“Step-by-Step” Help for the new eFolio user
 Log In using your email address and password
 Use the Quick Tutorial to explore the myeFolio “build” screen
 Learn how to add & upload content
 Configure pages & site navigation
The following pages are designed to help you get started in your use of myeFolio.
You may “pick & choose” what you wish to do now and save other steps for later.
It does not replace the “in tool” context-sensitive “help notes” and it is not
designed to be a complete eFolio reference manual.
Last Revised: June, 2013
Developed by Lynne Groves, eFolio Implementation & Instructional Strategies Consultant
myeFolio
Primer
We encourage users to start with this so they get a sense of what they can do at a
basic level. From that point forward, each person tells their story and records their
experiences from learning, life and professional careers in their own way.
Additional media-guided help is available at our YouTube channel. View the
collection at http://www.youtube.com/user/efoliotutorials -- additional clips are in
production to support recent and upcoming enhancements so check back in the
future.
Content in the Primer is shared with eFolio* users for educational purposes under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoncommercialShare Alike 3.0 Unported License. Copyright  2009-2013.
* includes products branded as eFolioMinnesota™ -- myeFolio™ -- eFolioPA™ -- eFolioND™ -- MoodleRooms Joule-eFolio™
…what is an electronic portfolio?
If you're a student, an electronic portfolio can help you organize and
document your academic achievements, extracurricular activities and personal
interests.
You’ll have a living record of your success that you can add to throughout
your lifetime. It’s an ideal tool to support college scholarship applications,
admissions to graduate school, job applications and competitions while you are a
student. It can be a dynamic supplement to your resume after you leave college.
If you're an educator, an electronic portfolio can serve as an interactive
vita. Easily include papers, articles, presentations, honors and awards. Target
portions of your site for specific audiences so you can highlight different areas of
your career. Document continuing education and facilitate teacher certification. Let
others know about lectures you’re giving or grants you’ve been awarded.
Electronic portfolios have been described as “the next
generation of résumés." With an eFolio, you can
create and manage a lifelong living showcase of your
education, skills, career achievements, and personal
experience. Your eFolio site can really come alive with
the inclusion of documents, images, audio, and video
files to give audiences a dynamic look at what you
have done and what you can do. It is designed to grow
and evolve with you over time.
If you're a professional, looking for a new job or wanting to change
careers, an electronic portfolio is a great way to showcase your experience,
talents, education, and qualifications. What position, field or organization interests
you? What "evidence" shows that you’re qualified? Pick out the most relevant
information to include in your electronic portfolio. If you want your portfolio to serve
multiple purposes—for example, if you are pursuing both management and
marketing positions—you can create different usernames and passwords, to target
parts of your site to the right people. Present an impression that tells potential
employers you’re worth pursuing and interviewing.
Think about how you intend to use your electronic portfolio…then, get started! Your site will "come alive" with
media such as audio, images and video while surveys or links to other sites will engage your viewers.
…before you begin!
Collect – Collect the information for your electronic portfolio.
Add new content to your site as you gather resources.
…deciding what to include?
Everyone’s electronic portfolio is unique because experiences and goals are different. The
scope of your electronic portfolio is limited only by your imagination. Consider including:
Welcome: Summarize who you are and a bit about what visitors will find in your electronic
portfolio. Give your audience a flavor for what you’re all about and let them know what you
value.
Career or educational objective: Write a statement summarizing your objective. To be
meaningful, your objective should be as specific as possible.
Reflect – Reflection is a deliberate attempt to examine and
Résumé or curriculum vita: Summarize your education, achievements, and work experience.
document your learning. When you reflect on your
Include detailed information on your skills.
learning, think about your total learning experience. Add
Assignments or work samples: This information is as diverse as your background. Upload
reflections to content for added depth that bridges learning
articles, papers, projects, reports, and publications so your audience can see your work. You
and knowledge with your evidence and application.
can even include computer graphics, audio and video.
