Seesaw for Digital Portfolios

We have very limited technology resources in our district, so when I was looking for a way to move past printing photos of student’s work and having them paste the photos in their sketchbooks, I was looking for something that students could easily access on a personal device. It needed to be free and simple. After spending a few weeks over the summer looking at several online portfolio options, I chose Seesaw. The other services I explored were great too, but Seesaw was a much simpler version of what I felt I needed for my students. Easy access on any device, a simple interface and a way for parents to connect with our studio was exactly what I was looking for.
 
When I chose Seesaw, I planned to have students use their own cell phone or tablet in class to photograph their work and add their artist statement or reflection. At that time, student’s personal electronic devices could be used in class at the teacher’s discretion. Guess what? Our school changed the policy to no student devices at any time except lunch. Ugh! Now what was I going to do? Fortunately, they still allowed teachers to allow students to use tablets that were school or teacher owned. I have an iPad, a laptop and a desktop computer in my classroom. So, we will forge ahead. Students will photograph their work with the iPad in class and then login to Seesaw with their QR code outside of school on their own device to complete their reflection. Homework isn’t ideal, but we are going to try it and see how it goes. Students can still access the devices I have in my classroom as well as the library if needed. This will definitely drag out the time it will take for students to complete their reflections. I was really looking forward to paperless portfolios and reflections, but we may need to step backwards here and there with paper reflections as needed.
 
Now, back to why I really wanted to switch to digital portfolios…
 

1. In-process photos. When we were using paper portfolios, we had limits. The cost of ink and paper and glue, and the time needed to photograph the work and then upload to a computer to print meant that we could only use final-product photos in our portfolios. With Seesaw, students can quickly and easily photograph every step of their process from gathering inspiration photos, to research, to plans, to in-process issues and revisions, to the final product and upload in a matter of seconds without additional resources.
2. Parent engagement. When we were using paper portfolios, parents didn’t see their student’s portfolios unless they came to school for open house, parent-teacher conferences or students actually took them home at the end of the year. They may have seen the actual finished project that went home but not the reflection statements and certainly not the full body of work in one place to see the growth of working with a single medium for a full school year. With Seesaw, parents can sign up for their own login and get notifications whenever their student adds to their portfolio. Seesaw also tracks parent engagement to help the teacher identify parents that may be out of the loop.
3. Special education modifications. When we were using paper portfolios, my special education students were often missing reflections because of writing difficulties. Seesaw has a video function. My students that can’t write a reflection can now record a verbal reflection with or without my help.
4. Showing growth. While we could show growth using the paper portfolios, taking approximately one hundred sixty booklets into a meeting was not ideal. Seesaw allows me to have my student’s portfolios with me at any time in the form of one tablet. I can show an administrator the work of an entire class or one specific student quickly and easily with a few taps on a screen. This also means that I don’t need to handle all of those booklets when I need to read those reflections. I can do it anywhere at any time. Which leads to…
5. Saving time and money. Paper portfolios were expensive and time consuming. Our district is a poor district with a limited budget. Ink, paper and glue came out of my pocket. Uploading and printing took my time, usually outside of school. Seesaw allows us to quickly and easily take a photo within the app for immediate uploading. Students can then tap a button to write their statement directly in the app or record a voice memo. They can even draw or write on the photo with a pen tool to identify the strengths and weaknesses of their project. Anything that makes my life easier is a win.

 
At the point of writing this, we are a glaze fire away from finishing our first project. Students will photograph that project in class, they will see a demonstration on how to use Seesaw and they will be given their QR codes. I still believe, despite the change in cell-phone policy, that Seesaw is the way to go for our students. I am certainly looking forward to this new experience.