Reflecting on Reflection in E-Portfolios: A Kaleidoscope of Soliloquy, Colloquy, and Multilogue

E-portfolios are a digital dossier that keeps track of students’ efforts, learning, and achievements over time. They feature iterative creation, compilation, curation, and reflection components throughout the multimodal composing process. Reflection is a core activity of these attributes, promoting students’ learning of writing and metacognitive awareness. In this paper, I argue for augmenting the instructional potential of reflection within a virtual environment by showcasing how divergent modes of digital reflection empower students’ metacognitive composing and thinking skills in the L2 writing classroom. I set the scene by describing the background of the research before thematically reviewing the e-portfolio scholarship with a focus on reflection. Afterwards, I appraise three digital reflection approaches: reflection as soliloquy, reflection as colloquy, and reflection as multilogue within the context of e-portfolios. Based on this review, I propose pedagogical and research implications concerning how to warrant the successful implementation of digital reflection in classroom-based e-portfolio programmes. Lastly, I share several data-driven-cum-actionable strategies with audience members when they adopt digital reflection for teaching and assessment in their workplaces.