Surveys: Include a survey to ask your audience for their feedback/opinion of your work.
Build & Connect – Build your site using the electronic portfolio Awards and honors: Scan certificates of awards, honors and scholarship letters.
tool. Determine how your content, pages and sites should
Additional education: List conferences, seminars, workshops and any other professional
be displayed. (Example: Connecting pages for education,
development. Add courses, degrees, certifications, and licenses.
employment, and volunteer activities may mirror your
Volunteer and extracurricular activities: List your activities or illustrate them with a photo.
resume in a more interactive format. Multiple sites can
Students, consider music, sports and plays.
connect your learning evidence for specific audiences.)
References: List three to five people who have agreed to talk about your strengths, abilities and
experience. Be sure to include full contact information.
Publish – Publish your portfolio by making it public or inviting
Letters of recommendation and testimonials: Include praise you’ve received from employers,
visitors. You can let others view all sites or only a select
customers, professors, and colleagues.
site within your account. (Example: Targeting is helpful if
Military records, awards, and badges: Include when applicable.
you have multiple skills and are open to a variety of
Completion of Program-Specific Forms: Program faculty may require your completion of preemployment options.)
developed forms to collect evidence and learning reflections for assessment purposes.
As you work on your site, remember that your electronic portfolio will serve as a showcase for your very best
work but is also valid in documenting your growth and change over time.
Select – Select content objects that are most pertinent to your
goals. Content will be added to your site and later posted
to the pages in your layout.
Start by Adding Content & Building Page Layouts
 Log in to your account using instructions provided by your organization
 When adding new content to your eFolio, several object types are available.
Overview
The “Content Types & Definitions” (last page reference) will provide helpful notes within the context of this guide.
Content datatypes are directly aligned to IMS Portfolio Specifications which informs the fields and linking
behaviors unique to each form as you add content to your account. Data types currently include:







Activity
Affiliation
Artifact
Basic
Contact
Course Taken
Course Taught













Credential or Degree
Employment
Event
Goal
Google Drive
HTML
Skill
URL
Questionnaires
Uploaded File
Uploaded Image
Uploaded LodeStar
YouTube
IMPORTANT NOTE: eFolio employs an object-oriented interface where each content object posted to your account can be used in
multiple locations (on pages & sites) within your portfolio. Utilization of storage space and the elimination of duplicate entries is the
resulting efficiency of this approach as account owners build their content collection.
Open “New Content” located in the Content Management panel.


 Click the
“New Content”
title bar.
 Click the ► twisty if a category (Personal, Education, Work, Web Content, Upload or General) needs to be
expanded --- click the ▼ twisty again to collapse it.

 Click the
section (i.e.,
education) that
you prefer to
display content
types available

 Click the
Content Type
best matched
to what you
want to add.
(Ex., Artifact)

 Click the “Create” icon to open the
content data entry form or click
the “To-Do” icon if you simply wish to
post a reminder to be completed later.
The Help panel notes will assist you in using each
field of the content form.
Add a Contact
A contact identifies details for yourself or a person who is relevant to your activities, affiliations, or
education (associates, educators, employers, etc.) and may be later identified as a reference.
Entries in this category will also build your portfolio network of peers (as used in learning cohorts).
Steps to Follow:
1. Click the “New Content” label (left side) to open the panel
2. Click on the Personal, Education or Work category label
3. Select “Contact” from the Personal, Education or Work category --- click the “create” action icon
(It will make no difference if “Contact” is selected from any of the 3 categories – each is the same!)
4. Complete information for the following fields:
First Name =
Last Name =
Email =
5. Click the “Save” button
Add a Course Taken
6. Your content is now in the “My Content” panel. Go ahead…check it out!
Course Taken identifies the activities/process of learning. This may include any course, workshop,
or other offering that you have been enrolled in and potentially relates to an activity, artifact or
experience you may identify elsewhere in your portfolio.
