http://nathan.sisatspace.com/2006/10/06/the-importance-of-standards/

in my literature review for my current paper and process, I came across an interesting consortium. Reading through one of their foundational papers (see link below) I came across the following paragraph at the start of a major section.

Like other new product spaces of the recent past, the first attempts at ePortfolio systems

have not always employed existing industry-wide standards. Whether ePortfolio systems

are built in-house by an educational institution or are developed and maintained by

consortia or for-profit companies, standards are the key to ensuring that these fledgling

systems meet user expectations and the ever-increasing requirements of the Academic

Enterprise. Standards ease educational and technical transitions, increase manageability,

and leverage existing resources and activities. (http://www.eportconsortium.org/Uploads/whitepaperV1_0.pdf)

I have to say that this really sounds like the approach of a bureaucracy. At this point in their development, fixing eportfolios standards is one of the least important issues involved. We are still facing major user acceptance problems. Fixing the software in stone seems a trifle premature. While this organization does have some very interesting things to say, I find them much more reflective of an administrative mindset than one focused upon the new possibilities afforded to student learning by the Internet.

As an aside, WordPress is really annoying at formatting stuff. The interface doesn’t seem to want to let me to just indent the quote above, instead insisting upon blocking it off.