Reflecting on the use of student portfolios

The use of portfolios in nursing has increased during recent years. We refl ect upon the design and implementation of a portfolio for pre-registration nursing students in the School of Care Sciences' at the University of Glamo rgan. The portfolio was introduced as the result of the need to address the theory-practice divide and to provide nurse students with the skills to ma intain a professional profile upon registration. We also discuss other potential benefits associated with using the portfoli o. These include the use of a portfolio as a focus for discussion between t he student and their preceptor or personal tutor, a vehicle for the develop ment of reflective skills and a means of assessment. We acknowledge that along with benefits, there are a number of potential pr oblems and limitations in their use, for example, an increase in the worklo ad for the student, preceptor and personal tutor. We include preliminary fi ndings of an evaluation of our portfolio, revealing that both students and staff value the introduction of the portfolio, although currently it is not a high priority in terms of the course as a whole. (C) 2001 Harcourt Publi shers Ltd.