Steps to Follow:
1. Click the “New Content” label (left side) to open the panel
2. Click on the Education category label
3. Select “Course Taken” from the Education category --- click the “create” action icon
4. Complete information for the following fields:
Course Title =
Start Date =
5. Click the “Save” button
6. Your content is now in the “My Content” panel. Go ahead…check it out!
To add files to your site, there is a short process to go through to make them available for use in
building your site. (Prepare files in PDF format when you can – it is best for viewing on the Web.)
Steps to Follow:
Upload a File
1. Click the “New Content” label (left side) to open the panel
2. Click on the Upload category label
3. Select “File” from the Upload category --- click the “upload” action icon
4. Click the “Browse” button to locate the file you wish to upload (using your operating system you
will find and select the file)
5. Provide a Title for your file. It should be short but very descriptive. Try and keep it between one to
three words. (This is helpful when you wish to locate the specific file at a later time.)
File extensions supported include Microsoft Office, PDF, CSS, HTML, MPEG, WAV, and several other formats. If
your file is not compatible with eFolio, a popup will alert you with "unknown file type".
6.
Click the “Save” button
7.
Your content is now in the “My Content” panel. Go ahead…check it out!
Upload an Image
To add images to your site, there is a short process to go through that makes the images available
for use when building your site. (Prepare images first by cropping, re-sizing or adjusting the color.)
Steps to Follow:
1. Click the “New Content” label (left side) to open the panel
2. Click on the Upload category label
3. Select “Image” from the Upload category --- click the “upload” action icon
4. Click the “Browse” button to locate the image you wish to upload (using your operating system
you will find and select the file)
Image file-naming extensions supported by eFolio include JPEG/JPG, GIF, PNG.
5. Provide a Title for your file. It should be short but very descriptive. Try and keep it between one to
three words. (This is helpful when you wish to locate the specific file at a later time.)
6. Provide an ALT tag using the description field.
7. Click the “Save” button
8. Your content is now in the “My Content” panel. Go ahead…check it out!
Note: There are some file types that are simply not supported for Web browsers but most common file types
are supported by eFolio. If you discover a file type that is essential to your use but not accepted by eFolio’s
upload process, please contact the eFolio support team to request assistance.
Add a Hyperlink … URL
You can add a hyperlink to an email address, an outside web page, or another page from within
your personal eFolio site. Once the content object is created, you might choose to add hyperlinks
to images, files, or content text. URL's add interactivity and can guide viewers through your site.
Steps to Follow:
1. Click the “New Content” label (left side) to open the panel
2. Click on the Web Content category label
3. Select “URL” from the Web Content category --- click the “Create” action icon
4. Complete information for the following fields:
URL Label = eFolio Help & Support
URL Type = HTTP (usually this is what you’ll want)
URL= efolio.custhelp.com
Note: Do not enter or include “http://” in the URL field because you have chosen the
correct “URL Type” in the previous field.
5. Click the “Save” button
6. Your content is now in the “My Content” panel. Go ahead…check it out!
Add YouTube Clip
Add a YouTube video clip by using eFolio’s special content type that processes the YouTube embed
code. Once posted to a page of your site, viewers can play and view the clip directly.
Steps to Follow:
1. Click the “New Content” label (left side) to open the panel
2. Click on the Web Content category label
3. Select “YouTube” from the Web Content category --- click the “Create” action icon
4. Complete information for the following fields:
Title = ______________________________
Description = (text you wish to add to provide context as to why you have included the clip)
Embed Code = (script copied from video clip in the “Share” settings at http://youtube.com)
5. Click the “Save” button
6. Your content is now in the “My Content” panel. Go ahead…check it out!
Other content objects including the Web Content (such as HTML and Google Docs), while not included in the
Primer, are certainly available for your use. If you already have evidence from your work that would benefit
from other content object types, go ahead and try them out!
