Why portfolios?

My purpose in working with portfolios in open source is to help people open their hearts to discover who they are and who they intend to be. A learner who has gone through a portfolio process that focuses on who that individual is, has he/she has learned, and how he/she wants to continue learning is a wonder to observe.

Portfolios are not the only tool that can support this transformative process, but if used in a thoughtful, persistent, and formative manner, they can be a source of inspiration and guidance for students who are finding their way through an educational system, a potential career, and a chosen way of living.

I am particularly enthusiastic about how open source can be used to support portfolio processes that are tailored to particular institutional goals and ways of educating students. The original Open Source Portfolio began as a student handbook at the University of Minnesota-Duluth that was designed to plug students into the many ways the university could support them in the development of their identity and their sense of purpose in the world.