Using e portfolios to develop learner autonomy in a speaking course at newsky language center

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

USING E-PORTFOLIOS TO DEVELOP
LEARNER AUTONOMY IN A SPEAKING
COURSE AT NEWSKY LANGUAGE CENTER
Submitted to the Faculty of English Language
in partial fulfillment of the Master s degree in English Language

Course code: 60220201
By

NGUYEN THI LE TRINH

Supervised by

DUONG MY THAM, Ph.D.
HO CHI MINH CITY, MAY 2020


The thesis entitled Using E-portfolios to Develop Learner Autonomy in
Speaking Course at NewSky Language Center was successfully defended and
approved on……….. date…. at Ho chiminh City University of Technology
(HUTECH).
Academic supervisor: DUONG MY THAM, Ph.D

Examination Committee
1.……………………………………………………….Chair
2.…………………………………………….…………Reader 1
3.……………………………………………………….Reader 2
4.……………………………………………………….Member

5.………………………………………………………..Secretary Member
On behalf of the Examination Committee
Chair

i


HCMC UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
POSTGRADUATE INSTITUTE
HCMC, …..……………20..…

MASTER’S THESIS REPORT
Student name: NGUYEN THI LE TRINH

Sex: Female

Date of birth: 28th Jun 1994

Place of birth: Binh Thuan

Major: English Language

Student code: 1841900008

I- Thesis title:
Using E-portfolios to Develop Learner Autonomy in Speaking Course at
NewSky Language Center
II- Objectives and contents:
The purpose of this research study is to explore the learners’ attitudes towards
autonomous learning and the development of learner autonomy learning skills in

speaking English courses through using E-portfolios at NewSky Language Center in
order to support and give some implications for teachers and students to increase
students' self-learning ability.
III- Starting date: 30 Oct 2019
IV- Completing
date: ..............................................................................................................
V- Academic supervisor: Duong My Tham, Ph.D.
ACADEMIC SUPERVISOR

FACULTY DEAN

(full name, signature)

(full name, signature)

ii


CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY

I certify my authorship of the Master’s Thesis submitted today entitled:
USING E-PORTFOLIOS TO DEVELOP LEARNER AUTONOMY IN A
SPEAKING COURSE AT NEWSKY LANGUAGE CENTER
In terms of the statement of requirements for Theses in Master’s programs
issued by the Higher Degree Committee of Faculty of English Language, Ho
Chi Minh City University of Technology.

Ho Chi Minh City,.………………

NGUYEN THI LE TRINH

iii


RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS

I hereby state that I, NGUYEN THI LE TRINH, being a candidate for the
degree of Master of Arts (English Language) accept the requirements of the
University relating to the retention and use of Master’s Theses deposited in the
Library.

In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my Master's Thesis
deposited in the Library should be accessible for purposes of study and
research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the
Librarian for the care, loan, and reproduction for theses.

Ho Chi Minh City,
Signature ………………….

NGUYEN THỊ LE TRINH

iv


ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Dr. Duong My Tham, my supervisor,
for her patience, guidance, insightful advice, and constant encouragement
throughout the whole research process. Without her support and guidance, this
thesis would never have been completed.
I would also like to express my gratefulness to HCMC University of Technology

(HUTECH) for giving me the opportunity to make the thesis. I would like to
express my deep thankfulness to all the teachers of the Faculty of English Language
thank, especially to Dr. Nguyen Thi Kieu Thu for their guidance, advice, and
support to help me completing the thesis.
I really express my gratitude to my best friends, Ms. Nguyen Tuong Vy and Ms. Ho
Thi Thanh Tien, whose contribution in stimulating suggestions and encouragements,
help me in all the time of thesis and writing of this thesis.
I owe earnest thankfulness to the manager of NewSky Language Center, Mr. Bui
Quang Trung, who permitted to use all the required equipment and the necessary
materials to complete this thesis.
Last but not least, thanks a million to my parents and my siblings for supporting me
spiritually throughout writing this thesis and my life in general.