Drag Content to a Page
The "drag and drop" features of eFolio make it easy for users to move and organize information.
Steps to Follow:
The basic sequence involved in drag-and-drop is:
1. On the right side, determine the page that you would like to place information on. Click the
appropriate page label and select "build" from the action icons that appear.
2. On the left side click “My Content” to find the appropriate content in the list.
3. Once you locate your content, click and hold down the button on the mouse or other pointing
device, to "grab" the object,
4. "Drag" the object/cursor/pointing device to the desired location (left sidebar, page body or right
sidebar)
5. "Drop" the object by releasing the button.
There is no "save" action as the workspace is automatically updated once the drop is complete.
Preview Page
Pages Unique to a Selected Site
Page-Controlled Site Navigation
You’ll want to see what your pages and site will look like in the Browser view --- that is how your
site visitors will see it. Previewing the site allows you to test your navigation, view the placement
of objects and learn what additional properties you may wish to adjust in content settings.
Steps to Follow:
1. Click the “Preview” button to see how your live site will display.
…this is located in the top yellow bar
2. The page displays in a new Window or Tab
3. Close the Window or Tab to return to your site building controls.
Note that context sensitive Help is displayed in the lower right-hand panel of your screen. That can assist you
as you use the functions provided.
Continue adding content to any page of your eFolio site.
Use an Artifact to describe a work sample, project, assignment, or other item. It is helpful to first
"upload" your file or image, & then complete the "Artifact" entry.
Steps to Follow:
Combine Content as an Artifact
1. Open the “New Content” panel
2. Select “Artifact” from the Education category --- click the “create” action icon. Note that the
“Content” accordion is open by default.
3. Complete information for the following fields:
Artifact Title = Sample of my Work
This field is required but you will want to build out the remaining entries with text or content.
Other sections are explained in detail on the following page if you want to refer to it.
- Optional: Select a type that best describes this documentation
- Brief Text can be used to provide a quick overview of the Artifact, enter a sentence or two that
highlights its key points.
- Full Text is a detailed description. Discuss how you started with this artifact and why it was
important for you. Describe your specific tasks or actions and any other relevant information.
- You may want to associate a file as "related content" to the Artifact by dragging it to that space.
If so…
a. Close the “Content” section (accordion) by clicking the Content label
b. Click to open the “Related Content” section (accordion) by clicking the Related Content label
c. Drag a content item from the “My Content” panel into the linkbuilder content placeholder
(more than one item can be added to the space).
4. Click the “Save”
5. As with other content, the Artifact will now be in your “My Content” panel and can be posted to
the page of your choice.
Learn more with additional details about the Artifact screen (form) on the next page.
Additional Details about Completing an Artifact Object
The artifact content data entry
form is examined in this guide.
While each object will call for
unique fields, most are quite
common and found in each of the
content types. Required fields are
displayed in Bold text…here, the
Artifact Title field is required.
Content
… will usually include “Brief Text”
and/or “Full Text” --- the choice of
field selection is best determined
by your intent for displaying the
text within a page. If posted to a
page sidebar, entries in the Brief
Text field will display by default. If
posted to the body of a page,
entries in the Full Text field will
display. A mouse click in either the
“Brief Text” or the “Full Text” field
will activate the appearance of a
formatting toolbar.
Additional content can be added
to the object by clicking the
► [twisty] for Related Content,
Reflection, or Feedback – these
are common fields in most content
forms.
Related Content
… a place for you to include other
content objects by dragging items
from My Content to the
linkbuilder space. (Note:
Linkbuilder content spaces will be
color shaded with a “DRAG
CONTENT HERE” notation.)
Multiple items can be added.
Reflection
… a place for adding one or
multiple comments at selected
time intervals. By default,
reflections are private but you will
learn how to control the
properties so visitors to your site
can access your comments.
