Profile: Setting up your own e-portfolios

Getting started with Profile.

If you work for a Higher or Further Education institution or another UK educational organization, we can set you up on Profile free of charge (other organizations, please contact us) and this document explains the preparatory process required. Once you have sorted out most of the points below then contact profile@uwe.ac.uk. You should also read Getting Access if you haven't done so already.

Step 1. Identify an Administrator for your students' e-portfolios.

  • Each type of e-portfolio activity performed by, say, your students (eg placements, PDP or CPD) takes place in a secure, autonomous 'realm' over which you have complete control. The person controlling your realm is called an Administrator and is nominated by you.
  • The Administrator manages your ‘realm’ by:
    a. maintaining a user database and
    b. uploading and configuring web-forms.
  • To perform these tasks, the minimum requirement is basic computer skills. If you can use a simple Excel spreadsheet and are able to browse to open files, say, when using Word, this will qualify you to perform the required tasks and administer the realm.
  • The person acting as Administrator can be changed at a later date, if required.

Step 2. Maintaining the user database.

  • The user database is maintained by entering the email addresses of all users involved in your realm into a simple Excel spreadsheet and defining each person’s role.
  • Using the template Excel spreadsheet (click here to obtain the template), the Administrator:
    • enters the email addresses of all users,
    • assigns the role of each user. For the trial site there are only three choices: STUDENT, ACADEMIC & SUPERVISOR.
  • The template looks like this with some example entries (which obviously must be deleted when you enter your own data):

  • Do not change any of the headers in row 1 (LIVE_EMAIL, DEAD_EMAIL etc).

  • Column A LIVE_EMAIL. In this column from A2 down, enter the email addresses of all the intended users of your realm. If you want to set up a trial site before using the system with actual students, you still need to include real email addresses as the passwords are sent to the email address in the list.

  • Don't fill in anything in Column B DEAD_EMAIL. The purpose of this will be covered in another tutorial.

  • Columns C - H are optional and for now just complete SURNAME, FIRSTNAME and TITLE, for ease of identifying the users.

  • Column I ROLE is an important column to complete. For each user, assign their role. There is only a choice of one of three: STUDENT, SUPERVISOR, ACADEMIC.

Step 3. Preparing the content of your Profile e-portfolios.

a. Produce a flow diagram of the task you wish to manage through Profile.

  • Any task that is managed by Word forms can be managed more effectively through Profile by using web-forms and web-pages. More on web-forms will follow but for the moment imagine that you have a booklet which you currently use to manage, say, student placements. Now consider that you are going to use a website to manage this activity instead and sketch out how the website would look - see example below:

  • Note that some of the sections above just deliver content and information and on Profile, these would be simple web-pages. Other sections are interactive where the users are completing sections, these would be web-forms.
  • If you have the electronic (Word) versions of your material and have the skills to produce web-pages and web-forms, your material can be mounted almost instantly.
  • If you have the Word versions of your materials and don't have the skills to produce web-pages and web-forms we can show you. Alternatively, for a very small fee, our web-form developers can convert your booklets and portfolios into the form necessary to get your site working. Contact us to find out how small this fee is!

To summarize: Once you get the following together,

  • The name and email address of the nominated Administrator.
  • The Excel spreadsheet with user email addresses and roles.
  • Electronic (Word or web) versions of your materials.

 ... then do not send it to us but contact us (profile@uwe,ac,uk) and we'll get you started on Profile. We do not need, nor wish, to see your database or e-portfolio content as that is all held confidentially by your Administrator.