User manual | e-portfolio at Coventry University user guide

e-portfolio
at
Coventry University
user guide
Dr Anne Dickinson
e-Learning Unit, Coventry University
CONTENTS
Mahara e-portfolio guide ..................................................................................................................................... 1
Introduction to Mahara .................................................................................................................................... 1
About this guide ............................................................................................................................................... 1
How to access Coventry University’s Mahara .................................................................................................. 2
From Moodle ................................................................................................................................................ 2
Direct access ................................................................................................................................................. 2
Mahara Dashboard ........................................................................................................................................... 2
Content - add information about you .............................................................................................................. 3
Profile, Profile Pictures and Résumé tabs .................................................................................................... 3
Content - how to use Journal in Mahara .......................................................................................................... 4
Add an entry to a Journal ............................................................................................................................. 4
Portfolio - how to create a Mahara page ......................................................................................................... 6
Add content to your page ............................................................................................................................ 6
More options for your page ......................................................................................................................... 6
Add content example 1 - Add all or part of a Journal to a Mahara page ......................................................... 7
Add content example 2 - Embed a YouTube video to a Mahara page ............................................................. 7
Types of content that you can add to your page ............................................................................................. 9
External content ........................................................................................................................................... 9
Files, images and videos ............................................................................................................................... 9
General ......................................................................................................................................................... 9
Journals......................................................................................................................................................... 9
Profile ........................................................................................................................................................... 9
Résumé ......................................................................................................................................................... 9
Add a Title and Description to your page ....................................................................................................... 10
Choose a Layout for your page ................................................................................................................... 10
Portfolio - share a page via a secret URL ........................................................................................................ 11
Access to all sharing options ...................................................................................................................... 11
Secret URL .................................................................................................................................................. 11
Submit a Mahara page to an e-portfolio assignment in Moodle ................................................................... 12
Tutor Guides ....................................................................................................................................................... 13
How to set up a Mahara e-portfolio assignment in Moodle - a Tutor Guide ................................................. 14
How to mark a Mahara e-portfolio assignment - a Tutor Guide .................................................................... 16
Mahara e-portfolio guide
Introduction to Mahara
Mahara enables you to create an online portfolio. You do this by assembling a selection of your résumé
(curriculum vitae/CV), files, journals and links to your files onto a Mahara web page and sharing the page.



You can create more than one page
You can embed media that you keep elsewhere on the internet, for example YouTube
You can also share your page with people who do not need to have a Mahara ID
Here is a visual summary of what you can do in Mahara...
About this guide
This guide shows you how to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Access Coventry University’s Mahara from Moodle or using a direct URL
Start your profile - add information (content) about you
Use Journal in Mahara
Create a page - assemble your portfolio into a web page comprising some of your content
Share a portfolio page by creating a secret URL
Submit a Mahara page to an e-portfolio assignment in Moodle
In addition, for tutors: how to set up and information about marking an e-portfolio assignment in Moodle
Anne Dickinson, e-Learning Unit, Coventry University UK. Mahara 1.4 March 2012
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How to access Coventry University’s Mahara
From Moodle
When you have logged into Moodle, click Mahara e-portfolio in the On-campus links on the right.
Accessing Mahara in this way gives you a return to Moodle link in Mahara.
Click
Mahara e-portfolio
You can also access Mahara from an e-portfolio module assignment that your tutor has set up in Moodle.
Direct access
You can also access Mahara using the direct web address (URL): http://mahara.coventry.ac.uk
Log in with your Coventry University user name and password.
Mahara Dashboard
Having accessed Mahara, you will see the dashboard with the following tabbed options at the top:
This link takes you
back to Moodle
Anne Dickinson, e-Learning Unit, Coventry University UK. Mahara 1.4 March 2012
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Content - add information about you
Note: The material that you add is invisible to everyone until:
 You have added it to a page AND
 You have shared the page.
Profile, Profile Pictures and Résumé tabs
1. Click Content (see image below). Profile should appear as a tab below.
2. Work along each of the Profile tabs, filling in the relevant information about you.
3. Important: after making changes to any tabbed page, click Save Profile
1. Click Content
2. Work along each of
these Profile tabs
3. Important:
click Save Profile
4. Now click the Profile Pictures tab to add an icon that will appear when you communicate in Mahara.
5. Then click the Résumé (curriculum vitae, CV) tab to add more details ...
6. Work along each of
these Résumé tabs
7. Important: click
Save on a tabbed
page, if present
Note that from the Content area, you can also:
Add a file
Create journals (blogs) within Mahara - see later
Add plans, which include an area for adding tasks
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Content - how to use Journal in Mahara
Journal in Mahara is a method you can use to store and display your writing such as a reflective
diary, a set of articles or a blog. You can have more than one journal in Mahara to reflect diverse
subjects that you would write about.
Nobody can see your journal until you add it to a Mahara page and share the page. You can add to
a web page a single journal entry, the latest journal entries, or the whole journal.