Feedback
… a place where you will manage
feedback from online responses
and control what is displayed on
your “live site” pages.
Reminder: Saved content items
are in the My Content panel.
Manage or Modify Page Structure
Page properties include both required and optional settings that define your site navigation.
1.
ADD A NEW PAGE
Begin in your owner site and find Home in the right panel. To build pages that branch from your home page,
select "Home.” A pop-up menu with common icons will show up. You should select the green Add icon. Enter a
Title name (will show on your page outline and live site) and a URL Shortcut name. Typically users will leave the
Page Status set to "Enabled" and leave the location and format set to the default settings. Click OK.
2.
CHANGE PAGE NAME
The name displays as the title of the page when the page displays in a web browser. It should be short but very
descriptive. Try and keep it between one to three words. Additionally, a "short" name is applied the page. The
short name (called a URL Shortcut) will be added to the URL to access the page. Short, memorable and easy to
type text make excellent shortcuts. Cannot contain spaces, periods, commas, and other types of punctuation.
(Note the shortcut names that you should avoid as posted in the “Help” in the side panel.)
3.
RE-ORDER PAGES
New pages, as added, will display at the bottom of your page outline. To re-arrange the page outline, drag and
drop to anywhere on the list. Pages can be moved up or down on the list or moved into a sub-page position
under other pages.
4.
DELETE A PAGE
Pages can be removed from the site outline by clicking the page in the site outline. Select the red Delete icon –
when clicked, a confirmation message appears before the page (and any existing sub-pages) are removed from
the outline.
5.
PAGE STATUS
Apart from controlling the name for a page, pages can be set to the status of enabled, disabled, or hidden.
Enabled: part of the navigation structure; can be clicked into
Disabled: not able to view on the public site (but can build it)
Hidden: page can be accessed by link (URL) using address with the URL shortcut; is not listed in navigation
Other page properties exist and are often introduced as you advance in your work with eFolio.
Typical page modifications can be
modeled after the tasks below!
TASK: Change Home page name to Welcome
Step 1: Click on the Home page title
Step 2: Select Properties from the pop-out tools
Step 3: Change Title field from Home to Welcome
Step 4: Change URL Shortcut field from home to welcome
Step 5: Click the OK button
TASK: Move Activities page between Courses Taken & Photo Gallery
Step 1: Click and hold left mouse button on the Activities page title
Step 2: Drag it to the location (notice insertion line)
Step 3: Release the mouse button & the page has been re-sequenced
TASK: Set the Courses Taken page sub-level to the Education page
Step 1: Click and hold left mouse button on the Courses Taken title
Step 2: Drag it to rest on the location (notice selection border)
Step 3: Release the mouse button & the page has been re-positioned
Sample page layout is referenced in
the “step-by-step” notes.
TASK: Add a new page named Activities
Step 1: Click on the Home page title
Step 2: Select Add from the pop-out tool action icons
Step 3: Complete Title and URL Shortcut form fields
-- refer to the field sensitive right-panel “Help”
notes for assistance
Step 4: Click the OK button
TASK: Delete the page named Activities
Step 1: Click on the Activities page title
…pick the right page!
Step 2: Select Delete from the pop-out tools
Step 3: Read Question message in screen display – be
sure! There’s no “Undo” for page deletion
Step 4: Click Yes to complete “page deletion” action
Step 5: Refresh the screen view
What about multiple sites? Users can define more than one site within their eFolio account. The same objects (content) that are
used on a page in one of your sites can be used on another page in a different site. A site is a framework of pages that showcase you
and your accomplishments from your perspective.
Think of starting with one site that is all about you as a student or professional. Following that
scenario, it would be your “default” (or first) eFolio site. It showcases learning and activities related to
your experience through the objects you choose to post on available pages. Some of the content used
in your default site might also be good to include in a career-seeking site or when applying for funding
(grants, scholarships, etc.). You might add an electronic copy of your resume or CV as a private site
where you also share professional references that could be later provided as a URL to a potential
employer or used for other purposes.