v


ABSTRACT
In the context of Vietnam, teacher-centered language teaching and learning
approaches have been regarded as a learning and teaching method for a long time.
Vietnamese EFL students, therefore, are more passive to gain communicative
purposes in learning the target language. At present, there are a variety of learning
tools that are used to enhance the learner-centered model in learning foreign
languages. The aims of this study were to explore the learners’ attitudes about
learner autonomy and the learners’ and teachers’ perceptions of the implementation
of e-portfolios to develop the learners’ autonomous learning skills as a learning tool
in a speaking English course at NewSky Language Center. It was a mixed-methods
research in which the main research instruments were questionnaire, interview,
reflection, and diary. The quantitative data were collected through the questionnaire
administered twenty EFL learners at NewSky Language Center. Besides, the data
gained from the reflections and the dairy made by the teacher-in-charge throughout

the course were also gathered. Finally, the semi-structured interview with 5 learners
was also conducted. The results showed that the learners agreed they had a positive
attitude towards their autonomous learning through using e-portfolios in the EFL
speaking class. In addition, the findings also emphasized the learners’ and teachers’
perceptions of the implementation of e-portfolios to develop the learners’
autonomous learning skills in terms of three major categories (e.g., self-regulation,
self-assessment, and accountability). It is hoped that the findings of the research
may contribute to promoting learner autonomy in EFL contexts by using
e-portfolios.
Keywords: EFL context, e-portfolios, learner autonomy

vi


TABLE OF CONTENTS
MASTER’S THESIS REPORT................................................................................ii
CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY..................................................................... iii
RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS...........................................................iv
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS..........................................................................................v
ABSTRACT................................................................................................................vi
LISTS OF FIGURES.............................................................................................. xiii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS..................................................xiv
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION............................................................................. 1
1.1 Background to the study.................................................................................. 1
1.2 Statement of the problem.................................................................................3
1.3 Aims and objectives of the study.................................................................... 4
1.4 Research questions...........................................................................................4
1.5 Scope of the study............................................................................................5
1.6 Significance of the study................................................................................. 5
1.8 Organization of the thesis................................................................................ 6

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.................................................................8
2.1 Electronic portfolios (e-portfolios)..................................................................8
2.1.1 Definition of e-portfolios.......................................................................8
2.1.2 Characteristics of e-portfolios............................................................... 9
2.1.3 Advantages of e-portfolios in language teaching and learning.......... 10
vii


2.1.4 Disadvantages of e-portfolios..............................................................12
2.2 Learner autonomy..........................................................................................13
2.2.1 Definition............................................................................................. 14
2.2.2 Levels of autonomy............................................................................. 15
2.2.3 Autonomous learning skills................................................................. 16
2.3.4 The role of learner autonomy in EFL education................................. 18
2.3 Previous studies............................................................................................. 19
2.4 Conceptual Framework..................................................................................23
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY..........................................................................25
3.1 Research design............................................................................................. 25
3.2 Research site.................................................................................................. 25
3.3 Sample and sampling procedures.................................................................. 26
3.4 The experiment.............................................................................................. 27
3.4.1 Course description............................................................................... 27
3.4.2 Materials...............................................................................................27
3.4.3 Evaluation............................................................................................ 28
3.4.4 Teaching procedures............................................................................ 28
3.5 Research instruments..................................................................................... 29
3.5.1 Questionnaire....................................................................................... 30
3.5.2 Semi-structured interview....................................................................31

viii

3.5.3 E-portfolio’s reflections......................................................................32
3.5.4. Diary....................................................................................................34
3.6 Data collection procedure..............................................................................34
3.7 Data analysis procedure.................................................................................35
3.7.1 Quantitative data.................................................................................. 35
3.7.2 Qualitative data.................................................................................... 36
3.8 Validity and reliability...................................................................................37
3.8.1 Validity.................................................................................................37
3.8.2 Reliability.............................................................................................37
3.9 Summary........................................................................................................ 38
CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS................................................... 40
4.1 Results............................................................................................................40
4.1.1 The EFL learner's attitudes towards their autonomous learning
through using e-portfolios.............................................................................40
4.1.2 The learners’ and teachers’ perceptions of the implementation of
e-portfolios to develop the learners’ autonomous learning skills................ 47
4.2 Discussion...................................................................................................... 52
4.2.1 The learners’ attitude towards learning autonomy through using
e-portfolios.................................................................................................... 52
4.2.2 The learners’ and teachers’ perceptions of the implementation of
e-portfolios to develop the learners’ autonomous learning skills................ 53
4.3 Summary........................................................................................................ 55
ix


CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION................................................................................ 56
5.1 Summary of the main findings of the thesis................................................. 56
5.2 Pedagogical implications...............................................................................57

