Enhancing student success through reflective learning experiences
Designing learning experiences that are meaningful for students and aligned with broader strategic goals is a priority for higher education institutions. A session, held in partnership with PebblePad, during the 2025 THE Student Success US event, explored practical strategies to enhance institutional coherence and deliver measurable learning outcomes.
“Education isn’t just about mastering content,” said Gail Ring, director of service and learning partnerships and head of customer success at PebblePad. “It is about identity, discovery, confidence and connection-making.” The discussion focused on how institutions can encourage learners to think critically about their development and academic journey.
“When students are getting ready to graduate, what are the stories that you hope they are going to be able to tell about their experiences?” asked Melissa Beers, senior director of general education launch and reflection seminar courses – also known as general education bookends – at Ohio State University.
Bookending the learning journey
The university’s bookend framework was designed to ensure a scalable and equitable system that supports students at key points in their student life. It includes two courses that all students at the university are required to take, which “bookend” their learning journey at the institution.
The initial classes cover a range of themes, such as sustainability, lived environment and health and wellness. “We intended for students to have this introductory experience so that we could enhance their autonomy and agency,” Beers said. Each student is introduced to the idea of ePortfolio through PebblePad and is taught how to make the most of it. “The idea of ‘folio thinking’ is about being intentional and thinking about your experiences and documenting them for future use.”
Creating personalised learning plans
Through the PebblePad ePortfolio, the university team has developed scaffolding around sections that students work through in their course. It helps learners articulate aspects of their personality, community and future goals and aspirations. “This all comes together in what we call a personalised learning plan that students build for themselves through their ePortfolios,” Beers said, sharing examples of learning portfolios by students that showcase their thinking, reflection, planning, evolving ideas, and personal development.
Before they graduate, students create a second ePortfolio as part of their final course. “In the reflection seminar, they work on a showcase portfolio that tells their story and who they have become, but it is still deeply rooted in metacognition,” Beers said. The university provides structured explorations and steps to help students evaluate their personal and academic journeys.
Empathising with student concerns
One of the assignments included in the framework is asking students to think about their personal guidelines for AI. Beers urged the audience to initiate open dialogues with their students regarding AI. “It is helping us to meet them in a place of empathy. They don’t want to use [AI] to cheat. They don’t know how they are supposed to use it or what the expectation is.”
The bookend approach foregrounds individual engagement and reflection, which are becoming increasingly important in the age of AI. “We build a scaffolding that helps students think about and synthesise their story,” she said. “It [prioritises] process over product.”
The speakers:
- Melissa Beers, senior director of general education bookends, Ohio State University
- Gail Ring, director of service and learning partnerships and head of customer success, PebblePad
Find out more about PebblePad.