Reference: eFolio Content Types & Definitions
Activity
Affiliation
Artifact
Basic
Contact
Course Taken
Course Taught
Credential or Degree
Employment
Event
Goal
Google Drive
HTML
Skill
URL
YouTube
Identifies what you have completed, are doing, or are preparing to do as related to an affiliation or
other portfolio objects.
Identifies a specific relationship you currently have, have experienced, or plan to establish with a group,
organization, or entity. It may be relevant to activities, artifacts, education, employment, events or skills
that you include in your portfolio.
Identifies an event, experience or created work that you value and is often included when it shows
evidence of competency or learning. Posting may include links to the created work or identify significant
details and expanded reflection. Users often use this content type to provide context and meaning.
Useful when adding an item not addressed by other content types (i.e., titles, pull quotes, extra details).
Identifies details for yourself or a person who is relevant to your activities, affiliations, or education (i.e.,
associates, educators, employers, etc.) and may be later identified as a reference. Entries in this
category will also build your portfolio network of peers (i.e., as used in learning cohorts).
Identifies the activities/process of learning. This may include any course, workshop, or other offering
that you have been enrolled in and potentially relates to an activity, artifact or experience you may
identify elsewhere in your portfolio.
Identifies the activities/process of educating or instructing. This may include any course, workshop, or
other offering that you have taught and potentially relates to an activity, artifact or experience you may
identify elsewhere in your portfolio.
Identifies documentary evidence (i.e., diploma, certificate, degree or other recognition of achievement)
that a qualification has been awarded.
Identifies the work or occupation for which one is usually paid including details about the employer or
place of employment. It relates to work or activities performed in carrying out assignments or requests
made by one’s employer. Examples may include volunteer services, apprenticeships, internships, or
practicum experience.
Identifies a date-specific occurrence of social or personal importance. As such it may include a wide
range of events (i.e., conferences, travel, or cultural and sporting events).
Identifies objectives you have accomplished or are intending to complete by expressing specific
personal, educational, or professional targets.
Provides a way for you to post a link to a Google document with “shared” permissions (such as view
only, add comments, or full editing) that can be accessed directly from the link posted in your eFolio.
Allows you to populate the item with well-formed HTML script or to embed code (i.e., IFRAME) for
technology applications such as blogs, wikis, video, podcasting or other forms of online interaction.
Identifies capacity to do something well; technique, ability; usually acquired or learned.
Identifies a string that describes the location and access method to provide a link to a web page, ftp site,
audio stream or other Internet resource.
Provides a way for you to directly post YouTube’s newest embed code for your published or selected
media clip. The results allow the media to playback from a page of your eFolio (embedded in the page).
Special Content Type Tasks
Questionnaires
(Forms)
Upload Tasks
Identifies question sets available for use during or after participation in an academic or professional
activity. Questionnaires usually address outcomes that may relate to required knowledge, attitudes or
skills. Within the portfolio context, attained proficiencies (previously documented in content, selected
artifacts or written reflection) are often included as linked evidence to support your responses to
specific questions. (Advice: Academic or certification value is optimal when elements are integrated as
directed by your college advisor, program of study, instructors or counselors.)
In addition to posting items by using the formats provided in each of the previously-listed content types,
you can upload files or images. (The format selected should open well in a Web browser.)
Finding the Content Types in Your eFolio Space
Categories
Content types are found by expanding eFolio’s “New Content” panel in groupings labeled as Personal,
Education, Work, Web Content, Upload, and General. Once added or uploaded (& saved), your content
objects are ready for use in pages—check your “My Content” panel. Content is grouped by type and can
be used in multiple places with unique display properties—no need to create objects more than once!
Terms and definitions are informed by IMS ePortfolio Specifications but represent the creative planning by and intellectual
property of the development advisory team and Avenet Web Solutions as applied in myeFolio.