Every student in the school of nursing has to produce a portfolio. However, it is unclear what sense students make of this activity and how useful they perceive it to be. Furthermore, the literature on portfolios is unclear about their purpose and what constitutes appropriate content. Nonetheless, portfolios are considered essential and have to be maintained at post as well as pre-registration level. It is generally expected that portfolios should demonstrate that students practice competently and be able to utilise a range of evidence. At this stage, we are unsure how much support students need to develop their portfolios. In short, there are many issues that still need to be resolved with the format and content of portfolios and how they are being used.

In this project, we have conducted an evaluation of the current use of portfolios in the school of nursing. We have used both quantitative and qualitative methods, firstly though a survey of student views on portfolios, which is largely a quantitative questionnaire, and secondly a qualitative analysis of a small sample of student portfolios. There are three aspects to the analysis:

Attitudes - how portfolio development is viewed within the overall curriculum

Knowledge - what is understood about whether portfolio development can enhance learning

Skills - how widespread is reflective practice utilised within their portfolios and how much student guidance is both provided and required

The project is a product of three substantial influences. Firstly, we examine the wider literature on portfolios and the ongoing research in this area. Secondly, we are contributing to a three centre FDTL (Fund for the Development of Teaching and Learning) funded project led by the Nottingham School of Nursing. Thirdly, we are all involved in the day-to-day support of students using portfolios. This work will contribute to the schools knowledge and strategy for using portfolios in the following areas:

Teaching - the support students find to be effective when they are developing their portfolios

Learning - what kind of learning takes place during the process of portfolio development?

Assessment - what types of assessment strategies can enhance the students learning through the development of portfolios?

We will also discuss the wider implications of our study on portfolio use for a wide range of schools and departments, as well as emphasise the specific professional issues that the study addresses.