26 mins, 2008        [password required] Key Topics Types Of Business Globalisation External Factors Business Change Multimedia, it's claimed, is the future for teaching and learning. The government's plan is for every school student in the country to have an e-portfolio by this year. But what are e-portfolios? How do they work? This new documentary film explains the benefits and problems - and, most importantly, shows e-portfolios being used at the sharp end. In Wolsingham School, Co. Durham, every student has an e-Portfolio. They're like mini websites, stored on the school's network. They use them as multimedia CVs and also to store their work. Meanwhile students and tutors at Wolverhampton University are also using e-Portfolios - but they're using them to communicate online, too. An important benefit, staff and pupils say, is the opportunity for students to reflect on their learning. They take more responsibility for their learning. In some cases they improve their literacy skills because multi-media gives them interesting outlet for their writing. The technology offers them a better chance to organise their work and also to capture evidence of their work than just relying on text. Teachers can follow students' progress with greater ease - and students have evidence of their work that they can use to help them get jobs or places in universities. But there are problems, too. What about "the digital divide", where students can be at a disadvantage if they don't have a computer at home or don't get on with the technology? Are there issues of data security and privacy? Should e-portfolios be compulsory? And how can such major projects be tackled when teachers are already so busy? The film is designed to be used both for teaching students and as an information resource for staff. DVD EXTRAS: The DVD includes 45 minutes of in-depth background material on the e-portfolio projects featured in the film.