What this book covers

Chapter 1, Mahara for the Visual Arts, explores the use of Mahara for reflecting on process, and demonstrates various methods for showcasing work. Techniques for customizing image displays and protecting access to images are also covered.

Chapter 2, Literature and Writing, focuses on the uses of Mahara for language acquisition and for showcasing various forms of writing. Recipes include the use of various types of journals, the creation of a small poetry book, and the use of reflections in learning a second language. The chapter also includes a short tutorial on using GIMP for creating illustrations.

Chapter 3, The Professional Portfolio, provides ideas and templates for building resumes, resume packages, and portfolios for Promotion and Tenure. The recipes range from a very basic resume page, to a highly complex portfolio containing collections within collections.

Chapter 4, Working with Groups, takes an in-depth look at Groups, one of Mahara's most powerful features. Recipes include the building of a newspaper with student columnists, web pages that feature student work, and techniques for building templates.

Chapter 5, The Primary Education Portfolio, is comprehensive and packed full of ideas; all readers will benefit from the varied and creative uses of Mahara in this chapter. An example of these is the international project recipe that explains the technique for adding a banner to a Mahara page. Other examples are the use of plans for book reports, and the use of Secret URLs for setting access levels.

Chapter 6, The Social Portfolio, is simply a fun chapter that explores how to "pimp" your Profile page. Add a slideshow, write on a wall, add a counter so you can see how many visitors you get, or add a Twitter feed. Regardless of what else you choose to share, everyone in your Mahara instance can see your profile page. Learn how to make it much more reflective of who you are.

Chapter 7, The College Application Portfolio, talks about building a college entrance art portfolio, and the Common Application and its various supplements. Recipes follow the standard application procedures. The chapter also includes the use of code for creating tables in Mahara. This code is available for download from the Packt website. With modification, the code could be used for additional purposes in the ePortfolio process.

Chapter 8, Certification and Accreditation Portfolio for Higher Education, examines the various ways Mahara can be used by Colleges and Universities for the ePortfolios they use to meet certification and accreditation requirements. Since accreditation standards vary across disciplines and regions, the ECIS International Teacher portfolio is used to provide ideas for the development of other similar portfolios.