Digital portfolios for problem-based learning: Impact on preservice teachers’ learning strategies

The digital portfolio is often used to assess both student learning process and outcomes. It provides a space where students assume agency over their learning and assessment. However, beyond assessment, the digital portfolio in initial teacher preparation programme can be a student-centric scaffold to facilitate preservice teachers’ acquisition of learning strategies. This is increasingly relevant in a post-covid teaching and learning environment where technology is used to minimise disruption to learning. In this chapter, ePBL is a pedagogical approach whereby the digital portfolio is used as a mediating space for preservice teachers to learn within a Problem-based Learning (PBL) environment. The digital portfolio allows preservice teachers to make their thinking visible to themselves, peers and tutors, reflect on their thoughts and acquire learning strategies for self-directed ad collaborative learning. The focus of this study is to examine the effects of ePBL on preservice teachers’ learning strategies. The understanding of the changes in preservice teachers’ learning strategies after PBL (face-to-face PBL and ePBL) will inform teacher educators on how to improve on its implementation to develop preservice teachers’ learning strategies. Specifically, it informs the design and use of the digital portfolio within a PBL environment to facilitate the development of preservice teachers’ learning strategies. In addition, limitations of the study and future research will also be discussed in the chapter.