Add an entry to a Journal
From your home page in Mahara, choose the Content tab, then the Journal tab:
1. New Entry
You will initially see only one journal. (You can change the title and summary of the Journal by
choosing the Settings option beside the journal's title.)
1. By the current journal's title, choose the New Entry option:
2. Add a Title
3. Type your
Text
4. Add Tags IMPORTANT
5. Save Entry
(See the next page for more details of the steps shown in the above image.)
Anne Dickinson, e-Learning Unit, Coventry University UK. Mahara 1.4 March 2012
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2. Add a Title to the item
3. In Body, type the text of your journal entry (reflection, diary entry, thought, article). Note
that you can use the editor to embolden text, add links and so on.
Editing tip: you can paste your journal entry from Word if you wish: use the Paste from Word
option
icons:
to do this. It’s a small paste icon with a W on it, located on the right of the edit
4. IMPORTANT... add Tags to your journal item. It will be easier for you to find the entry
later, amongst the many entries that you will have made.
If you are not sure which tags you have already used, click the Show My Tags link.
To know more about tags, click the information icon
that is located beside the Tags text
box. (You can also attach files to your journal and adjust whether comments can be added.)
5. Choose Save entry
Now you need to create a page and add all or part of your Journal.
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Portfolio - how to create a Mahara page
You can create different web pages for different people to see.
Note that the page is not visible until you have shared it.
1. Click the Portfolio tab. You should see the Pages tab
2. Click Create Page to create one from scratch.
Tip - you can use Copy a page if you have want to produce a page that is similar to one on your list.
1. Click Portfolio
2. Click Create Page
Add content to your page
To add items to the page, drag the appropriate content block to the preview below the onscreen
instructions. Then add the information that is needed to configure the content block and click Save.
Finally, clicking done will complete the editing. (See later for details of how to do this.)
The examples following show you how to add a Journal item and embed a YouTube video to your page.
For a list of other content blocks that you can add, see later in this guide.
More options for your page
You should add a Title and Description. The title of your page will remain as Untitled if you do not change
the title.
You can change the number of columns (Edit Layout) and Display your page to see what it looks like.
From here you can also share the access to your page: Share Page takes you to Portfolio - Share-Edit Access
for the page that you have just created.
To see in more detail how to add a Title and Description, to Edit the Layout and to Share a page, see later.
Anne Dickinson, e-Learning Unit, Coventry University UK. Mahara 1.4 March 2012
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Add content example 1 - Add all or part of a Journal to a
Mahara page
From your home page in Mahara, choose the Portfolio tab and then Create Page or Edit an
existing page. Choose the Journals tab:
3. Drag the required content block (Journal / Journal Entry / Recent Journal Entries, you choose)
onto the page layout below. Wait for the Journal configuration window to appear.
3. Drag the required
Journal content block
onto the page layout
below
Fill in the appropriate details in the configuration window, then click Save.
Note that for Recent Journal Entries option, you can choose the number of entries you wish to
show. Any changes that you make to the Journal will automatically be reflected on the page.
Scroll down to the bottom of the page and choose Done to save the page.
Add content example 2 - Embed a YouTube video to a Mahara
page
1. Drag the External Video content block to add it to the page.
Wait for the External Video Configure window to appear.
2. Use the link to go to YouTube and find the video that you want to embed.
3. Copy the URL of the YouTube video from your browser’s address box at the top.
4. Paste the URL of your YouTube video, and add the title, width and height that you need.
5. Click Save to save the information and close the Configure window.
6. You should see your YouTube video embedded on the preview of your page (see over).
1. Drag the External
Video block onto
the page layout
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2. Click to go to
YouTube (see
image below)
4. Paste the URL
of your YouTube
video to here
5. Click Save
3. Copy the URL
of your YouTube
video from here
6. An embedded
YouTube video
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Types of content that you can add to your page
You see these content blocks when you are editing a page in Mahara, at the Edit Content stage.
External content
If you use embed.ly, check the correct syntax for the link to the item that you want to embed.
Files, images and videos
You need to upload files to Mahara to use these options (see Content - Files in Mahara).
General
Text box enables you to type or paste some text. Note that if you use the same text for several pages, you
might want to put the text into a journal entry instead.
Don’t use Navigation, that’s for Collections, which is a selection of pages - not covered in this basic guide.
Journals
You can create more than one journal within Mahara and you can choose what to add to a page:
 an entire journal (which you can split into pages from the Mahara page)
 one journal entry
 the most recent journal entries
Profile
The options allow you to add some items from your Contact, Profile and LinkedIn profile to the page.
Résumé
You can add all of your résumé items in one go or choose individual items.
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Add a Title and Description to your page
1. You should add a Title and Description to your page, then click Save.
You can always return to change these later.
1a. Add a title and
description for
your page
1b. Click Save
Choose a Layout for your page
2. You can choose up to 5 columns for your page layout. When you have made your choice, scroll to the
bottom and click Save. This returns you to the Edit Content page.
