past goals and publicly declare your future ones isn't really an idea that I am particularly fond of, to be completely honest.  I tend to be a rather private person when it comes to my past, past achievements, and goals I have set for myself.  I tend to prefer knowing them and keeping them close then to proclaiming them to everyone else.  Granted, I understand the value in making them known, it makes you more likely to achieve them if there is the possibility of others knowing that you failed.  The value of making goals public for things such as losing weight, or getting a job, etc. are ones that make sense to me.  I admit though, I thought that using an ePortfolio to be judged for graduation from high school was an interesting thought.  Plus, it also made me think that a lot of people that I know wouldn't have managed to graduate!  Regurgitating information on a test is far easier then self-reflection and making personal, future goals.  I think that this is a definitely an idea that should be explored throughout more schools and used more often.  However, I still have a question about exactly what our ePortfolio is supposed to represent for this class?  In her response, she said to ask yourself what exactly you are trying to show or what story you are trying to tell.  So I suppose that my real question is far more specific to this class, what story are we supposed to be telling with our own ePortfolios?  

Reading her FAQs did make me feel far more comfortable about going forward with this assignment.  I had no clue what an ePortfolio was before I read that! But she definitely laid it out in simple, clear terms.  Although, I know that I am going to need technological assistance with all the conversions of files, etc.  But hopefully all will run smoothly!

Blog Search-Coral Reefs

I chose to search for blogs regarding coral reefs.  Obviously as a Marine Biology major and as someone who has done research on and regarding coral reefs, this is a subject I find particularly interesting.  In my search, I found a large number of blogs describing a phenomena that I had been unaware, coral reefs ability to flourish after atomic blasts.

The Bravo Crater is the test site of a thermonuclear weapon dropped in 1954, the largest of everyone detonated.  It is located in the Marshall Islands and is over one mile wide and 80 yards deep.  Apparently this area is still not fit for human life, even above the water.  But when a group of marine scientists dove down into the atoll, they found a crater teeming with a vibrant, flourishing coral reef.  There were no two-headed fish or other radioactive mutations that you might expect, rather there was a reef perfectly untouched and thriving all on its own.  Coral reefs as an ecosystem are unbelievably delicate.  This finding proves their resilience, and yet also shows how great of an effect humans have upon them.  The beauty of this reef and its pristine cleanliness are largely due to the fact that it has been completely untouched and deserted since the bomb was dropped over 50 years ago.  As the researchers pointed out, the reefs obviously do best when left completely alone, something that tourism prevents all over the world. 

I found this amazing, and now of course, I want to go dive there!  Coral reefs are one of the most biologically diverse ecosystems on our planet and we are destroying them more and more each day.  The fact that they were able to survive an atomic bomb and flourish, but are unable to survive us is a fact that I find incredibly depressing and revealing of the detriment that we, as human beings, have upon the nature around us.

BLOG:  http://www.greendaily.com/2008/04/15/coral-reefs-love-nuclear-fallout/

My U-Museum

Welcome to Fantasy Hall, a place full or memories and dreams. These are the small snapshots of my life that I will always remember, there are the moments that have made me who I am today.

The first room of my palace holds the identity that has shaped me and molded me the most, my Mother.  Who I am and where I'm from are firmly rooted within my Mother, she has been the only constant in my life and my best friend.  Intellectually, she has pushed me to my limit, creating the drive that I have to succeed and push forward.  My love of science comes from her, in addition to my love of reading.  My fondest memories of my childhood were reading books with my mother late at night, when everyone had fallen asleep.  To this day, one of the most comforting things I can do it to bury my nose in a good book and block the world out.  My mother is the most constant source of love that I could ask for, and because of that, I have a sense of security and self-esteem that is firmly planted within myself and her love of me.  Whenever I have a doubt, she is there to steady me and hold me true.  To describe myself means describing my mother and my love for her.

As you wander down the hallway you will find a room filled with the ocean and everything that goes with it.  One of the most constant joys throughout my life has been the water, whether sailing on it or swimming within it, it makes me happy in a way that few things can.  Many summers of my life have been spent sailing in Maine with my family, racing a boat in the San Francisco bay, swimming off of whatever beach I found myself at.  An ecology trip spent diving off of Andros Island in the Bahamas on the coral reef there led me into my major, Marine Biology.  To say that the water is part of my personality is a huge understatement, it is part of me and who I am.  I could never live anywhere without a coastline, and the feeling of waking up before dawn and heading out onto the water to watch the sunset from the bow of your boat is the most indescribable feeling in the world.

Next you will find a hall full of pictures of places all around the world, a room symbolizing one of the things that I am most passionate about in my life, traveling.  My love of traveling has taken me from coral reefs across the world to old castles in Great Britain.  I love immersing myself in a new culture, learning a new language, meeting new people.  I want to see everything there is to see in life, in the world.  I want to travel to places where most would rather not go, I want to live in cultures completely different then my own.  I enjoy being out of my comfort zone, I think that it makes us live.  This summer I'm planning on taking part in an endurance ride across the sands of Namibia to the sea.  Traveling will always be a part of me, and wherever I go, I know that I will take a piece of it home with me.

If you look out one of the windows of my palace, you will see a garden full of animals, one of the other great passions in my life.  I grew up riding horses since before I can remember, graduating from small ponies to huge Thoroughbreds that fly with me over jumps.  One of my favorite moments in life is early mornings in the barn, when no one else has woken up and it's just me and the soft noises that the horses make when they know breakfast is near.  I love the feeling of flying across the ground so fast that all you can hear is the wind in your ears and all you can feel is the steady beat of your horses hooves flying across the ground.  My love of horses will be a constant in my life, and one that I wish to pass down to my children as well, along with the love of dogs.  My puppies have taught me responsibility and patience, and the unconditional love of a dog is perhaps the most forgiving and generous of all.  

The room you will wander into down the hall is a huge library, full of old and new books running along shelves all the way up to the ceiling.  Everywhere you turn there are books, surrounding you and enclosing you.  Ladders run up high walls and spin around the room so that each and every book is available to you.  Every single one of these has affected me or will have an effect on me later in life.  Some I have read and some I have yet to read, but the love of reading and of books has stayed with me since I was little.  I want my children to love books the way I do, I want them to experience the excitement of being taken away from your own world for a little while to travel to another.  Reading will always be one of the great loves of my life.