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OBJECTIVES

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

Describe some of the uses for a portfolio

Plan and Prepare: Selecting content

Create a portfolio 

Add a portfolio page

Create artifacts

Add an artifact to a portfolio

Preview the portfolio

OVERVIEW

Portfolios are used to efficiently collect and organize artifacts representative of work completed over time.

"In other words, let students follow the paths that are most comfortable and productive for them, be it artistic or text-based, research, synthesizing, oral argument, video production, coordinating a team, etc. But ask them to keep evidence of their work along the way. And ask them to explain what they learned."ePortfolio: There's no "There" There, By Trent Batsonhttp://campustechnology.com/Articles/2009/03/04/No-There-There-in-ePortfolio.aspx 

Traditional• Student achievement and progress• Course requirements• Graduation requirements• Showcase of experiences• Collection of work or research

Non Traditional• Tutorials• Guided activities• Co-Curricular Setting

Tenure• Promotion• Accreditation

WHY USE PORTFOLIOS?

It organizes and presents digital examples of your work, such as an essay or screenplay, a set of photographs, a musical score, a movie clip, or an especially good evaluation.

It allows you to create a portfolio and then, by reorganizing the components and applying different styles, target diverse markets with the same content.

You can share portfolios with others and receive comments from both peers and instructors.  Students can even submit Portfolios as part of the Assignment Tool.

BEST PRACTICES: PLAN AND PREPARE

Before you create a portfolio, it is a good idea to do some pre-planning.

What sort of portfolio do you want to create?

School application,  internship, or a job?  

Promotion and Tenure

To name just a few . . .

Each will require a different style of portfolio. Once you have decided upon the type of portfolio, consider the different options for collecting and organizing portfolio content.

COLLECTING AND ORGANIZING YOUR WORK

Chronological Order Present your portfolio by years or school levels.

Subject MatterShow your progress throughout the years within the same subject, such as English, math, or biology. This method offers greater flexibility.

SkillsDemonstrate through your education and work experience that you have developed project management, communication, and teamwork skills.

Collecting Your WorkCollect electronic versions of your work, such as assignments, papers, and projects. If you only have paper copies and want to include them in your portfolio, make a high-resolution scan of each document. Organizing Your WorkAs you collect your work, start thinking about how to organize your portfolios. For example, do you want to organize content by chronological order, subject matter, or skills? Depending on the audience and purpose of your portfolio, one method of organization may be better than another. The following table describes three organizing methods.

SELECTING PORTFOLIO CONTENT

When deciding on which content to include, select items that will impress the people who review your portfolios. It can be tempting to include a large amount of content, but the reviewer wants to see only the content that best represents your achievements and qualifications. To keep content to a minimum, create different portfolios, each one tailored for different audiences and/or purposes.

BEST PRACTICE: OUTLINE

After you have selected the work you want to include, create an outline of your portfolio. The following is an sample outline for a journalism student who is applying for an internship with a local newspaper. 

Portfolio Pages Content

Contact Information •Name, address, phone number, and email

Internship Application •Attach file

Course Work and Projects

•Feature article Infant Vaccinations: Truths and Myths•Profile Douglas Cooper: Mad Man or Genius?•Service piece How to Pack and Dress for Your European Vacation•Investigative reporting assignment on lottery scam•List of relevant journalism courses taken to date

Summer Employment History

•Copyeditor at the Vancouver Courier•Proofreader at the Richmond News

Reference Letters•John Smith, JRNL 305 instructor•Patty Lowel, Deputy Editor, Vancouver Courier•Rich Little, Editor-in-Chief, Richmond News

STEPS TO CREATE A PORTFOLIO

This is the general process of creating a portfolio. Step 1:  Create a portfolio Step 2:  Add pages and artifacts Step 3:  Design the appearance Step 4:  Determine the settings

The next few slides will take you step-by-step through this process.

STEP 1: FIND THE PORTFOLIO TOOL

The portfolio tool is located in the Global Navigation Menu in the Tools section.    Question:  Where is the Global

Navigation Menu?   Answer:  Look in the upper right corner

of the screen and click on your name.

To Access the Portfolio Tool1. Global Navigation Menu (your name)2. Tools3. Portfolios

CREATE A PORTFOLIO

To create a portfolio1. Access the portfolio tool2. Click Create Portfolio in the My Portfolios section3. Enter a Title4. Enter an optional Description5. Submit

Note that if your institution has created portfolio templates that you can click the Select Portfolio Template button to choose one.

PORTFOLIO INTERFACE

My Portfolios user creates and manages their PortfoliosCreate Portfolio user creates a portfolioMy Artifacts user creates and manages their ArtifactsShared with Me user accesses Portfolios that have been directly shared with them by other users

TAKE A TOURWhen you create a Portfolio, a popup will appear asking if you would like to take a tour.

Click Take the tour to viewUse the Next and Previous buttons to navigate

STEP 2: ADD PAGES AND ARTIFACTSThe Portfolio Canvas is the screen where you add and change content.

Breadcrumb Trail Settings

Custom Header/Footer Preview & Customize

Pages/Sections Done Editing

Page Guided Tour

Section

QUICK FACTS ON PAGES

Pages  Form the structure of the portfolio Can be re-ordered Contain

Sections May contain one or more

SectionsSections Form the structure of pages Can be re-ordered Contain

Static text  Artifacts

May contain one or more artifacts

Artifacts Can be used in multiple portfolios Advantages

Maintain and edit one artifact Changes are reflected in all portfolios

that use that artifact Can be created

As discrete objects using the portfolio tool

By converting a course assignment into an artifact

Create from Portfolio Canvas Page My Artifacts section of the portfolio tool

PAGES AND ARTIFACTS GRAPHIC

ARTIFACTS AND SECTION TEXT

Artifacts  

Text Box Editor Content 

SAMPLES OF ARTIFACTS

These images show the two artifacts opened as new browser tabs.

STEP 3: DESIGN APPEARANCE

Now comes the fun part, choosing the design layout and color style!   Choose from available layouts and color styles.  Here is the same page of a portfolio in several different layouts and color styles.  Note that the same option to change the style also lets you preview the portfolio.

STEP 4: FINALIZE THE SETTINGS

The last step is to finalize your settings. This page will look familiar as you saw it when you first created the portfolio. From here check the following:

Name of Portfolio - This is what people will see.

Description - What is the portfolio about.

Availability - It must be made available to share with others.

If comments are private - People can leave comments about your portfolio.  Checking this option would mean you are the only one who can see the comments.  To let everyone see the comments leave this unchecked.

TRY IT

Use the Creating Portfolios handout and locate the Try It! Activity in the Table of Contents to practice what you have learned about Creating Portfolios in the Content Collection.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. Can a portfolio be packaged and downloaded to take with you when you finish school?

2. If I download my portfolio can I work on it using Blackboard Learn?

3. Can I share my Blackboard Learn portfolio with someone who does not have a Blackboard Learn account?

4. If I share a portfolio and then continue to make edits to it, what will the person see with whom I shared it?

ANSWERS

1.Yes, a portfolio can be downloaded into a zip file and saved on your local computer.  

2. No. The contents can be edited using a web editing program but it can no longer be edited or imported in Blackboard Learn.

3. Yes.  You can share a link with someone that does not have a Blackboard Learn account that will allow them to view it.

4. The person with whom you share it will see the portfolio “as it existed” at the time you shared it.  This is called a Snapshot. They will not see edits that you make to it after it is shared.

QUESTIONS?