WEEK 2 - Brochures and ePortfolios

This weeks workshop introduced us to Microsoft (MS) Publisher and ePortfolios.

Designing a brochure.

This activity saw us exploring MS Publisher. I am not familiar with this program so this activity was quite an eye opener. I had not idea that so many templates were available and with just a mere click you could be on your way to creating a masterpiece. I thoroughly enjoyed this activity where we were required to design a brochure to market a holiday destination. Obviously we only had a short period of time to crop, chop and manipulate, but still i can see how this will be a valuable tool for students to use. Ideas for use with students;

• To complement a project that they may be doing.
• To explore persuasive texts.
• To sum up an excursion that they have participated in. For example if students have participated in an excursion to Canberra they could design a brochure of the things that they enjoyed.
• To Create Menu's.
• Project presentations.
  

The opportunities are endless and varied.

Here is my brochure which is advertising Cairns.







The good thing about MS Publisher is that it has a variety of templates. So you are not just limited to brochures. It allows you to create;

• newspapers
• letters
• postcards
• menu's

Therefore you could use it for a variety of lessons such as letter writing, exploring newspapers and even creating a class newspaper. I know i could have used it when i had students exploring the story book 'Magic Beach' and they were required to create a postcard and send it to a friend. This is definitely a tool that can easily be incorporated into a lesson.

ePortfolios for students and teachers

The use of ePortfolios for students just blew me away. I guess i am so use to the A4 display folder that students use as their portfolio. Where they add various bits and pieces throughout the year and then in some cases prior to parent teacher interviews spend class time getting it up to scratch. They then pull it out at the parent teacher interview and show their parents their progress throughout the year. How much more exciting or should i say stimulating would it be as an ePortfolio, which can then be kept as a keepsake when on CD. Needless to say i found this quite inspiring. Also another reminder of how far technology has come. No longer is it a paper portfolio but an interactive, digital portfolio.

As Greg mentioned in the lecture - A digital or electronic portfolio is a collection of work or a display of artefacts that demonstrates one's skill level, progress and achievements in one or more areas of discipline over time. It is arranged so that they and others can see how their skills have developed and progressed. The collection must include contents, the criteria for selecting and judging content and evidence of reflection. As new work is completed the portfolio is updated Roblyer(2003) Barrett(2000).

My ePortfolio

Well considering that i am not computer savvy, i think i will stick to using MS Publisher to create my ePortfolio. I know that there are a variety of tools available to create an ePortfolio such as pebblepad (http://www.pebblepad.com/), MS Powerpoint etc and i'm sure there will be many more to come. I realise there is also much debate about the ePortfolio amongst our peers, but as far as i'm concerned if i have a digital copy and a paper copy when i go for an interview (fingers crossed) whats the harm! If you get the opportunity to show off your digital copy, then why not, it is a powerful tool so make the most of it!

At this point in time my ePortfolio will consist of:

• My educational philosophy
• CV
• PD's
• Teaching practicum reflections
• Works of art
• WebQuest
• Sample lesson plans