The Role of Reflection in a Management Skills Course e-Portfolio: Choosing Artifacts to Present a Persona to the Workplace

1
The Role of Reflection in a Management Skills
Course e-Portfolio Choosing Artifacts to
Present a Persona to the Workplace

• Diane Holtzman, Ed.D.
• Evonne Kruger, Ph.D.
• The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey

2
Background

• The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey
• Focus on the Liberal Arts
• Located southern New Jersey
• State four-year college with undergraduate/graduat
  e courses
• Focus on
• Sustainability
• Global
• Engagement
• Learning

3
Employers Looking for.

• Written and oral communication skills
• A combination of technical, leadership and
  interpersonal skills
• Mastery of specific knowledge and
• skills required by licensure and
• certification boards

4
E-Portfolios Providing Differentiation in a
Competitive Job Market

• Given todays competitive job market, candidates
  must enhance their ability to pass the initial
  job screening by demonstrating they have the
  skills in the areas indicated in the job
  ad/description
• e-Portfolios
• present more than just the traditional resume
• can present the applicants goals,
  accomplishments, skills, and knowledge to
  prospective employers before an interview (Powell
  Jankovich, 1998)
• can provide examples of projects completed in
  classes as well as in the work environment or
  through volunteer experienceswith the
  applicants reflection on these accomplishments
  and growth
• allows for the integration of personal narration
  and reflection through audio/podcasts and the
  incorporation of short video clips

5
e-Portfolio Design

• In developing the e-Portfolio for the workplace
• Content in the e-portfolios
• should demonstrate the link between the
  individuals strengths and the jobs
  specifications/credentialing requirements
• provides evidence that verifies individuals
  education, training, credentialing, work
  performance, skills, and accomplishments relate
  to the job
• positions the individual for future jobs by
  demonstrating evidence of experience, skills, and
  knowledge

6
The Management Skills Course

• Required for management concentration juniors and
  seniors and is an elective for all Business
  majors
• Contextualizes managerial skills within
  management theory and provides opportunities for
  students to master entry level managerial skills

7
Learning Goals

• The management skills course is designed so that
  students should make progress on selected
  Business Program learning goals that reflect the
  philosophy of the AACSB (The Association to
  Advance Collegiate Schools of Business-accrediting
  body) and College Learning for the New Global
  Century

8
Learning Outcomes Assessments

• Students should be able to demonstrate the
  following knowledge, skills, and competencies
  adopted by the School of Business and aligned
  with the AACSB Assurances of Learning Standards
  that meet the course rubrics
• Information literacy skills in searching for
  information related to the theory and practice of
  management library literacy assignment
•  
• Professional business written communications
• Ex business letters, reports
•  
• The ability to interview a practicing manager and
  present written and oral reports that integrate
  information literacy, analysis and synthesis of
  the managers activities, and reflections with
  the framework of Henry Mintzberg Interview with
  a manager project

9
Learning Outcomes Assessments

• The ability to document and address orally and in
  writing disciplinary and conflict issues in the
  workplace FOSA written project on workplace
  discipline collaborative video project 
• Writing and critiquing resumes and cover letters
• Interview skills as an applicant and interviewer
• Team project Human Resources video-project and
  written packet

10
Learning Outcomes Assessments

• The ability to research and analyze managerial
  positions and prepare professional job
  descriptions and candidate interview rating
  sheets  Team project Human Resources written
  project and video-project
•  
• Critical thinking skills used in analyzing video
  managerial situations and making recommendations
  that include recognition of all ethical
  implications Managers Hot Seat case projects
•  

11
Learning Outcomes Assessments

• Social responsibility/volunteerism through
  participation in service learning in a non-profit
  agency in the community (optional) Students
  reflection paper and agency feedback
•  
• Professional attitudes, behaviors, and conduct of
  managers in the workplace Team project Job
  Interview video

12
Learning Outcomes Assessments

• Students should be able to demonstrate
• Reflection on personal development as a manager
  requires synthesis and personal integration of
  the knowledge, skills, and competencies addressed
  throughout the course Professional development
  reflection assignment for the e-Portfolio
• Develop a professional career e-portfolio
  (assessment and basis for life-long learning)
• e-Portfolio assignment

13
The Goal of the Skills e-Portfolio

• Goal is professional development
• Achieved through
• Reflecting on the artifacts
• Writing the reflection pieces (reflection on the
  Human Resources project and Reflection on the
  entire course experienceas a student and as a
  manager.

14
Skills Course Requirements

• Resume and cover letter
• Business Writing Letters and Reports
• Library Information Literacy Assignment
• Interview with a Manager Project
• Workplace Discipline Project and collaborative
  videoFOSA
• Human Resources Project Job Design/Analysis
• Video Job Interview Project and Reflection
• Service Learning Reflection Paper
• Professional Development Reflection
• Final Portfolio

15
Professional Development Reflection

• Has students reflect on
• The Pastwho was I before I had this learning
  experience
• The Present-who am I as a result of this learning
  experience
• The Future how can I present myself as a career
  ready manager

16
Construction of the final e-Portfolio

• Thus construction of the e-Portfolio requires
  that the students begin with an image of
  themselves as future managers within specific
  industries and/or roles. This requires research
  into career opportunities and required skills
  sets
• Industrial sales
• Hospitality industry
• Health care

17
Reflection

• As they select and present each piece of the
  portfolio, tying it together with the career
  goals articulated in the resume and the two
  reflection pieces, they construct a persona I
  Manager.
• The process of reflecting upon learning
  experiences in terms of their relationship to
  career goals and personal development is as
  important as that of documentation.