5.2.1 For teachers..........................................................................................57
5.2.2 For learners.......................................................................................... 57
5.2.3 For school administrators.................................................................... 58
5.3 Limitations..................................................................................................... 58
5.4 Recommendations for further research......................................................... 59
5.5 Summary...............................................................................................................59
REFERENCES......................................................................................................... 60
APPENDIXES...........................................................................................................72
APPENDIX A: LEARNERS’ QUESTIONNAIONNAIRE.................................72
APPENDIX B: BẢNG KHẢO SÁT........................................................................75
APPENDIX C: LEARNERS’ SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW
QUESTIONS............................................................................................................. 78
APPENDIX D: BẢNG CÂU HỎI PHỎNG VẤN................................................. 79
APPENDIX E: E-PORTFOLIO REFLECTIONS............................................... 81
APPENDIX F: PHẢN HỒI TỪ E-PORTFOLIO................................................. 84
APPENDIX G: LEARNERS’ E-PORTFOLIO REFLECTIONS
EXAMPLE................................................................................................................ 86
APPENDIX H: TEACHER’S DIARY................................................................... 88
x


APPENDIX I: NHẬT KÝ CỦA GIÁO VIÊN GIẢNG DẠY...............................89
APPENDIX J: TEACHER’S DIARY EXAMPLE............................................... 90

xi


LISTS OF TABLES

Table 3.1. Participants’ personal information ………………..……………….…. 24

Table 3.2. The adaption of the students’ questionnaire …………………...…………29
Table 3.3. Research instruments and data analysis tools concerning
research questions ……………………………………………………….………..34
Table 3.4. The reliability of the questionnaire …………………...……….….…....36
Table 4.1: The elements of learners’ attitudes towards learner autonomy ………..39
Table 4.2: The learners’ attitudes towards self-regulation ………………….….….40
Table 4.3: The learners’ attitudes towards self-assessment …………………...…..41
Table 4.4: The learners’ attitudes towards accountability ………………….…..…42

xii


LISTS OF FIGURES
Figure 2.1. Conceptual framework of using e-portfolio to promote learners
autonomy…………………………………………………………………….……..22
Figure 3.1 Teaching procedures……………………………………………………27
Figure 3.2. Data collection procedures…………………………………………….33

xiii


LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS

EFL

English as a Foreign Language

ICT

Information and Communication Technology

M

Mean

SD

Standard Deviation

SPSS

Statistic Package for Social Sciences

L1

Learner 1

L2

Learner 2

L3

Learner 3

L4

Learner 4

L5

Learner 5

R1

Reflection in week 2

R2

Reflection in week 4

R3

Reflection in week 5

R4

Reflection in week 8

R5

Reflection in week 10

xiv


CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the study
Since Holec (1981) conducted research for the Council of Europe and proved that

autonomy was a key element to language teaching and learning, learner autonomy
has become a very popular term in language education and brought considerable
benefits in education. First, it helps learners enhance their independence in their
learning behavior (Hammond & Collins, 1991). According to Benson (2001, p.40),
autonomy “as an attribute of the learners’ approach to language learning” and,
autonomous learners are expected to take their own responsibility and independence
to achieve task outcomes. Moreover, learner autonomy is an active way to facilitate
the learning process and improve learners' ability in learning autonomously.
Following the findings of Rivers and Golonka (2009), active and independent
learning is considered learner autonomy. The literature reflects a widespread belief
that learners in Western countries are more adept at establishing course aims,
engaging the content, and undertaking self-assessment. Learners play a role as
active participants in the learning process in which they are aware of their
responsibility and independence in managing their own learning. As opposed to the
Asian context, according to many earlier studies (Littlewood, 1999; Nakata, 2004),
the East Asian learners tend to favor teacher-centered learning styles in which
students are a passive and reticent participant and teachers play a centered-role
during the lesson time. According to Wang (2011), most Chinese EFL students are
passive and indirect in language classrooms due to the teacher-centered approach.
Sanprasert (2010) also emphasized that Thai EFL learners made progress on
reactive autonomy. They tend to be quiet and attentive during class time.
By comparison with European circumstances, learner autonomy is a relatively new
concept in the context of Vietnam. Vietnamese researchers (Dang Tan Tin, 2010;
Duong My Tham, 2017; Nguyen Thi Cam Le, 2008; Trinh Quoc Lap, 2005) have

