PebblePad is the platform which has been provided to you for you to develop and record your portfolio, which will contain the evidence required for your professional discussion during your End Point Assessment (EPA).
PebblePad provides you with an online learning space where you reflect and evidence the knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs) required of your apprenticeship.
In addition to the the portfolio, you should use PebblePad to record information about the following:
- off-the-job activity,
- progress reviews.
PebblePad also holds further information that you may find useful, including apprenticeship mapping documents and webinars and guides for how to use PebblePad.
The PebblePad home page
Below is a screenshot of the PebblePad home page.
1. Store - This is your ‘Store’ or library containing Assets & Resources.
Assets are items/artefacts that you have uploaded into PebblePad - these can be PowerPoint slides, meeting minutes, video material, items generated from your course, or things you have uploaded from the PebblePocket app.
Resources are ready-built templates for you to use. The Portfolio Workbook is an example of one of these. You will also notice that your workbook becomes an asset in your Asset store after you have worked in it and saved it.
2. Workbook - This is your link to your portfolio workbook, simply click on the tile to open it. Some apprenticeship programmes have two workbooks; one for progression and one of End Point Assessment.
3. Get Creative - Your portfolio workbook is just a small part of what PebblePad can offer you. ‘Get Creative’ is PebblePad’s resource area enabling you to develop your own portfolios, create interesting pages for personal projects, write a blog or CV etc. They are not required for your degree apprenticeship but you have access to these for your own personal use. Learn more on the PebblePad website.
4. Last worked on - The bottom left tile links to whatever asset you were last working on when you were last logged in.
5. Upload - This Upload New button opens the file upload process. You can upload various formats of files including videos, audio files, PowerPoint, Excel spreadsheets and documents. Uploaded items will be placed in your Asset store, or library, for application into your portfolio, if required. Learn more on the PebblePad website.
6. Learning Centre - PebblePad have their own learning support centre containing PDF and video guides - learn more on the PebblePad website. More specific guides are available for the degree apprenticeship portfolio in the Resources section of your workbook.
Your portfolio of work
Your portfolio is to be used as a personal journal throughout your apprenticeship to help you tell the story of your progress, to record and reflect on your learning and experiences as they happen and, most importantly, describe how you are achieving and applying newly learnt KSBs in your workplace.
Although the portfolio is not assessed in itself, you will need to select key pieces of evidence from your portfolio which will form the basis for the professional discussion in your EPA.
PebblePad
PebblePad can only be accessed using your secure Cranfield ID and password. Access is provided to you after registration on your apprenticeship programme. Content within your PebblePad portfolio is visible only to you, your nominated reviewer within your organisation, your Apprenticeship Tutor, and the Apprenticeships Office - all other content in your PebblePad environment is accessible only by you.
Building evidence
The workbook is structured to enable you to critically reflect on your development and build up an evidence base to demonstrate your achievement an application of the KSBs set out in the apprenticeship standard.
Remember, your portfolio is your personal working journal which you can constantly refine and add to throughout your journey. You can also amend your evidence if you find better examples later.
At any stage, you can tick off each competency as you achieve it and you can view your progress to see which competency areas you have completed and are yet to complete.
Evidence
The evidence contained in the EPA portfolio will comprise a number of discrete pieces of work that cover the KSBs as set out to be assessed by the professional discussion. This will be a range of materials and documents generated over the period of the apprenticeship and which provide evidence of the apprentice's ability to apply and demonstrate the knowledge, skills and behaviours that they have acquired.
The portfolio will also show how the apprentice has demonstrated the behaviours, especially around contact with others, teamwork and areas where they have exceeded the requirements of the role.
A record of the on-programme progress reviews undertaken will need to be uploaded as part of the portfolio of evidence.
The portfolio should include a variety of evidence types, which could include:
- Reflective journals,
- Reports,
- Minutes of meetings,
- Demonstrations, presentations,
- Credible witness statements,
- 360-degree feedback from managers and peers,
- Project plans and documentation,
- Assignments, research projects etc.
Selecting evidence
Whilst there is a minimum number of pieces of evidence you need to submit, you should aim to select evidence that covers a number of KSBs at once. This type of evidence is likely to come from the latter stages of the apprenticeship as you have covered more learning. Your evidence should show your best example of achievement and application of the KSB you are trying to evidence.
Whilst there may be some overlap between the evidence collected, multiple pieces of evidence showing coverage of the same criteria should not normally be submitted for EPA. Case study/scenario assessments are allowed in exceptional circumstances and should be used sparingly.
Confirming evidence selection
When you have selected your key pieces of evidence to form your portfolio, this must be reviewed your employer and academic institution before submission to the EPAO at gateway. This is to ensure that all assessment requirements have been met and that it is in line with any guidance relating to the type and amount of evidence required and when the evidence should have originated.
Important things to know about gathering evidence
Click on each item below for more detail.
Apprenticeship portfolio
PebblePad is the platform which has been provided to you for you to develop and record your portfolio, which will contain the evidence required for your professional discussion during your End Point Assessment (EPA).
PebblePad provides you with an online learning space where you reflect and evidence the knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs) required of your apprenticeship.
In addition to the the portfolio, you should use PebblePad to record information about the following:
- off-the-job activity,
- progress reviews.
PebblePad also holds further information that you may find useful, including apprenticeship mapping documents and webinars and guides for how to use PebblePad.
The PebblePad home page
Below is a screenshot of the PebblePad home page.
Start collecting now!
It’s good practice to gather evidence where you can from the start, even if you are not sure it is useful - it's better to have too many examples than not enough. Why not use the app to capture images, video clips, on-the-fly activity recording etc?
Get into a habit of keeping your portfolio up-to-date as often as you can. Otherwise, you might find it harder to remember what to do each time you access it and it will take longer to organise a large amount of evidence in one go.
Reflect on it!
Your portfolio is your working journal - think critically about events or experiences in which you have applied newfound knowledge and skills. Reflect and record them before you forget! Use these questions to help the process:
- What happened?
- What knowledge, skills and behaviours have you learnt/developed?
- How have you exhibited these?
- Can you provide evidence/demonstrate achievement?
- How have you applied KSBs gained to real work tasks?
- What problems did you face? Did you solve these - if not, why not?
You will be using these reflections to provide an overall picture of how you have met the competencies for your professional discussion in the End Point Assessment.
Show how your learning is applied in the workplace
Part of this process is to use the reflective journal to document this journey. You can also discuss your progress in regular review meetings with your Reviewer and keep these learner review records in your portfolio.
How much is enough evidence?
During your course gather as much as you can, even if you are not sure if it is relevant. At the end of the course you will need to select between 10 and 20 of the best items (depending on your chosen EPA requirements) that clearly show your achievement and application of the knowledge, skills and behaviours in your workplace to the End Point Assessor.
The PebblePocket app
The free app called PebblePocket is available for iOS and Android. You can upload evidence and reflect on a particular activity or event using PebblePad’s templates at any time, even if you are offline.
Use the app to create an on-the-spot reflective post, to record an experience, or add a photo or take a video.
If you are offline, the assets you upload will synchronise automatically with your PebblePad account whenever you next have an internet connection.
You will find your uploaded content in your Asset store ready to be included in your portfolio of evidence when you next access it.
Learn more about the PebblePocket app on the .
More information about using PebblePad can be found on our apprenticeship FAQs page.
