At most every conference, symposium, journal article, whatever, we see eportfolios, blogs and wikis grouped together. They’re technologies which have evolved somewhat together, and even though all three have differences, there is a clear unifying generic theme. But what’s the clear generic title?
Accessible Online Content Creation and Collaboration Tools?
Student Collaborative Content Tools?
Online Content Creation?

I’m not going to get a good acronym, really, and that’s really not important, of course. But it is a bit frustrating.

Eportfolios–allow students to assemble, present, reflect on, and get feedback on artifacts which demonstrate their learning.

Blogs–allow students to present, reflect on, and get feedback on their thinking during the process of developing it.

Wikis–allow students to collaborate on and present information and thinking as they assemble it.

It seems that for all of them, the common theme is the public part–the presentation. Making student work (or any of our work) part of the larger public community of discourse is a very powerful tool. The other half–opening up the work to comment, give feedback, and collaborate, is also part of the equation, but it follows mainly from the first part. It’s the publishing, and the ways in which these digital tools make enable (or at least facilitate) that publishing.