1


started to focus on autonomy in higher education that offers learners more freedom
towards their learning based on the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and

Training's Decision 43/2007/QD-BGD&DT in 2007. However, Dang Tan Tin (2010)
stated that learners lack enough opportunities to practice learning management
because of the long-standing teacher-centered learning approaches. As a result,
learners tend to be passive and use memory strategies to remember and learn the
language. Moreover, fear of making mistakes in public prevents learners from
answering teachers' questions although they know answers. Therefore, increasing
learner autonomy plays an essential role in learning process in Vietnamese EFL
contexts since this will create an interactive environment for students to boost their
motivation and confidence to achieve the expected results in language learning.
To promote learner autonomy, a variety of learning tools (e.g., game, video,
learning contract, smart whiteboard, (e-)portfolio, etc.) have been employed in the
learning process. An electronic portfolio (e-portfolio) is also one of these learning
tools. The main role of e-portfolios is encouraging students to make decisions and
participate in the evaluation of their works; therefore, they will be able to become
autonomous learners (Gosselin, 1998). According to Goldsmith (2007), e-portfolios
make students responsible for organizing and producing materials for a specific
purpose, self-evaluating their work, and reflecting the achievements of their
learning process. More importantly, an e-portfolio is identified as a powerful
educational tool that helps students develop self-directed learning and monitor their
own learning process (Bolliger and Shepherd, 2010). This thesis focuses mainly on
implementing e-portfolios as an educational tool for enhancing learner autonomy in
an EFL speaking class.

2


1.2 Statement of the problem
For many years, traditional assessments like multiple-choice tests have been used to
evaluate learners' performance at school, but these assessments are not effective in
showing the real performance and behavior of students. Therefore, traditional

assessments are not efficient enough to evaluate the learners' skills in different
courses. Accordingly, the modern assessment methods, particularly e-portfolios, are
hopefully used for assessing language learning. E-portfolios can be defined as
electronically collected works and students' reflections, which are used to show
their development during the learning process. Moreover, e-portfolios enhance
learners' awareness about their responsibility for their own learning from the
beginning to the end (Gülbahar &Tinmaz, 2006).
However, the use of e-portfolios as an assessment tool in developing learner
autonomy has not been researched much in the English language teaching and
learning. In the context of the current research, the use of e-portfolios to develop
learner autonomy in a speaking class has not been happening in Newsky English
Center. Besides, no previous studies regarding learner autonomy have been
investigated in this center. So far, the e-portfolio assessment and learner autonomy
are quite unfamiliar to the teachers and learners in the NewSky context. The
learners and the teachers have never been any perceptions about e-portfolios and
autonomy terms. The teacher normally plays a central role in the classroom, and
students are usually given numerical grades for their end-of-term speaking test.
Therefore, the aim of this thesis is to find out whether or not e-portfolios can help
promote learner autonomy in a speaking class.
Since the development of learner autonomy is one of the educational objectives of
the nations (Chan, 2001), it has been rather demonstrated to raise the learners'
responsibilities for their own learning in educational settings. To become
autonomous in learning, learners are expected to develop their ability to take
responsibility for their own learning. According to Little (1991), there are three

3


main benefits of fostering learner autonomy. First, learning would become more
focused and purposeful when students have the ability to make decisions. Second,

the teacher-centered approach should be minimized when responsibility for the
learning process is taken by learners. Lastly, a learner would be more responsible in
other areas of his/her life when a student is autonomous; as a result, he/she would
be a more useful and effective society member. Additionally, as stated by Egel
(2009), enhancing learner autonomy plays an essential role in promoting life-long
learning and stimulating the growth of students' capacities. Likewise, Nguyen Cao
Thanh (2011) agreed that solving problems, making decisions, and organization
which are typical features of autonomous learners will increase success and
competency in learners' real life.
1.3 Aims and objectives of the study
The objectives of this study were as follows:
 to determine the learners’ attitudes towards the use of e-portfolios as an
assessment and learning tool in a speaking class at NewSky Language
Center
 to discover the learners’ and teachers’ perceptions of the implementation of
e-portfolios to develop the learners’ autonomous learning skills in the
speaking class at NewSky Language Center
1.4 Research questions
Based on the defined objectives, the following questions are formulated:
1. What are the EFL learners’ attitudes towards their autonomous learning
through using e-portfolios in EFL speaking class at NewSky English Centre?
2. How do the EFL learners and teachers perceive the learners’ autonomous
learning skill development with the employment of e-portfolio in EFL speaking
class?

