A Systematic Review of e-Portfolio Use During the Pandemic: Inspiration for Post-COVID-19 Practices

As the COVID-19 pandemic fades into the background, higher education institutions think about what they can learn from the vast shift to online teaching and learning— the recent period emphasized the significance of autonomous learning abilities, as students who were skilled in self-regulation were able to cope with the challenges of remote education with more success. The e-portfolio was a crucial instrument in online education, aligning well with self-regulated learning processes. Evaluating and learning from these experiences after the pandemic is necessary to improve future educational approaches. The review adhered to a thorough methodology. Starting with 221 publications, the PRISMA protocol and the Ryaan tool were implemented to refine the data. The content analysis approach was further employed to evaluate 12 selected papers. The results suggest that e-portfolios were well-welcomed during the pandemic because of their flexibility in remote learning environments and their ability to showcase continuous student learning and achievement. However, concerns were identified regarding sufficient guidance, support, privacy, and plagiarism. Furthermore, the study examines the digital designs and infrastructures of e-portfolios, offering significant insights into their functionality and user experiences. Drawing upon the synthesized data, this article presents practical suggestions for integrating e-portfolios within the educational post-pandemic environment, with a particular focus on collaboration from a learning co-design approach. Additionally, it suggests possibilities for further investigation to enhance the evolution of e-portfolios in higher education.