18
Reflection Henry Mintzberg

• A remarkable number of effective managers are
  reflective they know how to learn from their own
  experience they explore numerous options and
  they back off when one doesnt work, to try
  another
• Reflective managers tend to engage in higher
  order thinking
• wondering,
• probing,
• analyzing,
• synthesizing
• ability to connect their experiences to the
  self

19
Reflection

• The importance of reflection in management can be
  extended to most professions, e.g., law,
  medicine, scientific research, psychology,
  creative writing, education, and the performing
  arts.
• By reflecting upon the relationship between their
  broadly defined learning experiences and their
  perceptions of themselves as career-ready,
  students provide evidence of their preparedness
  to transition into the full-time work place or
  graduate school, and perhaps also of their future
  success.

20
Construction of the Self in the Skills
e-Portfolio

• The construction of the self using
  e-documentation is not a new endeavor to most
  students.
•  
• Impression management and the presentation of the
  self in everyday life, as first articulated by
  Goffman, are now being applied to social e-sites.
  
• The vast majority of students have experience
  with social networking sites such as Facebook
  where they are very aware that they are
  attempting to control both the impressions their
  sites give about themselves and the impressions
  that are actually interpreted by friends and
  others.

21
Construction of the Self

• Social networking site experience helps develop
• Envisioning skills the ability to envision the
  self that is presented to the world
• Presentation skills ability to work creatively
  with multimedia Photos, video clips, links to
  YouTube and other sites must be carefully
  coordinated.

22
Construction of the Self

• Impression Management Skills editing,
  monitoring, and continuous updating skills
• Social networking skills include the
  understanding that the individual is constructing
  a persona that he/she will try out publicly.
  The selections posted are edited and reviewed
  should enhance the intended persona.
•  

23
Construction of the Self

• Impression Management is particularly important
  
• Claims of damages by employers when employees
  post critical comments about their employers
• Prospective employers frequently check social
  networking sites and make judgments as to
  character, communications skills, and maturity
• Friends are quick to identify misstatements,
  prevarications, and even casual puffery.

24
Construction of the Self

• These envisioning, presentation, and impression
  management skills can be transferred successfully
  by students to the development of their skills
  portfolios.

25
The Career e-Portfolio

• When students are done with the e-Portfolio they
  have a strong repository of artifacts from which
  they can select those elements they want to
  include in an official career portfolio to future
  employers.
• This can include
• Projectsthose revised/exemplary written and
  video/audio projects
• Transcripts
• Resume

26
e-Portfolios in the Skills Course

• The content in the e-portfolios
• should demonstrate the link between the
  individuals strengths and the jobs
  specifications/credentialing requirements
• provides evidence that verifies individuals
  education, training, credentialing, work
  performance, skills, and accomplishments that
  relate to the job
• positions the individual for future jobs by
  demonstrating evidence of experience, skills, and
  knowledge

27
Future of e-Portfolios

• Individuals will own and manage their
• personal portfolio information from
• childhood through careers as a tool
• for reflective life-long learning.
• May be required in high schools/colleges, as
  mandated by states legislation, to showcase
  students readiness for the job market
  eFolioMinnesota). (Karlen Sanchirico, 2010)
• E-Portfolios are becoming the new standard that
  every person has to haveand have broken out of
  the educational sector and are being adopted for
  employees in companies.
• (Batson, ePortfolios, Finally!)

28
Thank You for Attending our Session

• Diane Holtzman, Ed.D.
• Diane.Holtzman_at_stockton.edu
• Evonne Kruger, Ph.D.
• Evonne.Kruger_at_stockton.edu

29
References

• Barrett, H. (2001). Electronic Portfolios - A
  chapter in Educational Technology. Retrieved June
  21, 2010, from http//electronicportfolios.com/por
  tfolios/encyclopediaentry.htm
• Batson, T. (2010, April 7). ePortfolios, Finally!
  Retrieved June 20, 2010, from http//campustechnol
  ogy.com/Articles/2010/04/07ePorfolios-Finally.aspx
  ?p1
• Daudelin, M.W. (1996). Learning from experience
  through reflection. Organizational  Dynamics,
  24(3), 36-48.
• Goffman, Erving. (1959). The Presentation of self
  in everyday life. New York, NY Anchor Books.
• Holtzman, D. Dagavarian, D. (2007, Winter).
  The Use of Electronic Portfolios in Assessing
  Student Learning Outcomes. The Journal of
  Continuing Higher Education, 55, (1).
• Ittelson, G. L. (2005). An Overview of
  E-Portfolios. Retrieved June 19, 2010, from
  Educause Learning Initiative http//www.educause.
  edu/ELI/AnOverviewofEPortfolios/156761
• Karlen, J.M. Sanchirico, S.M. (2010). Adult
  Learning and ePortfolios. The National Institute
  on the Assessment of Adult Learning. Atlantic
  City Thomas Edison State College.
• Lamdin, L. (1997). Earn college credit for what
  you know, 3rd ed. Dubuque Kendall/Hunt.
• Powell, K. S., and Jankovich J. L. "Student
  Portfolios A Tool to Enhance the Traditional Job
  Search." Business Communication Quarterly 61, no.
  4 (December 1998) 72-82.
• Mintzberg, Henry (2009). Managing. San Francisco,
  CA Berrett-Koehler.
• Mintzberg, Henry (2004). Managers not MBAs A
  hard look at the soft practice of  managing and
  management development. San Francisco, CA
  Berrett-Koehler.
• Raelin, J. a. (2008). Work-Based Learning. San
  Francisco Jossey-Bass.
• Tillery, M. Coe, R. (2010). Prior Learning
  Assessment/Portfolio Development -. The National
  Institute on the Assessment of Adult Learning.
  Atlantic City Thomas Edison State College.