2a. Choose a layout
2b. Click Save
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Portfolio - share a page via a secret URL
Nobody else can see your page unless you share it. There are different ways that you can share a page:
 with a secret URL
 to a Moodle assignment
 with groups, with individuals, the public
The following instructions show you how to share your page via a secret URL (web address). Using this
method, the person receiving the URL (for example, by email) does not have to log in to any account. So
this is the best method to use if you want to show your page to a potential employer.
Access to all sharing options
Click the Portfolio tab.
1. From the Portfolio tab, click Share. (Note that the Edit Access option within the page editing allows you
to share your e-portfolio with groups and individuals within the community.)
Secret URL
2. From the Portfolio - Share page, click the pencil icon in the Secret URL list
page that you wish to share.
3. Confirm that this is the page you wish to share
4. Click Add and a long URL will appear. Copy this URL for sharing.
5. Edit the release dates, if you wish, by clicking the edit pencil and clicking Save
beside the title of the
1. Click Share
2. Click the icon
beside the
appropriate page
to get a secret
URL
3. Correct page?
Look at the title
4. The Secret URL.
Add has been clicked
5. Edit dates if
you wish
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Submit a Mahara page to an e-portfolio assignment in Moodle
Working in Moodle:
1. In your Moodle module you will see a link to your assignment in your module’s topic list. Click the
assignment title.
2. If you have not created a Mahara page for your assignment, you can use the link to go to Mahara and
create a page.
3. If you have created a page, use preview to check your page, then click submit beside the page.
4. You will receive a confirmation message that you have submitted the page for the assignment.
1. Click the
assignment title
2. No pages yet? Go to
Mahara and create one
3a. Preview the page
3b. OK? Submit
4. Confirmation
message
You can return here later to see your results.
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Tutor Guides
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How to set up a Mahara e-portfolio assignment in Moodle a Tutor Guide
Log into your Moodle module.
1. Click the Turn editing on button (it should now display Turn editing off).
2. From the Add an activity dropdown in your chosen topic, select Mahara portfolio
1. Editing is on
2. Click Mahara
Portfolio
3. Type an Assignment name (this is the link that appears on the module’s home page), Description (what
do you want the students to submit on the page?) and adjust the assignment from and due dates.
4. Scroll down and click Save and display. This will show you what you have set up.
3a. Name the
assignment
3b. Type a
Description
3c. Set the dates
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Set up a Mahara e-portfolio assignment in Moodle (tutor guide continued)
4. Save and Display
This following image shows the Mahara portfolio assignment that you have created. The title, description
and due dates are here. These are what the students will see when they click a link to the assignment. The
Update this Assignment button (top right) will enable you to change these settings. Beware: once a
student has submitted an assignment, you will not be able to change the settings.
5. As tutor you can see from here whether any attempts have been made and you use this link to mark the
assignments.
6. Click the module code to return to the module’s home page.
5. Mark the
assignments here
6. Return to the
module’s home page
7. This shows the home page of a module with the link to the assignment that has been created.
7. Mahara e-portfolio
assignment
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How to mark a Mahara e-portfolio assignment - a Tutor Guide
1. From the home page of your Moodle module, click the assignment that you have set up
1. Click the
assignment
2. You should now see that some students have submitted their assignments.
Click the ... submitted assignments link
2. Click
… submitted
assignments link
3. There are two places where you can add information:
a. You can view a student’s page and then you may place feedback below the page
b. Adding a Grade and comment. (The comment will appear in the Grade book.)
See the next page for more detail of how this is done.
3a. View a student’s page
3b. Add a Grade
and comment
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a. How to view a student’s Mahara page and place feedback below the page
(tutor guide continued)
When you click a student’s submission, it displays the student’s Mahara page. You can place feedback there
and this will be seen below the page by the student.
1. To see a text box area for your feedback, click the Place feedback link.
2. Add your feedback.
3. Click the Place Feedback button.
4. Click the Back to Moodle button to return directly to the list of submissions in Moodle.
Page Title and
student’s name/ID
Page. There would be more
content displayed here
1. Click Place feedback
2. Add your feedback
3. Click Place feedback
4. Back to Moodle
b. How to add a grade and a comment
When you click the Grade button, it displays a text box for you to add comments and paste a rubric table.
There is also a dropdown for you to place a mark.
5. Place your feedback. This will appear in the grade book
5. Place your comment
6. Choose a Grade (mark) from the dropdown box at the top
7. Click Save changes to return to the submissions
6. Choose a Grade
7. Click Save Changes
Submissions, updated, showing the Grade and the Comment:
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e-Learning Unit
Coventry University
The e-Learning Unit supports Moodle and a collection of elearning tools. Coventry University staff and students use
these e-learning tools as part of their teaching, learning and
research.
To find out more about the e-Learning Unit, go to:
http://www.coventry.ac.uk/elu
For an electronic copy of this guide, go to:
http://cuba.coventry.ac.uk/mahara
Anne wishes to thank her colleagues in the e-Learning Unit for their help in the creation of this guide.
Dr Anne Dickinson, Coventry University, CV1 5FB, UK
Anne Dickinson, e-Learning Unit, Coventry University UK. Mahara 1.4http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/deed.en_GB
March 2012
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