4


1.5 Scope of the study
This study was conducted in NewSky Language Center in Ho Chi Minh City,

Vietnam. There were twenty EFL learners completing the general English speaking
course took part in this ten-week speaking course. It focused on investigating
whether e-portfolios help promote learner autonomy in terms of learners' attitudes
and autonomous learning skills in an English speaking-focused course.
1.6 Significance of the study
With a rapidly growing number of studies concerning learner autonomy and
e-portfolio as a learning tool today (Ahmet & Gulsah, 2014; Chau, 2010; Duong
My Tham, 2017; Godwin-Jones, 2011), it can be seen that these terms have
received a lot of attention in globalized education. The findings of this study may
redound to benefit of institutional programs that learner autonomy and the use of
e-portfolio play an important role in education learning. It is believed that
e-portfolio use can initiate learners to have a sense of independence in language
learning by increasing learners' awareness about learner autonomy. Besides, the
findings of the research can help further researchers in conducting a study that is
geared towards encouraging students to develop autonomous learning skills in
studying English by using a technological learning tool in teaching and learning a
foreign language.
In the context of the NewSky center, in which students seem to be passive in their
learning, this research may give a important effort to promote the quality of
teaching and learning by applying e-portfolios to enhance learner autonomy. With a
sense of independence, learners could adjust their attitudes to help them overcome
learning difficulties. Additionally, the positive results of the study may raise the
teachers' and the administrators' awareness of promoting learner autonomy since it
plays an important role to achieve successful and effective educational purposes.

5


1.7 Definition of key terms
- An electronic portfolio (e-portfolio) is a learning record tool that facilitates

students’ reflection on their own learning.
- EFL learners are twenty students who took part in the English speaking class at
NewSky language center.

- Learner autonomy is a term addressing learners' autonomous abilities in
setting goals, creating a study plan, choosing learning materials, self-assessing
speaking performance, the self-monitoring learning process in this study.
- The learner’s autonomous learning skills are that the learners have
self-regulation, self-assessment, and accountability skills in their learning process.
1.8 Organization of the thesis
This thesis consists of five chapters. Chapter I introduces the background
information of this study, it focuses on the statement of the problem, and the
purposes of the study. The scope of the study and its significance also defined in
this section. Chapter II involves the relevant literature on e-portfolio and learner
autonomy in language teaching and learning. It focuses on the definition of
e-portfolios, the characteristics of e-portfolios, the advantages of e-portfolios, and
the disadvantages of e-portfolios. Besides, it offers the theory of learner autonomy
in which includes the definition of autonomy, the level of autonomy, the
autonomous learning skills, and the roles of autonomy in education. Chapter III
provides information research methodology of the study. It consists of research
design, research site, the description of participants, the information of experiment,
research instruments, data collection procedures, and data analysis procedures. The
validity and reliability of the instruments also concern in this section. Chapter IV
emphasizes the results of this research, include the findings to answer two research
questions and the discussion about these findings. Chapter V refers to the
conclusion of this research. It mentions the summarizing of the findings of the

6

research, stating some pedagogical implications, indicating the research's limitation,
and suggesting recommendations for further research.

7


CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
This literature review focuses on the literature review of e-portfolios and learner
autonomy. In the e-portfolio section, it focuses on the definition of e-portfolio, the
characteristic of e-portfolios, the advantages and disadvantages of e-portfolio in
EFL teaching and learning, and EFL learners' attitude towards e-portfolio. In the
learner autonomy section, it involves the definition of learner autonomy, the levels
of autonomy, the learners’ autonomous learning skills, and the role of autonomy in
EFL education.
2.1 Electronic portfolios (e-portfolios)
2.1.1 Definition of e-portfolios
In light of ICT in language teaching and learning, an e-portfolio has emerged as a
new form of portfolios implemented in the writing classroom. Over the last two
decades, e-portfolio-based assessment in EFL teaching has suffered substantial
development. From its establishment in Europe, e-portfolio as an assessment tool
was first used in educational programs in Canada as well as the United States, and it
was then followed by an enormous e-portfolio movement in US university
(Hamp-Lyons & Condon, 2000; Klenowski, 2010). According to Kahtani (1999,
p.262), e-portfolio was a "purposeful collection of a student's work that made
available on the World Wide Web or a recorded CD-ROM". It took advantage of
the World Wide Web as the storage for the collection, instead of a paper-based
collection. Similarly, Lorenzo and Ittelson (2005) also emphasized that
e-portfolio-based assessment was the individual and digital collection of artifacts
such as illustrations, resources, and accomplishments for a wide range of contexts

and time-interval. There was a general stereotype that they also identified that
e-portfolios digitize EFL learners' works and can update the high-tech internet to
store them. Similarly, Abrami and Barrett (2005, p.8) provided a more in-depth

8


explanation, "e-portfolio provides a structured context for students and teachers to
present text, audio, video in a fluid form which can be easily processed and it
integrates synchronous and asynchronous communication functions."
Moreover, an e-portfolio is the production, created and improved by the EFL
learners, a collection of digital artifacts articulating three vital points such as
experiences, achievements, and efficient learning (Gray, 2008). It is "a purposeful
aggregation of digital items" including critical thinking, ideas, evidence, reflections,
and later, feedback that presents the first-class audience with evidence of an EFL
learning as well as the ability (Gray, 2008, p.7). In a similar viewpoint, Sutherland
and Powell (2007, p.1) defined e-portfolios as “a purposeful aggregation of digital
items - ideas, evidence, reflections, feedback which 'presents' a selected audience
with evidence of a person's learning or ability.”
Briefly, e-portfolio is used as a learning and assessment tool for both learners and
institutions. Of these categories, Sutherland and Powell's (2007) category is quite
closely related to the aim of this thesis as it discusses promoting learner autonomy
within the framework using e-portfolios in language learning. In this category,
based on learners' reflection and feedback on e-portfolios, the researcher can
identify the relationship between e-portfolios and learner autonomy.
2.1.2 Characteristics of e-portfolios
According to some current research (Bolliger & Shepherd, 2010; Goldsmith, 2007;
Kocoglu, 2008; Reese & Levy, 2009), e-portfolios have ten characteristics. The first
characteristic of e-portfolio is authenticity. It is authentic because learners are aware
of their responsibility in their learning, include organizing their e-portfolios,

reflecting their own learning process and finding, and improving their own learning
based on their reflection (Goldsmith, 2007; Reese & Levy, 2009). The second
characteristic is controllability. Learners can organize their e-portfolios, reflect and
assess their learning, and make necessary changes depending on their reflection
(Goldsmith, 2007). The third characteristic is communication and interaction

9


because learners need to communicate and interact with their teachers and their
peers to improve their learning (Bolliger & Shepherd, 2010; Lin, 2008). Dynamic is
the fourth characteristic of e-portfolio. Its structures are constantly developing as a
result of the organization of main content, gathering, and choice of the artifact, the
self-regulation, and self-assessment during the learning process and improvement
made according to self-learning. The fifth characteristic is personalization because
learners can form their own e-portfolio in their learning (Gray; 2008; Goldsmith,
2007; Schmitz et al., 2010). Sixth, because e-portfolio creates a connection between
learners' lives and academic work, it is integration (Goldsmith, 2007). The learner
can use what they learned into their social life. They are able to make a combination
between their learning and their life experiences to create a conversation effectively.
Seventh, e-portfolio is multi-purposes because it can be used for the assessment of
learners' learning performances and of the institutions' education programs
(Goldsmith, 2007), and for achieving employment in the future (Goldsmith, 2007;
Kocoglu, 2008; Lin, 2008; Reese & Levy, 2009). Eighth, e-portfolio is
multi-sources that it provides learners with feedback on their learning, teachers with
the assessment of learners' performance, and institutions with the opportunity to
access their programs, course (Goldsmith, 2007). The ninth characteristic is
motivation as it gives learners ownership in their learning and leads them to the
improvement of their learning skills (Akỗl & Arap, 2009; Bolliger & Shepherd,
2010; Rhodes, 2011). The last characteristic is the reflection in that e-portfolio

requires reflection of learners’ own learning, therefore learners can self-reflect and
self-assess in their learning through using e-portfolios (Goldsmith, 2007; Lin, 2008;
Reese & Levy, 2009).
2.1.3 Advantages of e-portfolios in language teaching and learning
E-portfolios are commonly used as a learning tool in different aspects of education.
Many studies are demonstrating this commonness on its use and its effects. These
studies have revealed some benefits of e-portfolios. One of the benefits is that

10